Federal Minister of Justice Stefanie Hubig (SPD) emphasized the urgent need for the planned law against digital violence to be put into effect quickly, stating that the SPD politician aimed to pass the draft legislation “as soon as possible within this year”. The minister noted that the recent, intensive public debate-partially sparked by allegations against Collin Fernandes-did not actually speed up the process. She pointed out that work on the draft has been ongoing since the beginning of the legislative term. Nevertheless, Hubig welcomed the increased public attention, stressing that it is crucial that online violence, and specifically violence against women, gains greater focus. “This society needs this discussion” she stated.
A core element of the proposed law is criminalizing so-called sexualized deepfakes right at the point of their creation. Hubig explained this by citing the severe consequences for victims, who risk being “degraded” and “humiliated” often suffering ensuing health and social consequences. Compounding this issue is the fact that the technical creation of such content can now happen “within seconds”. “And that leads us to conclude that we must be able to deal with this effectively. Therefore, the creation itself cannot be kept legally consequence-free in the future” Hubig explained.
The minister also assured that strengthening criminal law would not violate the rule of law. She confirmed that existing procedural hurdles for investigations, such as the initial suspicion requirement, would remain unchanged. While acknowledging that amendments might be possible during subsequent procedures, Hubig expressed optimism that there is broad political backing and that the fundamental principles of the law will remain intact. The draft bill is scheduled for consultation with professional associations and federal states on Friday.
