[JURIST] The German parliament [official website] unanimously passed a law [law, PDF, german] Thursday expanding the definition of sex crimes, making any form of nonsensical sexual contact a crime. The new “no means no” law [Reuters report] protects victims of sexual attacks who withhold consent yet do not physically resist the attack. The old law required victims to physically resist in order to press charges. The legislation comes on the heels of a series of sexual assaults in the city of Cologne on New Year’s Eve. On January 18, German officials arrested an Algerian refugee in connection with at least one of the 497 reported sexual assaults during New Years Eve, although the man was released and his charges were cleared [Al Jazeera report] later in May. According to Heiko Maas, Germany’s Justice Minister, only one in 10 rapes are reported in Germany and only 8 percent of rape trials result in conviction

Germany has attempted to crack down on sexual offenders before. In Germany, sexual offenders may request surgical castration as a treatment method. Although the Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhumane or Degrading Punishment [official website] objects [JURIST report] to the practice noting: it has irreversible physical effects; surgical castration is not in conformity with recognized international standards; there is no guarantee the result sought will last and, given the context, free and informed consent is questionable. Germany and the Czech Republic are the only two European countries that allow sex offenders to choose surgical castration as a treatment options. Germany implemented the law in hopes of giving victims a voice and cracking down on sex-based crimes.