ETLJB 15 July 2019 - East Timor’s peak
law and justice civil society organisation, the Judicial System Monitoring
Programme, has called on public prosecutors and the courts to include civil
compensation in cases involving the crime of rape.
On 29 June 2019 JSMP observed that the
Suai District Court convicted a defendant for committing the crime of sexual
abuse against the victim, aged 13, and did not order the defendant to pay civil
compensation.
"An order for the defendant to pay civil
compensation is a way of compelling the defendant to redress the psychological
suffering of the victim who has been affected by the actions of the defendant.
This provides justice to victims who have suffered psychological pressure,
especially in cases of a sexual nature involving minors," said Casimiro
dos Santos, Acting Director of JSMP.
The Criminal Procedure Code provide for
the right of a victim to obtain civil compensation from a defendant. Article
430 of the Civil Code states that when a victim's suffering relates to
violence, civil compensation must be provided. “Therefore, for certain crimes,
especially those characterised as rape, defendants must be ordered to pay civil
compensation to victims. This article does not provide an option to consider
the inclusion of civil compensation, but states that civil compensation must be
included,” stated in a press release dated 9 July 2019.
JSMP demands that prosecutors and judges to include civil
compensation in their respective final recommendations and sentences.
“JSMP believes that the prosecutors and
the courts have failed in this regard, because they have not been sensitive and
have not thoroughly explored the relevant provisions that guarantee the rights
of the victim. JSMP has always believed that the approaches used in such cases
and the methods of resolution, as well as the sentences applied by the courts
in each case, should contribute to deterring other cases from occurring in the
future.”
JSMP observed that “in
nearly all decisions the courts have not imposed civil compensation in cases
involving rape. In its annual report in 2018 JSMP reported that during 2018
there were 25 rape cases where defendants received a prison sentence. From
these 25 cases, only in 2 cases the court asked the defendant to pay civil
compensation to the victim.”
East
Timor Law &Justice Bulletin
Supporting
the rule of law in Timor-Leste
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