10-year-old girl revealed as 'upskirting' victim as calls grow for it to be made a sexual offence

Fresh calls have been made for 'upskirting' to become a sexual offence
TfL sexual harassment campaign
Eleanor Rose20 February 2018

A 10-year-old girl was revealed as an alleged victim of "upskirting" amid growing calls from campaigners for it to be criminalised.

Victims, politicians and equality groups called on the Government to provide "an effective criminal law" against the practice, in which perpetrators take photos or videos of a woman's groin from under their clothing.

There is no current law in Britain on upskirting - which is, however, a criminal offence in Scotland - so police in England and Wales charge culprits with other offences.

The call came as a Freedom of Information request showed that only 15 of 44 police forces surveyed held records on upskirting.

Those with data showed 78 incidents reported in two years, with only 11 resulting in suspects being charged.

Campaigners said the true number of incidents is likely to be much higher, given the difficulties with police being able to log and investigate in many cases.

There was insufficient evidence to proceed in several cases, including on an alleged sexual offence on a 10-year-old girl in 2015, Avon and Somerset Police said.

The Ministry of Justice has said the law around upskirting is "under review" after the figures were released.

Clare McGlynn, professor of law at Durham University and an expert on sexual violence, said the FOI data showed there "are few public places where women are free from this abuse".

She said: "The Government's continuing failure to provide an effective criminal law against upskirting breaches women's human rights.

"We are entitled to protection from degrading and abusive treatment, whether offline or online - and we are entitled to have our privacy in public respected.

"We are also entitled to a law that is fit for purpose, a law that treats this abuse as a form of sexual offence and that provides anonymity to all complainants."

MP Maria Miller, who chairs the women and equalities select committee, said it was "concerning" if the police felt the law did not give them adequate powers to stop the "horrific crime of upskirting".

She said: "Attempting to take a photograph underneath a skirt is a gross violation of privacy and potentially an act of indecency."

Campaigners say the situation echoes that of revenge porn, which lingered in a legal grey area until a law was introduced in April 2015 following a national campaign.

Ms Miller said: "As I know from the work that I did campaigning for the new law to recognise the posting of revenge pornography online as a crime, sometimes the law isn't straightforward in its application and new laws can help.

"In the case of revenge pornography there are now more than 500 cases prosecuted a year."

More than 60,000 people signed a petition last September calling on MPs to make upskirting a criminal offence after a 25-year-old Londoner told how police were unable to press charges against a man caught taking a picture up her skirt.

Digital creative Gina Martin set up the petition after she caught a man taking pictures up her skirt at a music concert in Hyde Park.

Justice Secretary David Lidington told MPs at the time that he was taking the issue “very seriously” and is considering making it a crime under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "This behaviour is a violation of privacy and causes considerable distress for victims.

"Prosecutors have a range of powers to deal with these cases. We continue to keep legislation under constant review to ensure we can bring offenders to justice."

Campaigners say the situation echoes that of image-based sexual abuse - often referred to as revenge porn - which lingered in a legal grey area until a law was introduced in April 2015 following a national campaign.

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