President Mnangagwa signs bill criminalizing sexual relations with persons under 18

Sexual intercourse with persons under the age of 18 is now a criminal offence in Zimbabwe after President Mnangagwa signed into law the Criminal Laws Amendment (Protection of Children and Young Persons) Act, 2024.

Principal Secretary to the President and Cabinet Martin Rushwaya made the announcement on Tuesday in General Notice 1441A of 2024 in an Extraordinary Government Gazette.

Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Nick Mangwana confirmed the publication of the new law on his X-page. He wrote:

The President has agreed to the amendment to the Criminal Law (Child and Young Persons Protection Act 2024 (number 1).

It is a criminal offence to have sex with anyone under the age of 18. It is not an acceptable defence that they gave consent. It is a serious offence to infect a child with an STD.

Writing for newZWireMike Murenzvi claimed that the process began with a former child bride, Diana Eunice Kawenda. He wrote:

The process began with a former child bride, Diana Eunice Kawenda, who took up the cause of fighting for the rights of other young children to have the same rights and protections as children under the age of 16.

This was in 2020, in a case that was resolved by the Constitutional Court on May 24, 2022, by annulling the unconstitutional articles of the Criminal Code.

The government and parliament were given 12 months to pass a substantive law that would bring the Criminal Code into line with the Constitution in this regard. They did not do so.

From May 24, 2023 to January 12, 2024, no protection against sexual exploitation was available for children aged 13 to 18 in cases where they gave ‘consent’ to sexual acts with an adult.

On January 12, 2024, after public outrage, the president promulgated a temporary law to restore protections while parliament went through the legislative process.

This regulation was valid for six months and expired on July 10, 2024, and the protections were removed, resetting the age of consent to the standard age of 13.

On July 9, 2024, the bill to amend the Criminal Law (Protection of Children and Young People) was passed by all houses of Parliament.

During the 71 days from that date until September 18, 2024, the country waited with bated breath for this crucial law to come into effect.

71 more days in which our laws allowed the exploitation of children. 71 days in which Zimbabwe was a haven for paedophiles.

Now the country can breathe a sigh of relief because our children now have safety and recourse within the law.

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