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WORLD NEWS Tuesday 15 May 2018

French women criticize Brexit in space: EU, Britain

proposed sexual fight over Galileo navigation

violence bill

By SYLVIE CORBET Women’s groups are go-
Associated Press ing to protest in from of the
PARIS (AP) — France’s low- National Assembly on Tues-
er house of parliament on day.
Monday started debating France’s highest adminis-
a law to fight sexual and trative court, the Council of
gender-based violence — State, warned the govern-
a proposed bill that comes ment that setting an auto-
in the wake of the #MeToo matic legal age of consent
movement but is being could be seen as violating
strongly criticized by wom- an adult’s presumption of
en’s groups. innocence and would be
The government says the therefore declared uncon-
law, which is being exam- stitutional.
ined at National Assembly The government then de-
on Monday and Tuesday, cided to change the text
aims to better protect chil- to allow judges to take into
dren under 15 by introduc- account the children’s vul- From left, Liberal Democrat former deputy PM Nick Clegg, Tory ex-education secretary Nicky
ing new provision that rape nerability. Morgan and Labour former foreign secretary David Miliband speaking at a cross-party intervention
and sexual assault can re- The bill extends the statute Brexit negotiation at Tilda Rice Mill in Rainham, England, Monday, May 14, 2018. Associated Press
sult from an “abuse of vul- of limitations on sex crimes,
nerability” of the victim. allowing prosecution for By RAF CASERT or Norway.” The Galileo system has a
But women’s groups in- 30 years after a purported Associated Press Reduced to a friendly third top security Public Regulat-
sist the text doesn’t go far victim turns 18, rather than BRUSSELS (AP) — Brexit talks country at best has an- ed Service for governments
enough. They want an ex- the current 20 and imposes have reached into space, gered the British govern- that only EU members can
plicit declaration that any- fines of 90 euros ($108) for with the European Union ment, which sees it as a now fully use. Third coun-
one under 15 cannot con- gender-based public ha- and Britain fighting over the negotiating ploy in the pro- tries and their companies
sent to sex with an adult. rassment on streets or pub- rights that London will have tracted Brexit negotiations cannot participate in the
They say the current version lic transportation.q to the multi-billion Galileo that face a fall deadline if development of PRS secu-
of the law would minimize satellite navigation system Britain’s March 29, 2019 de- rity modules, Barnier said.
the rapes of younger vic- and its security-sensitive in- parture date is to proceed “Decisions have conse-
tims. formation. smoothly. quences,” said EU for-
Two recent cases prompt- The EU’s Brexit negotiator British Science Minister Sam eign affairs chief Federica
ed outrage on the topic Michel Barnier said Mon- Gyimah told the BBC “we Mogherini, as she and Barni-
after French courts refused day that by deciding to have helped to develop er highlighted that with the
to prosecute men for rape leave the bloc, Britain au- the Galileo system. We 2016 Brexit decision, Britain
after they had sex with tomatically cut its Galileo want to be part of the se- decided to leave some 750
11-year-old girls because ties too and could renego- cure elements of the sys- international agreements
authorities couldn’t prove tiate them only as a third tem and we want U.K. in- in one fell swoop.
coercion. French law country under less advan- dustry to be able to bid for Barnier, meanwhile, con-
doesn’t set a legal age of tageous conditions. contracts on a fair basis.” tinued to lament the snail’s
consent for sex. “No decision has been al- “The EU is playing hardball pace of progress in the EU’s
ready taken for the future with us,” Gyimah said. Brexit talks with Britain, insist-
cooperation between the Barnier insisted, however, ing that a crucial June 28-
U.K. and Galileo,” he told that Britain itself, as an EU 29 EU summit on the issue
reporters in Brussels. “Obvi- member, was part of the was quickly drawing close.
ously we will have coop- unanimous decision that When queried if there was
eration between U.K. and “for some information we very little progress in recent
Galileo, obviously, as we have to protect the mem- weeks, he said “a little, not
have for the United States ber states.” very little.”q