What Is the Legal Age of Consent in Venezuela

Amendments to Article 46 of the 1982 Civil Code in 2014 raised the minimum age of marriage with parental consent from 14 for girls to 16. There are restrictions on sexual relations with adolescents between the ages of 13 and 16 (Argentine Penal Code, art. 120). Charges may be instituted only after a complaint by the minor, his parents or guardian (article 72 of the Argentine Penal Code) (however, the State initiates proceedings if the minor does not have a parent or legal guardian or if the offender is one of them). Venezuela ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990, which sets the minimum age at 18, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 1983, which obliges States to guarantee free and unconditional consent to marriage. In Brazil, the age of consent is 14, regardless of gender or sexual orientation. While not formalized by law, there is precedent that allows for an age-related exemption for individuals between the ages of 12 and 13 who wish to engage in sexual activity with partners under the age of 5. [28] The age at which there are no restrictions on sexual activity is 14. Finally, note that the age of consent laws, which aim to combat the sexual exploitation of minors, are not the same as the minimum age of marriage, which aim to prevent child marriage. Now let`s take a closer look at the age of consent in some countries. Thirty-one states have set the age of consent at 16, eight at 17 and eleven at 18.

Twenty-six states have “Romeo and Juliet” laws, or age limit laws, that legalize sexual activity between underage participants if they are close enough to each other in age. The maximum age differences in these laws vary from state to state. For example, in Colorado, the age of consent is 17, but people under 15 can consent to a partner under four years older, and those under 15 or 16 can consent to a partner up to 10 years older. By comparison, Arizona law sets the age of consent at 18, allowing teens between the ages of 15 and 17 to consent to sex with partners under 24 months of age. The age of consent in the United Kingdom (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) is 16. In addition, all UK territories have their own local age of consent laws. At present, however, all of these areas also set the age of consent at 16. In the UK, there are no exceptions for people close to age. Two people under the age of consent can be prosecuted for sexual activity. As stipulated in Section 279 of the Thai Penal Code, the age of consent in Thailand is 15 years, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

However, the follow-up law added a number of additional caveats. In August 2009, Law 12.015/2009 abolished the offence of corruption of minors (art. 218), which refers to consensual acts with young people between the ages of 14 and 17 without parental consent. The crime has been replaced by a new crime under the same name, which now applies to sexual acts with minors under the age of 14 and can be prosecuted by the State (art. 225). [33] Many countries, states or territories also have “near-age” exceptions, commonly referred to as “Romeo and Juliet” clauses. These laws can eliminate legal liability if all participants in a sexual act are minors (for example, two 16-year-olds). In areas where there are no age-related exceptions, a person who has not yet reached the age of consent may be held liable for sexual activity with another minor. For example, if a country does not have a Romeo and Juliet clause and its age of consent is 16, two 15-year-olds who voluntarily have sex with each other could both be prosecuted for legal rape.

The Civil Code also addresses the age of consent at the prefectural level (and sometimes at the level of communes within a prefecture). In Japan, a person must reach the age of 20 to be considered an adult, and parental consent plays an important role in legal issues affecting young people. Approximate translation: ARTICLE 125. Anyone who encourages or facilitates the corruption of persons under the age of eighteen, even with the consent of the victim, shall be punished by solitary confinement or imprisonment for three to ten years. According to article 227-25 of the Penal Code, the age of consent in France is generally 15 and 18 if the sexual act is with a parent or a person who has “legal or de facto authority” over the minor participant. Legal rape (or its local equivalent) is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of €75,000 (€83,226). The law was only passed in April 2018 following an outcry from two men accused of having sex with 11-year-old girls. The French government has decided to set the age at 13 or 15. The ten France territories have also set the age of consent at 15. The France has a Romeo and Juliet clause that disclaims liability if a person under the age of 15 has sex with someone within five years of their age.