ADVOCACY
The Foundation takes a keen interest in policy making and advocacy in the field of child sexual abuse.
After being an active part of a consultative process in facilitating drafting of a bill on sexual offenses against children for the last four years, our effort has finally seen the light of day. The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, was passed by the Lok Sabha on 22nd May, 2012.
So far sexual offences were only covered under different sections of IPC. The IPC does not provide for all types of sexual offences against children and, more importantly, does not distinguish between adult and child victims. The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act strengthens the legal provisions for the protection of children from sexual abuse. For the first time, a special law has been passed to address the issue of sexual offences against children.
The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 defines a child as any person below the age of 18 years and provides protection to all children under the age of 18 years from the offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment and pornography. These offences have been clearly defined for the first time in law.
