María Eugenia Rodríguez Palop (Llerena, 1970) is a professor at the Faculty of Law of the Carlos III University. He was head of the Unidas Podemos list for the European Parliament in 2019 and in the summer of 2023 he coordinated the preparation of the Sumar coalition’s electoral program for the general elections. After the end of the European legislature, Rodríguez Palop left his organic positions at Sumar, in which he coincided with Iñigo Errjeón, and rejoined the University.
“Politics is unhealthy, the way in which politics is exercised is unhealthy,” says Rodríguez Palop: “This is not the fault of politicians alone and it certainly does not justify sexist behavior or reprehensible or allegedly criminal attitudes. Understanding well that there may be contexts in which it is easier to develop toxic subjectivity, this subjectivity is neither developed by everyone nor translated in the same way in all cases. It would have been desirable, given that one resigns from all his positions, which is what he has to do, that in his farewell there had really been a sincere assumption of responsibility, which does not seem to have been there.
What do you think of the resignation of Íñigo Errejón?
It is the most reasonable solution that can be given to this matter. That Movimiento Sumar and Más Madrid had pressured him to resign and that the Movimiento Sumar executive had unanimously accepted his resignation was the only alternative.
What do you think of Errejón’s statement?
The statement is self-incriminating, but it seems very insufficient to me, because nothing is clarified about what happened and responsibilities are externalized: neoliberalism, the pace of politics and patriarchy generate toxic subjectivities, certainly, but he is not the only one who It is subject to similar structures and dynamics. There are other men who are dedicated to politics who are also there, and they do not derive as it seems to have derived here.
And, of course, women have never been identified with behaviors of these characteristics, being subjected to the same thing to an even greater extent, because they experience much higher pressures just for the fact of being women, as is more than proven. And, in addition, many of them also suffer workplace and sexual harassment from colleagues and bosses, as has also been proven.
That is why I believe that the letter should have been written in other terms and a sincere assumption of responsibility is missing.
Errejón does not mention everything that is coming out.
He doesn’t mention it, no. He tells us about his personal situation and the way he has experienced politics. And, yes, we are all sons of patriarchy, daughters of patriarchy… but by that rule of three, practically all crimes committed against women would be explained and justified.
You have had a temporary stint in politics for five years during your university career. Have you experienced that pressure that he mentions? And, on the other hand, have you perceived inappropriate attitudes within politics?
I have experienced it, of course, but I believe to a lesser extent than other women who are active in political formations, in organic positions, in parliaments or executive positions, where the pressure is infinitely greater than in the European Parliament.
In fact, in the European Parliament there is a protocol, although insufficient, to try to prevent and stop sexual harassment of women, both deputies and non-deputies. I was a speaker in the resolution that demanded that this protocol be refined and there we were able to verify that the majority of state parliaments lack any protocol.
I was in a space where some attention is now paid, at least from a formal point of view, to these types of issues.
Regarding the second question, it is evident that situations of violence and sexual harassment often occur in politics; this has been more than studied and corroborated.
But politics is not the only space in which they occur, we already know. There is the business field, that of culture or that of the media. In short, where power is exercised and where power is held by a few, generally men, for the moment, cases of violence and sexual harassment cannot be ruled out.
It is a transversal modus operandi to the right and to the left. What happens is that on the left it is more painful because it is assumed that the commitment to feminism is greater or more conscious, and what is expected is that it be contained, prevented or pursued more effectively.
How is the Government after this? Do you hit the flag of feminism? And how are Sumar and its political space?
Starting with the second, I think it is a blow to Sumar’s political space, because Íñigo Errejón is an important politician, a brilliant spokesperson, a great intellectual and has been a key piece for its composition.
It is a blow taking into account the prominence that Íñigo was going to have in the articulation of Yolanda Díaz’s party, Movimiento Sumar, and in the internal relationship that this political formation was going to have with the rest of the parties that are part of the coalition. We also lose a spokesperson and a deputy who is difficult to replace, it cannot be denied.
In short, it is a blow for the political formation to which she belongs and for a coalition that has feminism as its flag. And she has it with all justice, of course, because she has done a lot in favor of feminism. His policy has been very transformative for our country and at a European level. Without the contribution to feminist policies of Unidas Podemos at the time and Sumar later, very few things would have changed in Spain and Europe.
