Man gets jail sentence for child sexual offence in Hakha

26 October 2020 – The Hakha District Court today handed down a 10-year sentence to a man convicted of committing sexual assault on a minor child in Hakha, Chin State.

The verdict was reached at the end of a three-month trial of the case, which had started in late July 2020.

The 4-year-old child victim, suspected of having been physically abused, was taken by her mother to the Hakha General Hospital on the night of the incident.

On 27 July, a doctor at the hospital confimed the case and a complaint was immediately filed to the relevant government department and the police.

“We welcome the decision by the District Court … Today’s decision should send a clear signal that sexual violence in any form against women and girls will not go unpunished in Chin State,” said Mai Thin Yu Mon, program director of Indigenous Peoples Development Program at the Chin Human Rights Organization.

“On behalf of the victim’s family, CHRO is thankful to all those individuals and groups from women and youth who provided supports and stood with the family throughout the trial period,” she added.

Meanwhile, another case involving a 17-year-old teen girl where a member of the police force was accused of sexual assault, has been reported in Kanpetlet town of southern Chin State in September.

According to the Khonumzung Rural Development Organization, the case was filed but no action has been taken.

Last week, ten civil society organizations in Kanpetlet released a statement condemning the incident and calling for immediate action. – Reporting by Cer Len Ci and Naomy VT Chin with Thawng Zel Thang