Kazakhstan: Criminal Liability from Age of 12 Proposed for Certain Crimes

Deputies from the People's Party of Kazakhstan have approached Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov with a proposal to lower the age of criminal responsibility for certain crimes from 14 to 12, Orda.kz reports.

The MPs believe that bullying, violence, and the romanticization of a criminal lifestyle, which are common in schools, lead to an increase in crime among children, as well as incidents in the army. 

Violence must be nipped in the bud. However, today juvenile offenders remain unpunished. Perhaps we, legislators, should reconsider the age threshold for criminal liability for some crimes. And establish liability not from 14, but from 12 years: for example, in cases of sexual assault, The People's Party of Kazakhstan believes. 

According to the Prosecutor General's Office, juvenile delinquency remains high. In 2024, 1,263 such crimes were recorded, 50 cases (4.1%) more than in the same period in 2023. 

However, the Prime Minister declined the request, citing the experience of countries such as Germany, Japan, Russia, Finland, and Great Britain, where criminal liability begins at the age of 14-15.

Establishing liability from the age of 12 contradicts legal and humane approaches to the upbringing and protection of children, since at this age children do not have a sufficient level of maturity to understand the full extent of the social danger of their actions, explained Olzhas Bektenov.

The Prime Minister gave examples of the measures currently being taken to combat juvenile delinquency. He noted that psychological support centers operate in all 20 regions and that 266 psychologists work there.

Teachers regularly receive advanced training in preventing crime, bullying, and suicide.

More than 2.6 billion tenge have been allocated from the Republican budget for 2024-2026 for these purposes. The regulations and qualification requirements for the activities of 220,000 class teachers who interact with students and their parents are being reviewed to systematize their work.

Gradually increasing the additional payment for class management by 30%, depending on budgetary availability, is being discussed.

The country is also implementing measures to prevent destructive behavior among schoolchildren, including bullying. As of September 1, 2024, 10,000 children were registered with schools and received social and psychological-pedagogical assistance.

The government is ready to discuss with the deputy corps constructive proposals aimed at strengthening educational work, taking into account international experience and the opinions of the parental and expert community, the Prime Minister emphasized. 

The number of offenses among children in 2024 increased most noticeably in Astana (179 cases), Almaty (165), Shymkent (92), as well as in Turkestan (93), Atyrau (75), and Karaganda regions (71 crimes).

Original Author: Alina Pak