Therefore, unfortunately, what has happened could undermine the legitimacy and credibility of the feminist discourse of Sumar and the entire government, although I do not think it will call into question the firm commitment to feminist policies.
There are few countries in Europe with a Ministry of Equality. One of them is Spain. And there are only two countries with a gender violence law. One of them is Spain. There are few countries that have implemented the Istanbul Convention with a yes is yes law, as has been done in Spain. In fact, we have already seen resistance in France and Germany to the incorporation of the criminal offense of rape in the European directive, despite having ratified the Istanbul Convention.
That is to say, the resistance to the advance of feminism is powerful and in Spain, however, both under this Government and under the previous one, the protection of women’s rights has been singularly favored.
The reprehensible behavior, even, I insist, allegedly criminal, of a person in this area, cannot be extended to anything or anyone else, unless proven otherwise.
The problem is that we have an opposition that is grasping at straws because it has no more nails to hold on to. That is why we have to be cautious, careful, react appropriately and forcefully. Because the issue deserves it and because the opposition is going to use it in a furious and exacerbated way.
Returning to Errejón’s statement. When he talks about the difference between the person and the character, you who have been through politics. Is that so real?
Yes it is. I think there is increasing pressure from the media and networks, also fueled by political groups, for politicians to become characters. Nor does it help that political parties function as companies or competitive brands in a permanent race to overcome eternal-possible early elections, because in that context leadership is not distinguished from market products, to the point that the paradox of that a politician ends up being the protagonist of his own politics of spectacle. In other words, it is clear that there is tension between the person and the character, and it is logical that for certain personalities it is difficult to control and resolve. It does not surprise me that there are mental health problems in spaces defined and marked in this way.
On Thursday on Hora 25, on SER, he commented that when accusations of alleged harassment by Errejón surfaced online, they were not taken into account.
I was not yet on the Sumar executive, I joined almost a year later, but I was a MEP and I was in that political space. I was aware of that tweet [denunciando un supuesto abuso en un festival en Castellón] as I think everyone had. I don’t know if anyone knew the case in depth or firsthand. Now some data has come out about that.
But the truth is that nothing was done at that time. And I believe that investigative work could have been done to verify the veracity of that complaint, exactly the same as now because, at that time, the complaint also nominally indicated it. Today it is clear that not enough was done and that is the first thing that must be recognized without palliatives or ambiguities. I understand that in politics many things happen at the same time, that many decisions are made quickly, that sometimes sensitivity to certain situations is lost, but that is no justification. Now the problem has intensified and the feeling is that the victims have been left alone.
It must be recognized that some women who have reported have not been given credibility or protection. That it be reported in a timely manner in the courts, as the Minister of Equality has said, is obviously desirable, but in these contexts these types of complaints can be risky. and today [por el viernes] that there has been a complaint of that type, the complainant has explained it perfectly.
In short, it is important to distinguish a tweet from a complaint and an anonymous complaint from an identified complaint. You cannot act the same in one case as in another and you must respect the presumption of innocence in both cases. But, in the same way that now the alarms have been activated and there has been a reaction, at that moment there could have been a reaction as well.
It doesn’t have to be easy to report something like this.
It doesn’t have to be easy, it’s not easy. And we all know that when you report someone in power there can be consequences. Not only does one suffer from a lack of credibility and isolation, but more or less hidden revenge is also orchestrated.
And then there is the element of the assumption that men on the left should be feminists, should have feminist attitudes, should be allies. And when these cases arise, a shock occurs.
It’s a shock and it should be a shock. Not so much because people on the left must be feminists, but because people on the left often call themselves feminists and, therefore, they must be. If feminism is made a flag, a certain coherence between what is said and what is done must be assumed.
I have said it on many occasions, I do not believe that politicians necessarily have to be moral references, and furthermore they cannot be required to perform heroic acts or levels of coherence that practically no one is capable of reaching, but, in politics, to the extent in which a position of public representation is held, we must demand more coherence between words and actions. If this lack of coherence translates into highly reprehensible, even punishable, acts, we must assume responsibilities, drop the charges, explain what happened and ask for forgiveness. Recognize and compensate the victims in the political and social field, beyond what may happen legally later.
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