He added that such acts, despite mutual “consent”, are classified as rape because the participants are not adults.

“Based on police records, there was an increase of 202 cases (11.8%) last year, compared with 2022,” he said.

He expressed particular concern that most of these cases involve the B40 group (low-income households) and that a lack of parental supervision, in addition to easy access to pornography online, has contributed to the occurrence of such crimes.

In this context, he emphasised the role of parents, who must supervise their children and be tech-savvy to control internet use and prevent their children from accessing inappropriate websites.

“In the past, pornographic material was hard to find, but now it’s all up for grabs. All this material is easily accessible on smartphones, regardless of age,” he said.

He added that parents’ lack of knowledge and control over the content codes of the websites visited by their children has negative consequences, especially allowing children as young as five years old to access sites under the guise of educational material.

Shuhaily said reducing statutory rape cases requires the cooperation of all parties, including family institutions, educational institutions and policymakers.

“A good policy will produce a good society,” he said.