Notable increase in convictions for sexual offences- DPP

Aug 17, 2019 News

There has been a notable increase in the conviction of persons charged with sexual offences, says Director of Public Prosecutions Shalimar Ali-Hack, as she addressed a forum hosted by the University of Guyana.

Director of Public Prosecutions Shalimar Ali-Hack

Sexual offences continue to dominate the list of cases for the criminal assizes across each county.
For 2016 there was an average 10 percent conviction rate, while in 2017 there was an average 25 percent conviction rate; in 2018 there was an average 60 percent conviction rate.
However for the year, the county of Essequibo has not seen a single conviction despite the fact that sex-related offences accounted for 44 of the 81 cases listed for trial in the February criminal assizes. On the other hand, for 2019, there has been a 32 percent conviction rate for Demerara and a 12.5 percent for Berbice.
The DPP noted that the counties of Demerara and Essequibo have more sexual offences (cases) listed to be heard (for 2019) and there are on average 55 percent of the cases on the list for the respective assizes.
According to Ali-Hack, the establishment of the Sexual Offences Court in November 2017 has seen tremendous work being done to deal with such cases in Demerara. Apart from Demerara, there is also a Sexual Offences Court in Berbice. The specialized courtroom is provided for under Section 44 of the Sexual Offences Act of 2010.
The most popular offence the DPP chambers is faced with is rape of a child under 16 years old where there is penetration and sexual activity with a child where there is no penetration; sexual activity with a child family member and this includes both penetration and no penetration; sexual activity with a child by abusing a position of trust and rape of the adult.
The DPP highlighted that in the June 2019 Criminal Assizes for Demerara, there were 177 cases for sexual offences, out of a list of 301 cases. Of these 177 sexual offence cases, 126 are for children, either sexual activity (no penetration) or rape (penetration).
This means that sex-related offences accounted for 59 percent of the cases.
The DPP pointed out, “We were able to move from a two percent conviction rate in Demerara, in 2016, and 27 percent (conviction rate) in 2017, to a whopping a 62.2 percent in 2018 with the advent of the Sexual Offences Court.’’
“The conviction rate in 2018 for Demerara, there were 37 cases and in 23 of those cases there were convictions. There were ten acquittals and four hung juries. That was 62.1 per cent conviction.
“In Berbice, there were nine cases and six convictions with three acquittals that is 66.6 per cent. (In) Essequibo (there were) seven cases, one conviction, five acquittals, one hung jury and that is 14.2 per cent,” the DPP highlighted.
Ali-Hack said that the files received for children are for both males and females. She said that the chambers have received files for a child as young as nine months, and for adult males as old as in their 60s. The majority of the perpetrators are men, while the majority of the complainants are female children, Ali-Hack noted adding that the chamber seldom receives files where the perpetrators are females.
Since the introduction of Sexual Offences Act of 2010, there has been a significant increase in the number of cases being reported to the police, investigated by the police and being prosecuted, related Ali-Hack.
She said, “Guyana in responding to the changes in society in relation to the number and types of sexual offences being committed passed a new sexual offences act in 2010. This act is modern and it looks to new offences compared to the legislation which existed before. The offences are defined unlike before where we relied on the common law position.”
According to the Sexual Offences Act, penetration now includes the anus and all the other different aspects “because, as I said, it is modern legislation. It includes any contact, however slight, for however short time between the mouth of one person and the genitals or anus of another.
“It includes but it is not limited to sexual intercourse, cunnilingus, felatio and female to female genital contact.

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