Children between the ages of 12 and 15 can consent to sexual acts with each other.
Changes to the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Bill were adopted by the National Assembly last month.
It states that children between the ages of 12 and 15 can consent to sexual acts with each other.
In October 2013, the Constitutional Court found that Sections 15 and 16 of the legislation were invalid and ordered Parliament to make ammendments.
NGO, Resources Aimed at the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (Rapcan) was one of the applicants in the case.
The organisation’s Christina Nomdo said, “Act 5 of the 2015 is a call to action for parents, the state and children. For parents to build closer relationships with adult lessons in order to influence their life choices. For the state to provide more effective sex education and for adolescents to not only listen to their peers, but also heed the advice of nurturing non-judgemental adults.”
This means that pre-teens and teens cannot vote, drink, go into a bar or drive but can have sex.
Schools in the area are already disrupted by a growing number of teenage pregnancies and this is likely to increase, said readers who reacted to the news.
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