The prosecutor explained that, in "borderline situations", the refusal of parents to allow their children to attend face-to-face classes at the school could constitute a family abandonment offence carrying a penalty of between four and ten years' disqualification from practising it.
Peramato has stressed that the offence would only be seen in "truly serious situations". For example, when there is a "stubborn refusal" by parents because the schools have adopted the necessary security measures and are in populations where the risk of contagion of the virus is not high.
Even in this situation, the public prosecutor Juan Antonio Frago, of the Professional and Independent Association of Public Prosecutors (APIF), has pointed out that the exemption from "insurmountable fear" provided for in Article 20 of the Criminal Code could apply.
Both have agreed that the criminal route would not be the most appropriate for dealing with situations of school absenteeism, especially in the current context of the global health crisis, which is leading to an unprecedented scenario. "It is not an irrational fear", considered Frago, alluding to the lack of information and to the resurgence of the problem as objective factors. Read more
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