President Santiago Peña described it as a significant step in the battle against that scourge, as he approved the legislation that updates the current legal provision, and pointed out his government’s decision to pass the law to demonstrate his administration’s priority in “protecting girls, boys, adolescents, because if we do not do this we would fail as a society,” he said.

The provision signed at the executive headquarters establishes that sexual abuse of children under 10 years of age will carry a minimum sentence of 15 to 20 years in prison, with the possibility of extending it, depending on the severity of the crime committed.

In addition to the increase in sentences, the recently approved law expands the legal protection of victims and classifies other forms of violence and aggravates the sanctions in certain cases.

During the ceremony, the Minister for Children and Youth, Walter Gutiérrez, considered the reform “an important step forward in the fight against child abuse” and presented data indicating that some 3,500 cases are reported per year, with nine out of 10 occurring in the family environment. In 82 percent of the cases reported, girls are the victims.

“It is a vile, atrocious and despicable act, which will now be punished through the application of this legislation because our girls and boys are the most precious thing we have,” concluded Minister Gutiérrez.

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