THE United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) representative to Jamaica Mariko Kagoshima is pressing the Government to amend the Child Care and Protection Act, to stop underage children who engage in sexual activity from serving time.

Speaking ahead of Wednesday’s signing of a $10-million memorandum of understanding (MOU) to strengthen the National Child Diversion Programme during the quarterly press briefing of the Ministry of Justice, Kagoshima said while UNICEF was pleased with efforts on the legislative side, it remained concerned that “children [are] being incarcerated for having consensual relationships, where one or both are underage”.

“UNICEF urges the Government to amend the Child Care and Protection Act, and I am sure, Minister, you are going to be our strong ally for this, so we can ensure that every Jamaican child can enjoy their basic rights,” she said, addressing Minister of Justice Delroy Chuck.

She said UNICEF is also concerned that “children whose parents are unable to care for them can be incarcerated under Jamaican law, even though these children have committed no crimes”.

Responding to Kagoshima, the justice minister said “that amendment to the Child Care and Protection Act is being given due consideration”. He further noted that, that particular legislation is under the remit of the Ministry of Education, but said that ministry is being guided by the Ministry of Justice in this respect.

Chuck said, too, that “as it related to the issue of underage or children of like age engaging in consensual sexual activities, judges have been advised that until the law is changed they refer those matters to the child diversion programme”.

“I think a number of those have been referred. Because I think it is just appalling to see two youngsters who engage in consensual sex and the fellow is brought up and charged, and very often all he does is go to court many, many times, doesn’t even know why he is in court, [and] oftentimes urged to plead guilty. And it is one of the heartbreaking considerations before me, oftentimes when such persons who have pleaded guilty got a probation, and in one’s case I can’t expunge, because it is not one of the expungable offences at this time,” the justice minister said.

“This one case is before me. After when the girl, who was 15 at the time, reached 18, they got married. They have children who are in their 20s and the children and the wife can travel overseas — the children are actually living overseas now — but the poor father can’t travel because of the conviction, and I am dying to get the Expungement Act changed to allow such cases for expungement to be done,” he said.

Chuck said the consideration had been one discussed by the joint select committee that had reviewed the Sexual Offences Act.

“We actually said that we are going to change the law so that children who engage in consensual sex, it is no longer an offence, and if the age difference is four years or less, then it is no longer an offence. So a girl aged 15, if the fellow is aged 19 and under or any other four-year difference, it is no longer a criminal offence because we are not dealing with child predators, paedophiles, those must be convicted; this is for consensual relationships between young people four years apart, it will no [be] longer an offence… hopefully in 2021 we can pass that legislation,” Chuck said.