The hybrid gathering of expert speakers, including academics, civil society and survivors (with an audience of over 100) sought to bring together the perspective of survivors and the legal angle in order to troubleshoot the challenges of structural gender violence in Spanish legal systems and surrounding institutions. The key themes that came across included outlining current reflections and challenges in both the Spanish and international contexts, and proposing ways forward to effect change.
Key themes and discussions
The first panel foregrounded survivors and their representatives, emphasizing the lived realities of institutional violence. Speakers illustrated how the judicial system often perpetuates secondary victimization—placing parental rights above children’s welfare, reinforcing gender stereotypes, and privileging aggressors. Their testimonies exposed how systemic bias manifests in legal proceedings, child custody cases, and bureaucratic gatekeeping, demonstrating that the justice system itself can become a site of violence. At the same time, these voices underscored the power of community networks and feminist solidarity as counter-forces to institutional neglect and abuse. Their interventions affirmed that centering survivor experiences is essential to achieving meaningful reform.
