Macedonia's Planned 'Paedophile Register' Causes Concern

Minister of Social Policy, Spiro Ristovski | photo by: MTSP

Macedonia has anounced that it will publish a register of convicted paedophiles, containing their pictures, names and addresses as well as their crimes.

A draft law envisaging the formation of the register is already before Macedonia's parliament, expected to become law this month.

If the law is adopted as expected, the Justice Ministry will be tasked with providing the data on convicted paedophiles so that the registry can be put into use within three months.

“There is undoubtedly a need for such a register,” the Social Policy Minister, Spiro Ristovski, said. “Schools, kindergartens, social welfare centres and the citizens in general can [and have a right to] check out people who live in their vicinity who might have been convicted of sexual abuse of minors.”

The minister said he was proud that his country was the first in the region to introduce this novelty.

But human rights groups warn that the register may be used by people to take the law into their own hands.

The head of the Macedonian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, Gordan Kalajdziev, said he was concerned by plans to disclose people's personal data.

He described publishing people's addresses as "a delicate issue", likely to result in the bullying and lynching of ex-convicts by the community.

"We should not rush towards such a decision without comparing examples from other countries”, Kalajdziev told Balkan Insight in his first reaction to the plans.

Justice Ministry records show that from 2004 to 2009 Macedonian courts convicted 231 people for sexual abuse of children and minors. Of these, 38 were people who had repeated their crime after previously serving time in jail.

For sexual offences against minors, Macedonian law envisages eight years to life in prison. For so-called “lighter” sexual crimes the law stipulates terms ranging from three to ten years in jail.

The draft law empowers police to watch former sex criminals for life. They will be tasked with closely monitoring their whereabouts, especially their movements near schools, kindergartens parks and other areas where children gather.

It will also be illegal for them to change residence without informing the authorities and they will be obliged to report to the courts at least once a year.