Kosovo Sui Generis: Criminal Act “Inducing Sexual Acts by False Promise of Marriage” and the 2019 Criminal Code

Abstract

Article 233 of the most recent Criminal Code of Kosovo, enacted in 2019, includes the criminal act of “Inducing sexual acts by false promise of marriage.” According to this Code, this act is committed by a person deceptively and falsely promising marriage to induce a person between the ages of sixteen and eighteen years to engage in a sexual act. This paper has three primary goals. First, to present a normative chronology and analyze the elements of this criminal offense. Second, to present the degree of dangerousness and data on the number of persons convicted in Kosovo from 2003-2019, and thirdly, to justify the causes and the need for decriminalization. Therefore, the paper uses normative, historical comparative, and objective analysis (reasonableness, teleological) to answer the research questions, including the literature review and personal communications with the former Deputy President of the Supreme Court of Kosovo by adopting a qualitative method.