REPORTED SEX CRIMES IN ARMENIA NEARLY DOUBLE

2009/09/14 | 18:30

There has been as drastic increase in the number of sexually-related
crimes registered in Armenia. Law enforcement is taking a look at
possible punitive measures to stem the tide.

Armenia, in 2008, witnessed a dramatic an unprecedented rise in
sexually related crimes; almost doubling from 33 incidents in 2007
to 63 in 2008.

Of the 63 victims, 2 were male.

Of the 61 female victims, 40 were virgins (65%)

Of the 63 victims, 50 were adolescents (79%)

One of the last staff meetings of the RoA General Prosecutor’s
Office (GPO) was devoted to this very issue. In attendance were NGO
representatives who deal with the phenomenon of sex crimes, including
trafficking, since the GPO that an effective strategy to combat such
crime cannot be pursued merely by law enforcement and that various
elements of society must be incorporated into the overall battle plan.

According to Armenian law enforcement, when compared to international
study figures the incidence in Armenia of such crimes is the lowest
registered at an average of 1.5 per 100,000 residents. To get a better
picture of what the numbers mean, let us note that during the period
2004-2008 the highest average incidence figure per 100,000 residents
in CIS countries was registered in Russia at 12.7. Higher figures
were registered in Germany (36.9) and the United States (186.6).

Nevertheless, it is clear that these figures to not portray the real
situation regarding sexual crimes, either in Armenia or the rest of
the world. Such violations have a high degree of latency and sexual
abuses often occur in the most intimate of environments and the victims
often do not wish to press charges and publicize the incident and
thus open themselves up to more moral trauma. In addition, victims
often refrain from going public out of fear from retribution by those
who’ve assaulted them. Studies show that women who have been assaulted
or abused by spouses and relatives are less likely to go to the police.

Study results point to the fact that the most vulnerable groups subject
to such crimes are socially disadvantaged children who lack a stable
ethical frame of reference (home, community, school…) One such
horrific example of the crimes described is the case of a mother
facilitating the sexual abuse of her daughter by a friend. It turns
out that the mother, a resident of Agarak in Syunik Marz, has struck
up an intimate relationship with a male friend back in 2003. By June,
2008, the mother had practically given her consent for the boyfriend
to sexually have his way with the girl; even to the point of rape. A
month later, the mother violently rips the clothes off her daughter
and throws her down on the bed at which point the boyfriend walks in
and has sexual relations with the girl.

What is noteworthy, is that 11 out of the 61 cases (17.5%) had a
connection to drug or alcohol use. In one case, cocaine was used to
render the victim unconscious before being sexually violated.

Then there’s the July 30, 2008 case of a male resident of Yeghegnadzor
(Vayk) who had taken a female for a drive in his BMW. On the road,
they stopped off for a bite to eat at a roadside restaurant. The
driver slipped some cocaine in her fruit drink, rendering the girl
unconscious. He later sexually assaulted her. Later, he threatened
the girl not to divulge what had happened. The investigative body
motioned the Kentron and Nork-Marash court to take the defendant
into pre-trial custody but the court merely decided to set bail,
arguing that the prosecution’s evidence was not adequate.

Based on the appeal presented by the prosecuting attorney, the RoA
Criminal Appeals Court overturned the lower court’s decision and
imposed pre-trial detention. The defendant, however, had since taken
flight and there presently is a warrant out for his arrest.

In another case, an employee of the Hrazdan Water & Sewage Company
visited a dormitory in Hrazdan on March 8, 2007, claiming that the
resident owed a huge amount in back water bills. During his visit,
the company employee made it known that he fancied the customer’s
daughter, a mere child of 12. The mother retorted that the girl had
just turned 12 years-old. A few days later the Water Company employee
came back to the house and proceeded to get the mother and daughter
drunk on alcohol. Later in the evening, he requested that he be able
to spend the night and got the mother to consent to his having sexual
relations with the girl.

It would appear that the staff meeting of the RoA General Prosecutor’s
Office won’t be the last to inform the public as to the proposals
made by various NGO’s to raise the level of sexual education among
school aged children and to more effectively defend the rights of
victims. The next such staff meeting will come up with a list of
proposals aimed to take corrective measures and forward them to
appropriate government agencies for possible implementation.