Sexual offence laws reviewed

December 5, 2019
Final recommendations
Final recommendations:

Chairman of the Law Reform Commission’s Review of Sexual Offences Sub-committee Peter Duncan (centre), together with sub-committee members Eric Cheung (second right) and Andrew Powner (second left), release the report on the Review of Substantive Sexual Offences.

 

The Law Reform Commission today published a report on the review of substantive sexual offences, making final recommendations for the reform of such offences in the Crimes Ordinance. 

 

The recommendations include the creation of a range of non-consensual sexual offences such as a new offence of sexual penetration without consent, a uniform age of consent of 16 years old, the creation of a range of new sexual offences involving children and persons with mental impairment which are gender neutral.

 

The commission also proposed the reform of a series of miscellaneous sexual offences such as incest, exposure, bestiality, necrophilia and homosexual-related buggery and gross indecency offences.

 

The report follows a study on the overall review of substantive sexual offences by the commission’s Review of Sexual Offences Sub-committee, which issued three consultation papers in September 2012, November 2016 and May 2018. 

 

In April this year, the commission published a report recommending the introduction of a new offence of voyeurism and a new offence in respect of non-consensual upskirt photography. 

 

It noted the responses to the consultation papers have been taken into account in formulating the final recommendations in the two reports.

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