The Spanish government strongly condemned Tuesday, September 7 the violent assault in broad daylight on Sunday of a young homosexual in central Madrid, an attack for which the police are still looking for the eight masked perpetrators.
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The incident occurred just two months after the murder in a beating of another young gay man in the north of the country, an attack suspected of being homophobic and which had scandalized Spain.
On Sunday, around 5:00 p.m. (3:00 p.m. GMT), the 20-year-old victim was attacked by eight masked people in the hall of his building, located in the very fashionable district of Malasaña, told AFP a door- police word.
The attackers, who hurled homophobic slurs at her, slashed her lip with a penknife which they also used to write "
maricon
" on her buttocks, the Spanish equivalent of "
queer
", she detailed .
Spain, an "
open country
"
The nature of the assault deeply shocked Spain, a country that is very open on the issue of homosexuality and where nine in ten people say they would support a family member if the latter were homosexual, lesbian or bisexual, according to a recent study by the YouGov polling institute.
Police analyze CCTV cameras and question witnesses to determine "
if this is really a homophobic assault or a hate crime,
" added the police spokesperson.
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"
Hate crimes must be firmly condemned by the political class and by society,
" said government spokeswoman Isabel Rodriguez on Tuesday, who also announced that Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez would convene the government commission on Friday. hate crimes. Pedro Sanchez said on Twitter Monday evening that there was "
no room for hatred
" in Spanish society. "
I strongly condemn this homophobic attack
," he wrote, pleading for an "
open country
" where "
no one would fear being who they are
." Demonstrations were called Wednesday and Saturday, especially in the famous Puerta del Sol square in Madrid.
This attack comes two months after the death of Samuel Luiz, 24, beaten up near a nightclub in La Coruña (north), a crime which had led to numerous demonstrations bringing together several thousand people.
