Original Article by Javier Villamor

The increase in sexual violence in the European Union in recent years has generated an intense debate about the role of mass immigration in such crimes. While some political and media actors have tried to minimize the correlation, official data and multiple reports reveal a different reality. The impact of mass immigration, mostly from regions with value systems and cultural norms that radically differ from the European ones, has challenged security and social cohesion in many cities on the continent.

According to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, approximately one in ten women in the EU have experienced some form of sexual violence since the age of fifteen. However, the steady rise in these crimes in recent years cannot be attributed exclusively to increased awareness and reporting. 

In Spain, reports of sexual violence have increased in parallel with the increase in immigration. In 2021, 15,845 complaints were registered for sexual offenses, 8% more than the previous year. According to reports from the Ministry of Interior, some 15% of the perpetrators were foreigners, with Morocco and Romania among the most represented nationalities, with 25% and 15% respectively. Despite the rhetoric of the Ministry of Equality in Spain and billions of euros invested in “gender equality,” 2024 ended with a record 5,258 assaults and rapes and 47 women murdered.

Italy has also experienced an increase in sexual crimes committed by foreigners. According to data of the Italian statistical office Istat, in 2020, 4,886 cases of rape were recorded, 5% more than in 2019. 30% of the perpetrators were immigrants, with assailants from Romania, Morocco, and Nigeria standing out. The situation in France is no different, with 25% of perpetrators of foreign origin, with Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia predominating, according to the figures of the French Ministry of the Interior. In 2022, 34,000 rape complaints were registered, an increase of 15%compared to 2021.

Belgium and Germany are two other countries particularly affected by this phenomenon. In 2021, Belgium recorded 5,000 reports of sexual violence, with 20% of perpetrators of foreign origin. Germany, one of the countries hardest hit by the 2015 migration crisis, reported 11,500 rape cases in 2022, with an alarming 40% of perpetrators of Syrian, Afghan or Iraqi origin.

In the UK, the crisis of sexual assault by migrant gangs has been particularly shocking. The Rotherham scandal, where at least 1,400 girls were abused by organized groups of Pakistani, Kurdish, and Kosovar origin between 1997 and 2013, exposed the inaction of the authorities for fear of being accused of racism. In 2022, 70,000 rape complaints were recorded (191 complaints per day), 25% more than in 2021. 

In 2022, Sweden, Iceland and France were the three countries with the highest number of rape cases per 100,000 inhabitants, Sweden with 200.34, Iceland with 165.32, and France with 126.08. The safest countries were Greece, North Macedonia, Lithuania, Albania, and Hungary, with about six cases or less. 

Find more statistics at  Statista

These data show a reality that cannot be hidden and must be confronted with a non-ideological approach. Growing public concern about the rise in sexual crimes has strengthened support for right-wing parties, which have seen a marked increase in the polls.

Parties such as the Alternative for Germany (AfD), the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), and VOX in Spain have faced the reality head-on, including by promoting the idea of ‘remigration’—the return of failed asylum seekers and non-assimilated migrants to their countries of origin as a measure to reduce crime and preserve social cohesion.

In countries such as France and Belgium, where immigration has reached historic levels, security concerns have become a central issue in election campaigns. Even Emmanuel Macron has called for toughening France’s immigration policy, if only as a political tactic to halt a slide in the polls against Marine Le Pen’s skyrocketing Rassemblement National. 

The question is how long mainstream parties will be able to uphold their firewalls and cordon sanitaires against the political forces willing to tackle the actual reality voters live in.