Child sex offenders to face life sentence
Parliament passed amendments to the Criminal Code that made it an offence punishable by life imprisonment for any person to have sexual intercourse with a child less than 15 years of age, with or without the child’s consent.
Under the amendments, committing an indecent act against a child under 15 was punishable by up to 10 years in prison and/or a fine of 20,000 baht. The Criminal Code formerly stipulated that anyone having sex with a girl less than 13 years of age was liable to 2-12 years in prison and a 4,000 to 20,000 baht fine.