Child rights advocate bashes use of close-in-age exception in sexual offence cases

The spokesperson of child rights advocacy organisation, Hear The Children's Cry, Priscillia Duhaney says she disagrees with the use of close-in-age exception for children facing prosecution for sexual offences.

She believes that sanctions should be imposed on young people who engage in sexual violations, regardless of consent.

"There can be no justification or pardon for sexual offences. It is not a frivolous matter for one to believe experimenting is a defence or an excuse," she said.

Her comment follows revelations that children are the complainants in "many" sexual offences cases before the courts.

Sexual offences accounted for 363 of the 1,034 cases listed for the Hilary term of the Home Circuit Court, which began on Tuesday.

The 363 sexual offences cases include 156 for the offence of having sexual intercourse with a person under 16 years old. Rape accounted for 164 cases, there are 15 cases of buggery, and nine cases of sexual touching.

This disclosure renewed calls for Jamaica to enact legislative changes that would prescribe social intervention and not criminal prosecution for children engaging in sexual activities.

Justice Minister Delroy Chuck told The STAR on Tuesday that the proposal, which was first made to Parliament four years ago, "is now being acted on" and would have a four-year difference

"So, a 19-year-old having sex with a 15-year-old will not be prosecuted," said Chuck, while noting he would check to find out "where we are with the legislation".

Duhaney emphasised that the legislation should strike a balance by actively incorporating social interventions during the period of incarceration. She also suggested that it should specify a shorter timeframe for expungement, allowing children who are indicted to reintegrate into society at an appropriate age, enabling them to complete their education or enter the workforce.

"It is our belief that for consensual parties under the age of 16 years, suspended sentence should be applied with community service and other social intervention strategies if, and only, it is a first-time offence. This, however, should still be placed on the record and thereafter a reasonably short period for expungement," she said.

"An offence of that nature should be treated with great importance and a penalty that is equivalent in some way to deter the offender, whether it be first or repeated," she added.

Pointing to a recent incident where teen boys were seen in a video sexually assaulting a schoolgirl, Duhaney is adamant that there must be a precedent set to deter and penalise the "disregard for sexual sanctity".

"It is not comforting to accept that close age, experiment, or a mere social intervention would suffice in this matter," she said.

The teen boys were subsequently charged with several offences including rape, forcible abduction, knowing and producing child pornography and distributing child pornography

Sharing similar dissent with the proposal, President of National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica, Stewart Jacobs, questioned whether this is being done to reduce cases before the court.

"We have to be careful that we don't move the age of consent or move the age where it becomes criminal because we want to lessen the cases in the court, it mustn't be that. It's not a matter of playing with the numbers here," he said.

He also criticised the lethargic approach to this legislation, noting that it has been proposed previously.

"I do hope that after this session of discussion, and deliberation then the changes that are to be made are made that will ensure that the child is protected, and that those who are doing it go through some education process," he said.

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