Some Swiss Cantons Are Ill-Prepared For New Sex Offences Legislation

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) Some Swiss cantons, especially in German-speaking Switzerland, are inadequately prepared for the new criminal law on sexual offences which will be implemented from July 1. According to a think tank, there is a lack of support for victims and shortfalls in the securing of evidence, among other things.

This content was published on June 24, 2024 - 11:59 3 minutes Keystone-SDA

Check out our selection of newsletters. Subscribe here .

The think tank Reatch reported on Monday that there is a lack of training and further education regarding the new law, particularly for police and hospital specialists. In collaboration with the think tank, a research group conducted a survey of cantonal administrations and professional associations on this topic.

+ Switzerland will enforce new definition of rape from July

With the revised criminal law on sexual offences, which comes into force on July 1, the principle of“no means no” now applies. Rape is therefore deemed to have occurred if a victim has made their refusal clear, for example through words, gestures or if the victim is petrified with fear and is unable to express their refusal or defend themselves. It is no longer necessary for the victim to fight back.

German-speaking Switzerland lags behind

According to the report, the cantons of Bern, Jura, Uri, Vaud and Valais have already taken the necessary measures to implement the revised law or are in the process of doing so. In other cantons, however, including Appenzell Outer Rhodes, Glarus and Obwalden, hardly any efforts have been made, the researchers stated in their report.

The bottom line is that the cantons in French-speaking Switzerland are much further advanced with relevant measures than German-speaking Switzerland.

+ How a new definition of rape could impact Swiss law

The report shows that in addition to problems in securing evidence, victims often have to coordinate between the relevant contact centres and authorities, and there is a lack of trust in the latter. Furthermore, the data available on the topic of sexualised violence in Switzerland is poor and there are many rape myths in society. There is also a lack of options for male victims, with support primarily focussed on women, the report said.

Adapted from German by DeepL/dkk/sb

This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.

If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here , and if you have feedback on this news story please write to ... .

External Content Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again. Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you. Daily news

Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox.

Daily

Email

The SBC Privacy Policy provides additional information on how your data is processed.

I consent to the use of my data for the SWI swissinfo newsletter.

Most Discussed More Debate Hosted by: Katy Romy June 9 votes in Switzerland: how can healthcare costs be reined in?

On June 9, Swiss voters decided on two initiatives aimed at capping the cost of healthcare in the country. Have your say on the issue here.

Join the discussi Jun 5, 2024 83 Likes 79 Comments View the discussi More Debate Hosted by: Bruno Kaufmann How can democracy be enhanced in schools?

How can we improve democracy education to better prepare students for civic engagement?

Join the discussi May 24, 2024 10 Likes 41 Comments View the discussi More Debate Hosted by: Elena Servettaz Should politics be kept out of sporting and cultural events?

Cultural and sporting events are being increasingly politicised. Is this a problem?

Join the discussi May 28, 2024 17 Likes 16 Comments View the discussi More Debat Ne More Football legend Ronaldinho opens restaurant in Geneva

This content was published on Jun 24, 2024 The former Brazilian football star Ronaldinho has opened his first restaurant near Geneva in western Switzerland. The restaurant serves burgers and is named "R10" after the famous footballer's shirt number.

Read more: Football legend Ronaldinho opens restaurant in Genev More Six hydroelectric power plants hit by flooding in southeast Switzerland

This content was published on Jun 24, 2024 Six hydroelectric power stations belonging to the energy group Axpo have been affected by flooding in the Misox region in canton Graubünden in southeast Switzerland.

Read more: Six hydroelectric power plants hit by flooding in southeast Switzerlan More Swiss canton of Jura celebrates triumph through 'conviction'

This content was published on Jun 24, 2024 Citizens and celebrities from canton Jura on Sunday celebrated the 50th anniversary of a historic referendum that led to the creation of Switzerland's youngest canton.

Read more: Swiss canton of Jura celebrates triumph through 'conviction More Euro 2024: Switzerland heads to knockout stage after 1:1 draw against Germany

This content was published on Jun 23, 2024 Switzerland heads to the knockout stage of the Euro 2024 after a 1:1 draw with Germany.

Read more: Euro 2024: Switzerland heads to knockout stage after 1:1 draw against German More One dead, two missing after landslide in Switzerland

This content was published on Jun 23, 2024 Three are missing after heavy rains caused a landslide in southeastern Graubünden, police have said. One woman was rescued alive on Saturday.

Read more: One dead, two missing after landslide in Switzerlan More Swiss glaciers show signs of recovery after snowy winter

This content was published on Jun 23, 2024 Swiss glaciers, heavily impacted by climate change, benefited from heavy snowfalls this winter.

Read more: Swiss glaciers show signs of recovery after snowy winte More Eritreans demonstrate in Bern against repression and racism

This content was published on Jun 23, 2024 More than 800 Eritreans demonstrated in front of the federal building in Bern on Saturday.

Read more: Eritreans demonstrate in Bern against repression and racis More Storm damage to major Swiss motorway may impact summer travel

This content was published on Jun 23, 2024 The A13 motorway was severely damaged by flooding due to heavy storms on Friday evening.

Read more: Storm damage to major Swiss motorway may impact summer trave More Switzerland to send liaison officer for talks with Eritrea

This content was published on Jun 23, 2024 The Swiss government intends to send a liaison officer for talks with Eritrea.

Read more: Switzerland to send liaison officer for talks with Eritre More Swiss roads are too congested, say survey respondents

This content was published on Jun 22, 2024 The survey on traffic perceptions comes a few months before a controversial vote on motorway expansion.

Read more: Swiss roads are too congested, say survey respondent

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at ... .

MENAFN24062024000210011054ID1108365074