Paris: France's National Assembly has taken a significant step in child protection legislation by voting to eliminate the statute of limitations for the most serious crimes against minors. The decision came as part of an amendment to a child protection bill, which was passed with a majority of 93 votes against 51.

According to Anadolu Agency, the amendment was introduced by Green lawmaker Arnaud Bonnet and extends the concept of imprescriptibility, previously limited to crimes against humanity, to a range of grave offenses committed against children. This includes crimes such as rape, torture, kidnapping, human trafficking, and certain war crimes.

Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin expressed his support for the amendment during the debate but cautioned that it might encounter constitutional challenges. The explanatory memorandum of the amendment highlights the reform's goal to address the delays with which victims of child abuse often report offenses due to trauma, fear, shame, or psychological manipulation by offenders.

The legislative change also aims to abolish the "sliding limitation periods" mechanism in France, which previously allowed for the extension of the time limit for prosecuting certain sexual crimes against children only if the perpetrator committed another offense against a different child before the original limitation period ended. Additionally, the amendment stipulates that civil claims for damages from offenses subject to imprescriptibility would not be bound by limitation periods, although these claims would expire upon the death of the alleged offender.

The adoption of this measure marks a crucial phase in the assembly's examination of the child protection bill, which will continue to progress through the legislative process.