The Island Executive Committee of the PSOE of Lanzarote has expressed this past Thursday its strongest condemnation of the "inadmissible statements" of the mayor of Tinajo, Jesús Machín, who acknowledged in the last municipal plenary session that the City Council has paid for hotel nights to avoid the arrest of alleged aggressors in cases of gender violence.
“We are facing a repulsive public confession of institutional complicity with the aggressor. We are not talking about a slip or an unfortunate statement, but about a fact of enormous gravity that cannot be accommodated in a democratic society,” said Cristina Duque, deputy secretary and spokesperson for the island executive of the PSOE of Lanzarote.
Likewise, the socialists have shown their “complete firm support for the colleagues of the Socialist Group in Tinajo, recognizing their courageous and committed work in defense of the victims and the law, and rejecting the unjustified attacks they have received from the mayor himself.” “Let no one have any doubts: we are not going to allow these practices or the attempts to discredit those who denounce them to go unpunished,” stresses Duque.
The island executive has also criticized the complicit silence of Coalición Canaria, which has not yet spoken clearly about the conduct of its mayor. “Silence, lukewarmness or equidistance only serve to reinforce the message of impunity for aggressors. If Coalición Canaria does not act, it becomes a political accomplice to an intolerable institutional outrage,” warns the socialist spokesperson.
It is not the mayor's responsibility
The PSOE recalls that it is not up to any mayor to decide whether or not to arrest an alleged abuser. That is what the security forces, official protocols and justice are for. Bypassing this institutional framework to improvise solutions outside the law, with public money, is a direct attack on the principles of equality, justice and protection of victims.
Likewise, the island executive concludes by emphasizing that the fight against gender violence requires courageous, responsible institutions that are truly committed to defending women's rights. “There is no room for nuances, there are no excuses and, of course, it cannot be tolerated that this is the response of a public institution to such a serious crime. Whoever acts like this must assume political responsibilities immediately,” Duque concluded.
