Grooming is now a crime

Parliament has unanimously approved changes to the criminal code regarding sexual exploitation and grooming.

The change removes any doubts about whether grooming is a crime and brings the legal status of such behaviour on par with the countries around us.

Prior to the change, the criminal code was criticised for not adequately addressing the risks children face in today's digital world.

Online grooming is where a person befriends a child online and builds up their trust with the intention of exploiting them. Harm caused by grooming can be sexual abuse, both in person and online, and exploitation to obtain sexually explicit images and videos of a child.

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Grooming now carries a potential sentence of up to two years in prison.

The amendment proposal came in the wake of a case this summer, dubbed ‘the biggest paedophilia case in Faroese history’.

While grooming could be prosecuted under other provisions of the criminal code, it was difficult to prove intent under these provisions, especially due to the difficulty in identifying the intended offence.

Furthermore, the previous legislation did not take into account the feelings of guilt and shared responsibility that children and teenagers often have in such cases, says the Ministry of Justice.

The Parliamentary Rules Committee recommends that parents and educators work together to ensure that children have access to comprehensive information on safe online practices and potential online dangers.

Read the Faroese version of this article here.

English version by prosa.fo.

More Faroese News in English.