Overview

• The Spanish government has opened an official investigation into allegations that Lamine Yamal hired people with dwarfism to entertain guests at his lavish birthday party.
• The Council of Ministers is set to approve legislative reforms introducing fines of €600,000 to €1 million for using persons with disabilities as spectacle under the 2022 anti-discrimination law.
• The ADEE (Association espagnole des personnes atteintes d’achondroplasie et autres dysplasies squelettiques avec nanisme) has pledged to pursue legal action against Yamal for breaching protections of human dignity.
• Disability rights groups say the alleged practice perpetuates harmful stereotypes and highlights gaps in enforcement of Spain’s existing ban on spectacle-based discrimination.
• An unnamed performer from the event defended the arrangements as consensual and respectful, disputing claims that participants were mocked or demeaned.