Now only yes means yes
06 June 2025
It took years of work, but today the parliament will finally make it happen: Norway is getting a consent-based rape law. This means Norway joins 25 other European countries in redefining rape as sex without consent. It’s the last Nordic country to make the change.
Most of the European countries with a consent-based definition of rape – 20 out of the 26 – have changed the definition in the last ten years. The most recent addition was Czechia in January, where civil society organisations drove the change. It was similar in Norway, where a coalition of 50 organisations, known as the Consent Alliance, campaigned for reform. The organisations already celebrated the consent law with cake and bubbles outside the parliament yesterday afternoon.
One of the main reasons for Norway’s slow change was scepticism within the legal community. Critics often raised concerns about "justismord" (miscarriage of justice), arguing that the new definition could lead to wrongful convictions. However, evidence from other countries that have made the change shows no such trend. Instead, a Swedish report from January shows that their reform in 2018 has led to a significant increase in reports and prosecutions for rape.
 | Kristin Dilani Nadarajah I’m one of many who have been directly harmed by Norway’s outdated rape laws, where our no’s weren’t enough in the eyes of law enforcement. Like countless others, I’ve waited years for this change. Yet in a way, I’m also relieved, not just because justice has finally arrived, but because this fight has forced a public debate around consent. We won. Despite the legal sceptics who warned of a miscarriage of justice without evidence, and the (mostly male) vocal opposition who insisted this law was unnecessary. Their resistance only proved why it was needed all along. |
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