Rethinking the judiciary

Why stricter sentences are handed down for child abusers

Statistics show that nine percent of girls and three to four percent of boys in Austria are victims of abuse before the age of 17.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com/Andrii Starunskyi- stock.adobe.com)

Almost every tenth child in Austria is affected by sexual violence, as figures from child protection centers show. It is therefore high time that abuse is punished more severely and that the legally possible penalties are exhausted. A case from Carinthia shows how and when 14 years in prison is conceivable.

As far as sexual abuse is concerned, a lot has happened in recent years in the interests of the victims - including in terms of sentencing. It was only last year that criminal law was tightened in favor of the victims. Trials in which child abusers got off scot-free are unthinkable today.