Italy’s parliament on Tuesday approved a law that introduces femicide into the country’s criminal law and punishes it with life in prison.
The vote coincided with the international day for the elimination of violence against women, a day designated by the U.N. General Assembly.
The law won bipartisan support from the center-right majority and the center-left opposition in the final vote in the Lower Chamber, passing with 237 votes in favor.
The law, backed by the conservative government of Premier Giorgia Meloni, comes in response to a series of killings and other violence targeting women in Italy. It includes stronger measures against gender-based crimes including stalking and revenge porn.
This is a legal response to a legal problem. If there are societal causes that can be studied and addressed, it’s not the job of the legal system to undertake that.
But let’s be real here. If it bothers you that women are getting “special treatment” due to a disproportionate level of violence against them, you’re really not going to like the outcome and findings of a “study” to figure out why it’s happening.