Spain's Equality Ministry wants drug dealer assaults classed as gender violence

Government extends gender violence law to assaults by 'camellos'

Spain's Ministry of Equality, headed by Ana Redondo, has proposed including assaults suffered by women in the context of drug trafficking — particularly at the hands of dealers — within the gender violence law (Spain's 2004 law against male violence in relationships). The proposal, first reported by journalist Manu Torralba on 18 July 2026, seeks to extend protection beyond partners and ex-partners to also cover women who are victims of violence in environments of addiction and drug dealing.

According to ministry sources, the measure is justified by the high prevalence of physical, sensual, psychological and even economic violence suffered by women who use drugs or are tied to drug networks. Yet the debate raises doubts: is the original concept of gender violence being blurred? Or is it a necessary tool to protect an especially vulnerable group?

The risk of diluting the law

One of the most frequent criticisms is that the gender violence law, designed to combat sens violence within relationships, is being stretched to cover conduct that has little to do with discrimination on the grounds of sens. A dealer's violent treatment of a customer does not necessarily stem from a patriarchal structure, but from the dynamics of the illegal market itself: debts, score-settling, coercion to pay in kind. Mixing the two phenomena may end up trivialising gender violence and, in the process, diverting resources away from their original intended recipients.

The reality of violence in the traficante world

Supporters of the measure point out that women trapped in drug addiction are easy prey for dealers who exploit them sensual in exchange for doses. The testimony gathered describes situations of systematic abuse: women forced to provide sens for a wrap, or threatened and beaten if they fail to pay. In these cases the violence is instrumental and not necessarily gender-based, but the victims are overwhelmingly women. The ministry argues that classifying it as gender violence would trigger specific protection protocols and specialised resources.

An ever-expanding empire

The shadow of opportunism also hangs over the proposal. Some analysts suggest that expanding the catalogue of gender violence responds to a bureaucratic logic: the more types of conduct are covered, the more budget and staff are needed to handle complaints. It is no coincidence that the initiative emerges at a time when the ministry is looking for new areas of intervention. As one comment quipped: "First it was the partner, then heatstroke, now street dealers." The risk of inflating gender violence statistics to justify budget lines is real.

The underlying debate is whether the law should be a universal umbrella for all violence against women, or whether it should retain its specificity. Meanwhile, women trapped in drug trafficking continue to suffer in no man's land.