In related news, today UNIBAM issued a press release restating its position on the decriminalization of sodomy following significant public outcry over the alleged molestation of a Cayo teenager by a Belize City man. UNIBAM maintains that quote "cases of child molestation or abuse [are] entirely wrong and unacceptable. Such infringements of minors' fundamental human rights are by nature dangerously traumatic and carry the potential of long term psychological harm. As a result it is the duty of the state to protect our children against any such harm and one way of doing so is to sustain laws that criminalize such behaviour with appropriate sanctions for those found guilty." End quote. The release goes on to assert that the changes UNIBAM is seeking to have made to Section 53 of the Criminal Code will quote "increase the privacy and dignity rights of all Belizeans, including minors. This is because any form of sexual activity with minors will continue to be illegal and prosecutable via the carnal knowledge statutes and the sexual assault statutes. The only change we seek is the decriminalization of sexual activity between consenting adults, homosexual and heterosexual." The statement ends by calling on fellow civil organizations, religious groups and advocates for women and children to quote, "pressure the Minister of Human Development to complete the work his Ministry started years ago to update our rape laws and increase protection for Belizean men and women, regardless of age, against all forms of rape, including sodomy. In 2011 we should have the right law for the right crime."
As we reported on Tuesday's newscast, a fourteen year old boy of Succotz village has accused Belize City resident Roy Cumberbatch of sexual molestation. According to the boy, he was walking with Cumberbatch in the village on July 21st when Cumberbatch pulled down his pants and tried to have anal sex with him. The child's mother says she happened on the scene and rescued her son. Cumberbatch was severely beaten by enraged villagers and later handed over to the police. Cumberbatch has since been charged with Aggravated Assault and is currently out on bail.
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