Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Dr Win Myat Aye said said his ministry is campaigning to mete out the most severe penalty possible for child sex offenders in response to public demand, according to The Voice.
He told reporters on November 28 after an Upper House session: “There should be a minimum punishment of 10 years or life in prison. We have asked for suggestion from the Union parliament, which we will receive soon.”
Article 376 of the Penal Code states that the prison sentence for an individual who has committed rape ranges from 10 years to life, in addition to a monetary fine. However, lawyers and activists who specialize in sexual abuse cases claim that sexual abusers’ sentences are almost always shorter than 10 years.
The minister also said he is trying to include a harsher minimum penalty in an amendment to the 1993 Child Act, which he will propose to the Union parliament once he receives lawmakers’ suggestions.
A group of campaigners gathered in Yangon’s Kandawgyi Park on Sunday to demand harsher punishments for sex offenders, particularly those who abuse children.
