–human rights activist
Underage sex is only a criminal offence when it applies to a girl, as evidenced by a police statement that a sexual act between a 15-year-old boy and a male adult was “consensual”; nevertheless calls have been made for the man to be charged with statutory rape.
Questions have been raised following a police press release on a 15-year-old runaway boy who was found at a house in Victoria, East Coast Demerara, with a man and a woman. The police said the boy had been invited to the home by the man, went of his own free will and was free to “come and go as he pleased.” The release sought to “correct” a report by the Kaieteur News that the child had been sexually molested, stating that he had engaged in anal sex with the man.
Since buggery is a criminal offence, under the legal system the teenager could very well be slapped with a buggery charge along with the man, instead of the man being penalised for engaging in a sexual act with a minor.
Stabroek News was told yesterday that the police have dispatched the file to the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the boy is with his mother. A man and a woman taken into custody were released on bail after being held for 72 hours.
Co-chair of the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA), Mike Mc Cormack, said yesterday that at the very least, the man should be charged with statutory rape. He noted that even though the Age of Consent Act was updated as recently as 2005 it still followed the 19th century act of England, which was made law with the intention of protecting young girls from men. As such the updated law still does not cater for boys. Before 2005, the age of consent was 13, but following public outrage over a sexual relationship between a 13-year-old girl and a male adult there were public consultations and the law was updated.
Mc Cormack noted that while the act caters for girls, in the spirit of protecting children those who assault underage boys should also be charged under the act. And he noted that the age of consent becomes redundant as buggery is still an offence.
He pointed to the urgent need for the amended sexual offences bill to become law as under this not only would boys be protected, but buggery would also no longer be an offence.
Stabroek News understands that the bill, which emanated from the Stamp it Out! paper that was launched by Minister of Human Services and Social Security Priya Manickchand in 2007, is still being drafted at the attorney-general office. Attempts to contact Manickchand yesterday on the issue proved futile.
Amendments were made of Sections 69, 70 and 87 of the Criminal Law Offences Act in 2005, making it a misdemeanour carrying a five-year prison term for anyone to unlawfully and carnally know any girl under the age of 16. However, there is a defence if the accused could prove that he had reasonable cause to believe that the girl was of or above the age of 16. \Anyone who unlawfully and carnally knows any girl under the age of 15, whether or not he believes her to be of, or above the age, shall be guilty of a felony and liable to life imprisonment
Meanwhile, the Stamp it Out! consultations determined that the proposed amendments address the issue of public education in terms of prevention of sexual offences as well as ensuring that persons who would have been raped, assaulted or otherwise preyed upon are made aware of their rights. It will also see the instituting of sexual assault referral centres at hospitals, bypassing police stations. The new bill will include special training for police officers, prosecutors, magistrates and judges. Special courts for sex violence cases, protecting the identity of the victims and mandatory in-camera hearings are also among the proposals.
Conformation of a National Task Force and the instituting of National Policy Guidelines for sex violence victims, recognizing marital rape as an offence, use of forensics and extended penalties for the use of weapons in committing a sexual violence offence are also among other issues to be addressed under the new law.
The amended legislation would see a change in the definition of rape to include sexual assault on boys and men and the charge of buggery will cease to exist. Among the new offences to be added are: coercive sex, abuse of trust, obstructing prosecution (deterring victims from giving evidence because they would have accepted compensation), voyeurism, and meeting a child following the grooming of that child. It also suggests outlawing the demeaning term “female idiot” and replacing it with “persons with a learning disability or mental disorder” and it ups the penalty for someone charged with rape in this instance from five years to life imprisonment.
