The leader of the Popular Party, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has charged this Friday against number two of Vox for Valencia, where both formations have agreed to govern the Generalitat, following statements by José María Llanos in which he stated that “violence of gender does not exist”. Feijóo has not taken long to step out. “Gender violence exists and each murder of a woman shocks us as a society,” he said on Twitter..
The president of the PP thus defended that from the party “they will not take a step back” and that “they are not going to renounce their principles, whatever the cost”. However, minutes later and before the wave of criticism, Llanos has rectified his words and has qualified that he does condemn macho violence, but denies “the existence of gender violence”.
Gender violence exists and each murder of a woman shocks us as a society.
From @ppopular we will not take a step back in the fight against this scourge.
We are not going to give up our principles, whatever it costs us.https://t.co/kbhtPgTV6y
– Alberto Núñez Feijóo (@NunezFeijoo) June 16, 2023
Feijóo made these statements after Llanos told TVE that “gender violence does not exist” and defended the concept of “domestic violence”, a concept used by the party on numerous occasions. For Vox, “intrafamily” violence means “that violence can be generated in affective relationships, and the victim, who is often a woman, as is true, will be more protected with tougher penalties from governments in the let Vox be”. Llanos has argued that his formation does not believe “that people have gender, they have sex”, and that “victims are victims and criminals are criminals, whether they are men, women, dependents, the elderly or children”.
For his part, Carlos Mazón, PP candidate for the Generalitat, has also spoken out in this regard, following the line of Feijóo and moving away from the line of his partners. On his Twitter account, he has assured that “he will not stop fighting” against the scourge of sexist violence, and has taken the opportunity to launch a message about the future coalition government: “The government that he presides over is not only going to not give a step back, but will reinforce any measure of protection for women against any form of violence”.
This clash occurs a few days after the Popular Party and Vox signed an agreement in the Valencian Community, despite the fact that Feijóo had opted for moderation and to stay away from the far-right party. As a result of this pact, the popular leader's speech changed and he stated that he was going to authorize new coalitions with Vox, both at the municipal and regional level, if his territorial candidates decided so, in whom he has “absolute confidence”..
It should be noted that in one of the points of the Valencian pact they establish that they will defend “the rights of families and promote policies to eradicate intra-family violence, especially that suffered by women and children, guaranteeing equality among all victims”. The pact does not refer to gender violence, but to the concept that Vox defends and that has been assumed by the popular ranks.