Affirmative consent

2022 - 8 - 31

Post cover — Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Victoria passes laws banning stealthing and requiring affirmative ... (The Guardian)

Victoria has adopted an affirmative consent model, shifting scrutiny off victims and back on to perpetrators of sexual violence.

The new laws mean judges can give juries directions about consent, and have to explain to them what “proof beyond reasonable doubt” means. The laws make clear that “stealthing” – the removing, tampering with, or not using a condom without consent – is a crime. The consent can include – but is not limited to – verbally asking and getting a “yes” in response, a physical gesture such as a nod, or reciprocating a move such as removing clothes.

Affirmative consent laws have passed in Victoria. Here's what that ... (ABC News)

The reforms are designed to strengthen the "affirmative consent" model in Victoria's sexual assault laws, but legal groups are concerned the changes will ...

"Our perspective is that there is no gap in the law, that the legislative framework accommodates for an affirmative consent model … "Although there's an increased incidence of this offending … In submissions the Criminal Bar Association made in response to the Victorian Law Reform Commission's report, the organisation said the state's "communicative model of consent" in the existing laws was "working as intended and should not be further amended". not held accountable for their actions". She said the organisation supported the changes related to "stealthing" included in the reforms but was opposed to increasing penalties for those convicted of image-based sexual offences. The state government has described the suite of changes to the Crimes Act as adopting an "affirmative consent" model as well as providing "better protections" for victims and survivors of sexual assault.

'No room for victim-blaming': Affirmative consent to become law (The Age)

Affirmative consent will become law in Victoria, shifting the onus onto a person accused of sexual assault to show consent was given.

“This is a crucial step in stopping all forms of violence against women,” she said. Victoria and NSW still left consent open to interpretation, she said. [Sign up here](/link/follow-20170101-p57ogt). “[But] they don’t achieve affirmative consent.” Burgin said the reforms failed to meet the test of affirmative consent because the new laws do not stipulate that consent be given continuously through words and actions. Affirmative consent will become law in Victoria after passing the state parliament, shifting the onus onto a person accused of sexual assault to show consent was given.

State makes affirmative consent the law (The West Australian)

Reforms which will change how sexual violence is dealt with in Victoria have passed the state's parliament. The new laws include amendments which will adopt ...

New jury directions to address misconceptions in sexual offence trials and reforms to better protect the confidential health information of sexual offence complainants are also included. “This new standard of consent in Victoria shifts the focus away from the victim and towards the accused and what actions they took to confirm consent.” Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence, Ros Spence, said the laws are intended to shift the responsibility to the person who is accused of sexual violence.

State makes affirmative consent the law (PerthNow)

Reforms which will change how sexual violence is dealt with in Victoria have passed the state's parliament. The new laws include amendments which will adopt ...

New jury directions to address misconceptions in sexual offence trials and reforms to better protect the confidential health information of sexual offence complainants are also included. Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence, Ros Spence, said the laws are intended to shift the responsibility to the person who is accused of sexual violence. One of the laws’ intentions is to shift the scrutiny from victim-survivors onto their perpetrators.

Affirmative Consent is Now the Rule in Victoria As Sexual Assault ... (The Latch)

Victoria passed legislation to reframe sexual assault, consent, and a host of other related issues. The laws adopt an affirmative consent model in victoria.

In her mind, none of this will be solved by a single Act, although it can be improved. Affirmative consent is not the be-all and end-all. The VLRC report made 99 recommendations for changes to Victorian law, 13 of which have been addressed with this new legislation. “These won’t fix the system and they’re not a silver bullet, but it does show the Victorian government is taking positive steps forward. This report found that sexual violence in Victoria is widespread but frequently doesn’t ever make it to court. It can’t be a one-and-done thing and understanding of consent has to be continuous. [stealthing](https://thelatch.com.au/what-is-stealthing/) has been made a specific crime. It’s an act that has long been the focus of sexual assault campaigners and [was made a crime in the ACT last year](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-08/act-criminalises-stealthing-in-australia-first/100522564). Deep-fakes are content that has been edited, often using AI, to make it look like one person is in a photo or video when they aren’t. Ros Spence, Victorian Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence, has said that “This is a crucial step in stopping all forms of violence against women. Getting consent no longer means the absence of saying no, which in many jurisdictions is how the law is applied, even if it doesn’t explicitly say that. [the definition of consent](https://thelatch.com.au/chanel-contos-consent-education-school-australian-curriculum/) across a range of legislation dealing with sexual crime to reflect an affirmative consent model.