The Women’s Progressive Organisation (WPO) said the new Sexual Offences Bill is an important piece of modern and progressive legislation, which will offer protection to children in the country.

The organisation hailed the passage of the recent bill saying it had made a number of recommendations for sexual reform back in 1988 to the then chief justice, noting that some of the recommendations made it into the new legislation.

The legislation is timely, the organisation said in a statement yesterday, noting that reports of sexual abuse of young children persist. It recalled incidents where parents have opted for monetary payments in sexual abuse cases, adding that those parents failed to understand that “no amount of money can erase the psychological and emotional scars of children”.

WPO commented that the passage of the legislation should serve as a warning to predators of young children that government is serious about such incidents.  It said also that every citizen has a role to play, noting that cases of sexual abuse should be brought to the attention of the Child Care and Child Protection Agency.