Sierra Leone’s president has declared a national emergency over rape and sexual violence, saying perpetrators are getting younger and their acts more violent.
In a keynote address on Thursday, President Julius Maada Bio said hundreds of cases of rape and sexual assault are reported each month in the West African nation against women, girls and babies as young as three months old.
Those who sexually assault minors will face life in imprison, the president declared, saying that some 70 percent of victims are under age 15.
The current law carries a maximum penalty of 15 years, and very few cases have been prosecuted.
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