Commentary on Article 124. Corruption of Minors of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan

• 1. Commission of lewd acts without the use of violence against a person known to be a minor —
• shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term of seven to twelve years, with lifelong deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities.
• 2. The same act committed against a minor by his or her parent, stepfather, stepmother, teacher, or another person upon whom the laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan have imposed the duties of raising him or her —
• shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term of ten to fifteen years, with lifelong deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities.
• 3. Acts provided for in Parts One or Two of this Article, committed repeatedly —
• shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term of twelve to seventeen years, with lifelong deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities.

The public danger of this crime lies in the fact that young children, due to their defenselessness, curiosity, and lack of understanding of the nature of the sexual acts committed against them, can easily become victims of a crime. This crime encroaches specifically upon their normal physical and mental development.

The object of the crime under consideration is the normal moral development of young children, that is, persons under the age of 14. Victims may be persons of either sex — girls and boys.

The objective side is characterized by the commission of lewd acts without the use of violence, that is, the voluntary commission of acts of a sexual nature aimed at satisfying the sexual desires of the perpetrator or arousing the sexual instinct of a person under the age of 14, without engaging in sexual intercourse, acts of sodomy, or lesbianism with the victim. The commission of the specified acts may be classified under Articles 120, 121, or 122 of the Criminal Code, depending on against whom they were committed.

Lewd acts include: cynical conversations on sexual topics, showing pornographic films, reading pornographic literature, touching the genitals of boys or girls, undressing them, the perpetrator displaying his or her own genitals, and engaging in sexual intercourse in the presence of minors.

Lewd acts may be both physical and intellectual. Physical lewd acts consist of sexual manipulations, such as indecent touching (stroking the genitals), inducing a person to masturbate, etc. Intellectual lewd acts are expressed in cynical conversations on sexual topics, a naked person displaying his or her body in front of an adolescent of the opposite sex, and the like.

According to Paragraph 14-1 of the Regulatory Resolution of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Certain Issues of the Classification of Crimes Related to Rape and Other Violent Acts of a Sexual Nature”:

“Criminal liability for sexual intercourse or other acts of a sexual nature with a person under the age of sixteen, as well as for the commission of lewd acts against minors (Article 124 of the Criminal Code), arises in cases where sexual intercourse, sodomy, lesbianism, or lewd acts were committed without the use of violence or the threat of its use, or without taking advantage of the helpless condition of the victim.”

By its structure, the elements of the crime are formal. The crime shall be considered completed from the moment the lewd acts begin. It is irrelevant whether the victim has reached sexual maturity or whether he or she has had previous sexual experience. It is also irrelevant whether the lewd acts were committed with or without the victim’s consent. Lewd acts committed with violence, causing harm to health, infecting the victim with sexually transmitted diseases or HIV (including placing the victim at risk of HIV infection) shall be classified cumulatively under Article 124 of the Criminal Code and the articles providing for liability for the aforementioned crimes.

The subjective side is characterized by direct intent. The perpetrator is aware that he or she is committing lewd acts against a person under the age of fourteen, foresees the possibility or inevitability of socially dangerous consequences, and desires the occurrence of such consequences. The motives for this crime may include both sexual motives and other motives (for example, revenge against the victim’s parents).

The subject of the crime under consideration may be persons of either sex who have reached the age of 16.

Part 2 of Article 124 of the Criminal Code provides for criminal liability for the same act committed against a minor by his or her parent, stepfather, stepmother, teacher, or another person upon whom the laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan have imposed the duties of raising him or her (see the commentary to Article 120 of the Criminal Code).

Part 3 of Article 124 of the Criminal Code establishes liability for acts provided for in Parts 1 and 2 of this Article when committed repeatedly. The corruption of minors shall not be recognized as repeated if the person was previously convicted for the corruption of minors or was released from criminal liability on grounds established by law.

The acts provided for in Parts 1 and 2 of Article 124 of the Criminal Code are classified as serious crimes.

The act provided for in Part 3 of Article 124 of the Criminal Code is classified as an especially serious crime.

Commentary of 2021 on the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan by Isidor Shamilovich Borchashvili, Honored Figure of Kazakhstan, Doctor of Law, Professor, Academician of the Kazakhstan National Academy of Natural Sciences, member of the Scientific Advisory Councils under the Constitutional Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan, member of the working group on reform of the law enforcement system under the Security Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Honored Employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

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