'Rape lasted only 11 minutes': Swiss women protest court ruling reducing rapist's sentence

Hundreds of Swiss citizens flooded the street in front of an Appeals Court on Tuesday to protest against the reduced prison sentence of a rapist by the prosecutors after they shockingly argued that the victim had not been severely injured and that the sexual assault had lasted “only 11 minutes,” local Swiss press reported.  Basel courthouse witnessed mass protests as women expressed angst flashing banners and shouting “11 minutes are 11 minutes too much!” as they decried the Swiss apex court's ruling that cut the  33-year-old defendant's prison time from 4 years to three months, to just three years.

The judges had also briefly committed ‘victim shaming’ as they had alleged that the woman sent out “certain signals” to her assaulter, although a spokeswoman for the court refused to elaborate on that narrative, sources told Swiss press reporters. 

The incident occurred at a private nightclub in February 2020 where the 33-year-old assaulter met the 17-year-old woman, reportedly his companion, whom he later raped after non-consensual sexual advancements. The former was tried in a Swiss juvenile court after the victim reported him. According to Swissinfo, the court ruled that the victim would not have been severely injured if she hadn’t “played with fire”, a remark that sparked a backlash nationwide. A female judge reportedly said the female rape victim had called upon her the rape by sending out “signals” and that “it must be noted that [the victim] was playing with fire”.

Cantonal public prosecutor asks 'to wait' for written verdict

Women marched as they slammed the court’s ruling wherein the accused man’s partly conditional prison sentence was not only lowered but also, he was subjected to leniency. Neither party’s identities have been revealed. The victim’s attorney expressed ‘shock’ at the appeal court’s ruling stating that the judges appeared to blame the victim. The controversial verdict was declared in the Swiss courtroom last month, although a written ruling is due to be published in a few weeks.

A cantonal public prosecutor stated that they would wait for the written document before taking the case to the Swiss Federal Court. In June, Swiss women had organized a historic women’s strike as they demanded that the government must bring in “modern sexual criminal law” for the protection of women. Females appealed for a revision of the Swiss Penal Code as sexual violence against women became much more widespread in Switzerland in recent years.