With the rise of
Internet-related sex crimes, Brunei's Attorney General's Chambers (AGC)
yesterday announced several new amendments to the Penal Code aimed at curbing
sexual predators and strengthening laws to prevent the sexual exploitation of
children.
A significant addition to existing laws is the criminalisation of
"sexual grooming", a term used to describe how online predators prowl
the web for the purpose of engaging in sex with a minor.
The law now makes it an offence for any person above the age of 21 to
meet and travel with a person under 16 with the intention of committing a
sexual offence.
"This will allow police to apprehend the offender early and
especially before any harm befalls the young victim," said the AGC in a
statement.
The changes have been made to reflect the growing number of sexual
offences that use technology as a medium.
Voyeuristic acts, such as observing and recording another person's
private act for sexual gratification, are now criminalised with a maximum
penalty of three years' imprisonment and a fine.
The publication and distribution of such recordings fetches a maximum
five years in prison. These amendments were created to specifically address the
use of platforms like Facebook to disseminate such recordings, said the AGC.
Possession of child pornography, and the taking, distribution, showing,
advertisement and access to indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a
child are now punishable by up to five years in jail.
This includes images stored as film negatives or computer graphics in
which a child is depicted.
Other offences include seeking sexual gratification by engaging in
sexual activity in the presence of a person under 16, and forcing a minor to
watch any sexual act.
Sterner penalties have been introduced for outraging modesty, including
aggravated outraging modesty, where a perpetrator forcibly restrains or causes
hurt or death to the victim, and outraging modesty by a person in the position
of trust or authority, such as teachers or family members, which carry heavier
penalties than before.
The Penal Code has also been expanded to penalise those who offer or
engage in prostitution. Previously, the laws focused on penalising pimps who
solicited business for prostitutes, but the new amendments seek to punish those
who actively engage in the acts themselves.
Paying for sex will now fetch a minimum fine of US$1,000 and a jail
term that could extend to a year. In addition to this, the new offence of
commercial sex with a person under 18 makes it an offence to obtain or
communicate with a minor for sexual services.
"In setting the age of protection at 18 years, the law aims to
protect a higher proportion of young people and by doing so, Brunei Darussalam
joins other countries such as the UK, Canada and Singapore in criminalising
commercial sexual activities with persons under 18 years of age in line with the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which Brunei Darussalam
ratified on 27th December 1995," the AGC stated.
To further demonstrate the government's commitment to fight child sex
tourism, Bruneian citizens or permanent residents caught engaging in paid sex
with a minor abroad can still be tried for their crimes in Brunei.
A new section in the Penal Code also limits the use of "mistake of
age" as a defence for sex with a minor, unless they can show they took
reasonable steps to ascertain a person's age.
Additionally, anyone who makes travel arrangements on behalf of another
to engage in commercial sex with a minor is also liable to a prison term of up
to 10 years.
The new amendments will enable law enforcement to prosecute a wider
range of sexual offences in order to protect the vulnerability of young victims
and children, added the AGC.
The laws took effect last March 24 and the AGC plans to hold
familiarisation briefings with both the Royal Brunei Police Force and the
Community Development Department.
Quratul Al-Bandial
The Brunei Times
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