What to do with pedophiles who have not committed crimes
Dmitry Kurkin
The State Duma adopted in the first reading amendments to Articles 78 and 134 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, toughening responsibility for unlawful acts of a sexual nature in relation to minors. In particular, the bill drafted by MP Irina Yarovoy (the author of the odious "Spring Package" on countering terrorism) proposes to increase the maximum prison term for defamation to life (now it is fifteen years), to cancel statute of limitations on undetected crimes (now it expires fifteen years after the commission of unlawful acts) and qualify the distribution of child pornography and sharing with the victim as aggravating circumstances. Separate responsibility of the amendment suggest to establish for "forcing children to engage in sexual activities using the Internet."
It is indicative that the proposed amendments called the tightening of the law “for pedophilia”, although the word “pedophile” is not used in the text of the draft - just as it was not used in the law on forced chemical castration adopted in 2012. In the strict sense, pedophilia, as a pathology that does not always lead to a crime, is not at all an object of law - in contrast to concrete acts of violence. However, in the public mind, one thing has long been united with another: major scandals related to child sexual abuse — be it a large-scale investigation in the Roman Catholic Church or accusations against school teachers — are called pedophilic by inertia, even if the psychopathological component is revealed (i.e. diagnosed by doctors) was not. This confusion complicates the already difficult and unpleasant conversation about the problem, the discussion of which in two steps is equal to the justification of violence against children. Meanwhile, the question remains open: if society does not consider pedophiles to be criminals by default (at least legally), is it ready to take on their adaptation? And if so, what could be such an adaptation?
A cautious discussion about people who realized that they were pedophiles began only in recent years: a characteristic example is the sensational article "You are 16. You are a pedophile. You do not want to harm anyone. What are you going to do?", Telling about a certain Adam, a teenager who tries find ways to deal with the disorder. As the author of the text, Luke Malone, notes, psychological support lines do not exist. In fact, the only place where pedophiles can speak out remains anonymous forums on the deep web: even those who are aware and trying to control their sexual attraction to children, understand what threatens any hint of revealing their identities, and get used to being disguised carefully.
It is widely believed that pedophilia requires treatment. But under current conditions, the likelihood that a pedophile will seek medical help is reduced to zero, and the specialists themselves are at risk of either violating the law or compromising medical ethics. “Imagine that a guy calls you and says:“ Hi, I have a sexual desire for children, can you help me? ”I want to help. But according to the law, if I have even the slightest reason to suspect an abuse, I have to inform To the authorities, says Prescott, an American therapist, in an interview with Cracked. Suppose he says: “I didn’t do anything. But I watched some such videos on the Web that may be considered child pornography.” In Maine, I don’t have to to report this, but California passed a law by which a person who is conscious I'm watching child porn, now I have to tell the police. "
One of the few exceptions is the Dunkelfeld (Gray Zone) project, which was created to anonymously help pedophiles. Launched in Berlin in the mid-2000s under the motto "You are innocent of your sexual desires, but you are responsible for your behavior," he went to the national level and even received government funding. The Gray Zone offered volunteers a variety of treatment methods, from cognitive-behavioral therapy to courses of treatment with drugs that reduce sexual desire (anti-androgens or serotonin reuptake inhibitors). The program was criticized a lot - including the fact that it helps not the victims, but abusers - and the results are difficult to verify: a pedophile who has undergone treatment can report that he no longer has an attraction for children, just because he is expected to . Nevertheless, the Gray Zone provides an opportunity for a full-scale study of both the disorder and the scale of the problem: during its existence, thousands of men participated in the program, including those who came to Germany from other countries.
Pedophilia is still rather poorly understood, and the debate about how to classify it according to symptoms and behavioral history is still ongoing.
The only more or less reliable way to prevent sex crimes against children is chemical castration. In some countries, including Russia, Poland, Moldova, Indonesia and South Korea, it is introduced as a coercive measure, in others convicted of child abuse can choose it in order to reduce the prison sentence. Chemical castration, however, has its opponents, who doubt the effectiveness of the preparations used for it. In addition, modern antiandrogens, although they do not lead to such disastrous consequences that were observed half a century ago (I remember the example of Alan Turing, whom chemical castration tried to treat for homosexuality), still have side effects - for example, a decrease in bone density.
Pedophilia is still rather poorly understood, and the debate about how to classify it according to symptoms and behavioral history is still going on. Some researchers insist on the distinction adopted by the American Psychiatric Association and separating pedophilia and pedophilic disorder, implying that in the first case a person can control himself and does not do anything illegal. Moreover, the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society published a study stating that child abuse is due to "biological circumstances" that have nothing to do with sexual preferences, and there are more similarities between pedophile abusers and non-pedophile abusers (controlling and not controlling their behavior). However, these findings still require confirmation, and they are still not enough to change attitudes towards pedophiles, for whom there are no sexual crimes. They are still considered a time bomb.
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