SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 107

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 4, 2022 10:00AM
Madam Speaker, this is what we are talking about: sexual offences against children and adults. When somebody commits a robbery in this country, it is the taking of property by force and they are liable to life imprisonment. When someone's consent and dignity are taken by force when it comes to sexual assault, the maximum sentence is 10 years in jail. We therefore treat the taking of someone's sexual inviolability, innocence, dignity and consent by force less seriously than we treat the taking of property by force. If people want to treat this as a joke, that is fine, but for me and for everybody in this House, my exhortation is that we start getting hard on sexual offences, especially sexual offences against children. This bill does just that. It raises the maximum sentence to life imprisonment for most sexual offences to recognize that victims are often put in a psychological prison for life themselves. I exhort all members of the House to pass this bill expeditiously given the seriousness that this subject matter deserves.
177 words
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