114 individuals convicted of sexual offences against minors in Jan-Sep 2019

 The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) reports that during the first nine months of 2019, 152 individuals were convicted of a sexual offence, 114 of which were against minors.

The awareness of society of cases of sexual crimes against minors has increased significantly compared to the previous years. Minors and their parents often appeal to various institutions for help”, Nino Tsatsiashvili, the head of The Ministry’s  Department of Human Rights Protection and Quality Monitoring stated today.

 The individuals who mostly appeal to the institutions are:

 Family member/parent – 53%

 Affected child – 8%

 Social Service Agency – 6%

 Resource officer – 6%

 School – 4%

Neighbor – 3%

Child care institutions – 1%

NGOs – 1%

Others – 18%

During the first nine months of 2019, 152 people were convicted of a sexual offences.  In the same period of 2018, 127 individuals were prosecuted, 101 among them were charged with sexual offenses against minors. The other 26 individuals were charged for indecency with minors.

The MIA has already drafted a bill which provides civil restrictions and tougher punishment for those convicted of sexual crimes against minors. The bill has been approved in its first reading in parliament, with two additional readings still ahead.

The bill reads that the convicts of sexual crimes against minors will be deprived of the right to work at educational institutions.

The ministry will create a special database of all people convicted of sexual crimes against minors. The individuals will be under permanent surveillance to prevent sexual crimes against minors, the ministry stated.

 The current legislation provides for five to seven years in prison for sexual abuse of children under 14. The sentence for sexual crimes against minors may reach 20 years per the new bill based on the circumstances.