Police reveal extent of rapes among minors
PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge
10.03.2015 10:16
Police figures have revealed that half of the rapes committed in 2014 by Poles under the age of 17 were perpetrated by boys aged between 13 and 15.
Photo: Glowimages
According to police data, which refers only to cases completed in the law courts, there were 21 rapes committed by 15-year-olds, 6 by 14-year-olds and 3 by 13 year-olds.
The overall number of rapes by minors (in Polish law those below the age of 17), was 69.
Police told the Rzeczpospolita daily that the actual figures for 2014 are likely to be higher, owing to non-reported crimes, and cases that have yet to be completed.
Although the number of rapes by minors has apparently decreased (there were 106 in 2013, while in 2010, almost three times that), experts claim that the problem remains acute.
Sexologist Dr Andrzej Depko told Rzeczpospolita that easy access to pornography on the internet has the capacity to warp youngsters understanding of sexual relations.
Depko claimed that owing to this exposure perpetrators ''do not grasp that the consent of two parties is necessary for sex.''
He likewise argued that most schools do not know how to combat such internet access effectively,' so they typically ''ignore'' the problem. (nh)