• Justifies need for relaxation of statutory rape punishments on grounds of ‘practical realities’ of youth romances, says will consider opposing views before presenting to P’ment  

The controversial new draft Bill proposing amendments to the Penal Code governing the punishments regarding statutory rape, is intended not to infringe on protections afforded to minors, but to accommodate the ‘practical realities’ of romantic relationships involving youths, Justice Ministry sources claimed.

The proposed provisions would allow for adult males below 22 years of age who are convicted of statutory rape to be given more lenient sentences (including suspended sentences in lieu of the mandatory minimum sentence or a lesser mandatory minimum sentence), provided that the victimised minor is between 14 to 16 years of age and the victim had consented to sexual penetration. 

Speaking on the condition of anonymity, Ministry sources told The Daily Morning that while the act of statutory rape would still be considered criminal under the eyes of the law, the proposed Bill was drafted in such a way as to ensure that instances of statutory rape that occurred within a pre-existing romantic relationship without a history of coerced sexual behaviour would be considered more leniently in the eyes of the courts. “The existing punishments for statutory rape disregard the practical realities of teenage relationships, and there exists, in certain contexts, a certain undue harshness towards the older partner. The nature of youth relationships is however sensitive and contextual,” the sources elaborated.

As to the origins of the draft Bill, sources stated that the proposed amendments to the law were recommended by a committee on reforming certain aspects of the criminal law, which had been set up by Foreign Affairs Minister, President’s Counsel M.U.M. Ali Sabry when he was the Justice Minister. The sources further claimed that while the draft was still in its preliminary stages, opposition to the document from civil society groups would have to be considered before presenting the draft Bill to the relevant Parliamentary Oversight Committee. 

Meanwhile, when queried on the particulars of who endorsed the recommendations of the draft Bill, the Ministry’s Additional Secretary of the Legal Division Piyumanthi Peiris declined to comment on the grounds that it was still a draft Bill and that no authoritative statements could be made before the Bill was presented to the Parliament.