The Constitutional Court has confirmed a High Court order that a section of the Criminal Procedure Act which imposes a 20-year limit on prosecution for sexual assault is unconstitutional, notes a TimesLIVE report. Only rape survivors have been able to lay criminal charges after the 20-year limitation‚ which this precedent-setting judgment will alter in future.

Eight victims of child molestation‚ allegedly perpetrated by the late stockbroker Sidney Frankel‚ attempted to lay criminal charges against him in 2015. The Directorate of Public Prosecutions in Gauteng declined to prosecute because of the time limit.

The so-called Frankel Eight then successfully had section 18 of the Criminal Procedure Act declared unconstitutional by the Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) where Judge Claire Hartford ruled that children and adults should be allowed to lay charges of sexual and indecent assault at any time after they were abused.

The eight then approached the Constitutional Court asking it to confirm the lower court's order. They claim the late billionaire sexually assaulted them more than 20 years ago in the 1970s and 1980s‚ when they were aged between seven and 15.

They have also launched a civil case against the Frankel estate. Frankel died last year‚ at the age of 68. He had denied the allegations that he had abused children.

Levenstein and Others v Estate of the Late Sidney Lewis Frankel and Others

In a unanimous judgment‚ the Constitutional Court confirmed section 18 was irrational and arbitrary‚ and therefore unconstitutional‚ insofar as it did not afford the survivors of sexual assault other than rape or compelled rape the right to pursue a charge‚ after a lapse of 20 years from the time the offence was committed. The High Court suspended the declaration of constitutional invalidity of the section for 18 months to allow Parliament to remedy the constitutional defect. However, notes TimesLIVE, the Constitutional Court judges gave Parliament more time to deal with the matter. ‘The order is suspended for 24 months from the date of this order to afford Parliament an opportunity to enact remedial legislation‚’ the court held. During the period of suspension section 18(f) of the Criminal Procedure Act is to be read as though the words 'and all other sexual offences whether in terms of common law or statute' appear after the words 'the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act‚ 2007‚ respectively'.’ The Constitutional Court judges signalled that inaction by MPs would result in an automatic implementation of their ruling.

Full TimesLIVE report

Delays in disclosing child sexual abuse are common, some for even up to 49 years, according to a 2015 study published in the journal Child Abuse Review. The study also revealed there was no consistent evidence of a relationship between the severity of abuse and the moment a victim discloses, says a Mail & Guardian Online report. ‘Significant numbers of children do not disclose experiences of sexual abuse and ... significant proportions of adults never disclosed such abuse.’ In delivering its judgment, the court stated: ‘Although rape is the most reprehensible form of sexual assault, other forms of sexual abuse also constitute a humiliating, degrading and brutal invasion of the dignity and the person of the survivor. Sexual abuse in all forms, not only rape, infringes the survivor’s right to bodily and psychological integrity.’ Welcoming the court’s ruling, Rees Mann, founder of South African Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse, said: ‘We are extremely happy with this ruling. This empowers male and female survivors with the opportunity of getting justice. But this is not only about getting the justice they deserve but also about putting the power in their hands to make the choice to lay charges or not. Prior to this, the choice was removed from them. This is a big relief.'

Full Mail & Guardian Online report