Opposition Leader calls for tougher penalties for sex crimes in SVG
The Opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) in St Vincent and the Grenadines says it is time that sexual offences are given greater urgency and measures put in place to protect the nation’s children.
The call comes as the NDP expressed concern over many aspects of the violation of a 4-year-old Vincentian girl.
On January 4, a security guard was found guilty of two counts of indecent assault after a video surfaced showing him engaged in a sexual act with a 4-year-old girl. He was sentenced to four years in jail.
The NDP, in a statement, says: “Clearly, under the laws of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, there is no available sentence capable of proportionality with the gravity of this criminal offence itself. While the NDP is disappointed that the offender was not given the maximum available penalty of 5 years, we find the current maximum grossly inadequate.
After all, in 4 prison years (really three calendar years), the deep psychological wounds inflicted on this child will not have healed when this offender is released from prison. If sex offenders, particularly those who prey upon children, do not face harsher penalties, there is little deterrence.”
The opposition says it is also appalled by the dissemination of the video of the indecent assault of this 4-year-old child. The NDP maintains that every sharing and viewing of this child’s violation begets another violation. It reminds everyone that this little girl and every other child is entitled to protection by the State and every Vincentian.
The NDP states that while the sharers of the video should face no more minor sanctions than the perpetrator of the sex act upon the child, it believes that the uneven sanctions may be remedied by introducing harsher penalties for the sex act.
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