A paradoxical situation happened. The Criminal Code has finally changed, the penal policy has been tightened, but then we come to a situation where attacks on children and their sexual freedom are prosecuted as misdemeanors, that is to say that these acts are qualified in this way, said Kristina Mihajlović from the Association of Parents .
"This is not the first case, there have been several in the last few months and it is something that is really worrying and requires the reaction of the authorities and the prosecutor's office and the courts. We must first assess properly but also treat the perpetrators of such crimes," says Mihajlović.
Lawyer Nikola Samardžić sees a break in cooperation as the essence of the problem, i.e. lack of synchronization between those who pass legal regulations and those who need to apply them.
"Then this paradoxical situation happens that you change the provisions of the Criminal Code only in part of the range of punishments that can be imposed, and you do not define the actions that imply the characteristics of a criminal offense. With these amendments, it was much more important to include this offense in the scope of the offense illegal sexual acts, then you would have no problem with the classification of that criminal act," explained Samardžić.
Although the Strategy for the Prevention and Protection of Children from Violence from 2019 stipulates that by the end of 2021, Montenegro will receive a register of pedophiles, i.e. persons convicted of crimes against sexual freedom, committed against children, it does not yet exist.
"In addition, it is also defined that there must be supervision of those persons when they are convicted of these crimes and after serving the sentence. There will no longer be those famous mitigating circumstances that were awarded in accordance with which some verdicts that entailed fines or the sentences were for several months. As for the register itself, we expect that the Ministry of Justice will soon inform us when the register will start to exist and when it will start to be applied," said Mihajlović.
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