Ali B conviction sparks public debate on consent
Ali B’s conviction for sex offences is receiving lots of media attention and sparking fresh debate around consent. Professor Jeroen ten Voorde discussed the impact of this case with Amsterdam-based daily newspaper ‘Het Parool’.
On 12 July, Ali B, one of the most well-known rappers in the Netherlands, was sentenced to two years in prison for rape and attempted rape. His case coincided with the new Dutch Sexual Offences Act, known colloquially as the new ‘Rape Law’). Consent is the central focus of this law. From now on, both parties must give their explicit consent to sexual acts and victims are no longer required to prove that they were coerced. Jeroen ten Voorde, Professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, said that this new law is inextricably linked to the #MeToo movement that began back in 2017. As in 2017, the case of Ali B is sparking fresh debate around sexual violence and consent.
Speaking to Het Parool, Professor ten Voorde explained that the real public debate on consent is yet to begin: ‘When is something morally unacceptable and when is it punishable? Where do we draw the line? The real discussion between parents and children, at school, in the pub, in the canteen, at work and in the media about what we think is acceptable behaviour and what isn’t – that needs to start now.’
Read the full article in Het Parool (in Dutch, €).
Photo: Mihai Surdu through Unsplash