Offences Against Children Under Mauritian Law

Since 24 January 2022, the Children’s Act 2020 has supplied Mauritius with a detailed set of child-specific offences and protection procedures. It applies to anyone below 18 and sits beside, rather than replaces, offences in the Criminal Code and other legislation. That distinction matters: a report can lead to a child-protection assessment, a Police investigation, or both, and the person accused still has the ordinary safeguards of criminal procedure.

Offences created by the Children’s Act 2020

The Act covers much more than physical assault. It criminalises ill-treatment, abandonment, removing a child from a place of safety, child marriage or cohabitation, sexual abuse of a child under 16, child prostitution, child pornography and grooming. Separate provisions address supplying alcohol, permitting gaming, using a child for begging, bullying—including through information and communication technology—and publishing material that unlawfully identifies or intrudes upon a child. Selecting the correct provision requires the child’s age and the accused’s conduct to be matched to the statutory elements; “child abuse” is a safeguarding description, not one universal charge.

Physical and humiliating punishment

Section 14 removes a misconception that survives in some households and institutions: correction is not a defence to corporal or humiliating punishment. The prohibited conduct includes using physical force or substances in a manner that causes pain or suffering, even where no lasting injury is visible. This applies in the home as well as settings where an adult has responsibility for a child. Ill-treatment under section 13 is a distinct offence, so investigators must establish what was done rather than force every allegation into the same category.

Online exploitation and image-based abuse

Grooming under section 22 concerns communication with a child for the purpose of facilitating a sexual offence; it is not confined to a face-to-face approach. Child-pornography and sexual-abuse provisions may also apply to requests for images, recording or distribution. A recipient who discovers suspected material should retain the device and report it, but should not forward the file to relatives, a school group or social media. Forwarding creates more copies, increases the child’s exposure and may complicate the chain of custody. Usernames, platform notices, full message threads and the device on which they appeared are usually more useful than a cropped screenshot.

Protection is separate from prosecution

The Protection Division of the Children’s Court deals with applications under the care-and-protection part of the Act. An authorised officer can assess the child’s circumstances, and Police may intervene immediately where statutory conditions for urgent protection are met. Those steps are directed to safety and do not amount to a criminal conviction. Conversely, the absence of a prosecution does not automatically answer whether supervision, placement or another protective arrangement remains necessary. Parents who become involved in an assessment should ask what legal power is being exercised and keep copies of notices, assessments and court documents.

Reporting duties and who must report

Section 34 imposes a concrete reporting duty. Health professionals; people working in child care, education, reform institutions or places of safety; social workers, family counsellors, psychotherapists, probation officers and guardians ad litem must report reasonable grounds for believing that a child has been, is being or is likely to be harmed. The section also reaches another person who has those grounds concerning a child with whom that person is in contact. The report goes to the supervising officer responsible for child protection or to the Police. A reporter does not have to interview the child repeatedly or prove the eventual charge; section 35 protects the reporter’s identity subject to limited legal exceptions.

Investigation and the child’s evidence

For a child victim or witness, section 65 ordinarily requires a Police statement to be taken in a parent’s presence. If that would conflict with the child’s best interests—perhaps because the allegation concerns that parent—a probation officer may attend instead. In the Children’s Court, questions must be put in simple, comprehensible language. The Criminal Division can, on the prosecution’s motion, permit testimony through a live video or television link. A guardian ad litem may be appointed to represent the child’s interests. These measures reduce avoidable pressure; they do not make the child’s account immune from lawful testing.

Penalties and additional consequences

There is no single “offence against a child” sentencing range. For example, corporal or humiliating punishment has its own maximum fine and imprisonment term, while sexual offences carry markedly different sentences. Section 29 identifies circumstances that may raise exposure, including aspects of the relationship and vulnerability, and section 30 permits interdiction from guardianship following specified convictions. Any advice on sentence must therefore begin with the exact charge, the version of the legislation applicable at the date of the alleged conduct and whether an aggravating provision has been invoked.

A practical example

Suppose a teacher in Quatre Bornes receives a message in which a pupil says an adult at home has been hurting him and asks the teacher to keep it secret. The teacher should not promise absolute secrecy, convene an amateur confrontation or ask classmates whether they have heard the same story. The useful response is to note how and when the message arrived, preserve it intact, make the statutory report and share information only through the protection or investigative process. If immediate danger is indicated, the Police and the Family Support Service’s 24-hour child-protection line 113 are available; the purpose is prompt safety, not a school finding of guilt.

A person interviewed as a suspect needs a different form of care. Do not contact the child to obtain a retraction or ask family members to align accounts. Preserve work rosters, location information, full communications and any contemporaneous records, including material that appears unfavourable. The allegation, protection proceedings and criminal investigation may move on different tracks. Related guides explain criminal proceedings in the Children’s Court, the position of children accused of offences, cybercrime evidence and what happens at a first court appearance.

• Record dates, names and what you personally saw or received.
• Keep originals and avoid altering electronic material.
• Follow every court order, bail term or safety direction.
• Do not discuss the evidence publicly or pressure another person.
• Seek timely advice before a detailed interview or court hearing.

This article is general legal information for Mauritius, not legal advice. For advice on your situation, consult a barrister.