Women who are victims of violence will be given more time to report crimes in England and Wales. British Justice Secretary Dominic Raab announced this on Wednesday to “restore women’s confidence in the justice system”.
Victims will be able to make a report up to two years after the assault or violence took place, instead of six months. In addition, taking photos or videos of women who are breastfeeding without their consent is also punishable by law. The sentences can also be up to two years in prison.
The changes are contained in two amendments to a law that will be tabled in parliament. They arrive several months after several murders of women, such as that of London’s Sarah Everard by a police officer. That murder caused quite a stir in the country and caused a flood of testimonials from women who felt unsafe.
Minister Raab calls the scale of the violence against women and girls “abhorrent”. “In the 12 months to March 2020, 1.6 million women were victims of domestic violence, more than 600,000 women were sexually assaulted, and nearly 900,000 women were stalked.
For many, the fear of being alone in the dark or being beaten in their own home is a sad daily reality. We need to turn this around,” he wrote in The Telegraph. “Protecting women and girls and giving them confidence in the criminal justice system is my top priority.”
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