ONLINE POLL RESULTS: The age of consent should be increased from 16
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Seventy-five per cent of the 927 respondents to a recent OBSERVER ONLINE poll said the age of consent should be increased from 16 years.
It was proposed by the People’s National Party’s (PNP) Women’s Movement last month to have the age of consent moved from 16 to 18 as part of their recommendations to amend the Sexual Offences Act.
The women’s movement argued that “while adolescents need to exercise their decision-making skills as they mature, they still need protection from adult sexual predators.
Opposing the position was the Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network, which stated that raising the age of consent would not stop youngsters from having sex, but would rather stop them from accessing reproductive health care and advice that could prevent teen pregnancy.
