The words that should haunt Canberrans in the wake of this awful sentencing

Somewhere in Canberra tonight, a woman who has been sexually assaulted may be wondering whether to report what happened to her.

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She may be frightened, ashamed, or uncertain whether anyone will believe her. She may be weighing the emotional cost of telling police, reliving her trauma and facing her attacker in court.

What message does this sentencing to send to victims. Picture by Karleen Minney

A teenager who pleaded guilty to raping an 18-year-old woman after meeting her at a Canberra house party received an 18-month prison sentence, wholly suspended.

He walked out of court without serving time in prison.

The facts are confronting. What began with consensual kissing became serious sexual violence. The offender ripped the young woman's clothing, physically restrained her, penetrated her without consent and forced her to perform oral sex.

She cried and pleaded for him to stop. He continued.

All rape is violence. This offending involved additional physical force, humiliation and repeated violations of consent.

The victim described losing her dignity, confidence and sense of self. She could no longer call her body her own.

Those words should haunt all Canberrans as our justice system lets the offender walk free because his rehabilitation is more important than the victim's suffering.

This young woman did what society asks victims to do. She reported the crime and participated in the justice process. Her attacker was convicted. Yet the punishment imposed leaves serious questions about whether justice has been done.

This decision fails the pub test. More importantly, it fails the victim and risks undermining community confidence in reporting sexual violence.

Justice Andrew Muller considered the offender's youth, rehabilitation prospects and limited sexual experience. He also accepted that the boy's limited familiarity with Australian societal norms, only six months after he arrived in the country, reduced his moral culpability.

That reasoning deserves scrutiny.

Consent is not a uniquely Australian cultural convention. A woman crying and begging someone to stop requires no special cultural education to understand.

There are legitimate reasons to prioritise rehabilitation for young offenders.

Imprisonment often does little to rehabilitate them and can make future offending more likely.

But rehabilitation cannot eclipse punishment, deterrence, accountability and recognition of victims' suffering.

The scales of justice in Canberra have swung too far in favour of the offender.

A suspended sentence isn't an absence of consequences. But what does it communicate to young people about the seriousness of rape when such violence results in no immediate imprisonment?

And what does it tell survivors sitting silently at home, already questioning whether reporting their assault is worth the pain?

We cannot know how any individual survivor will respond. But we should be deeply concerned about a sentencing outcome that risks reinforcing the belief that their suffering will never be adequately recognised.

Community safety involves more than rehabilitating one offender. It requires deterring violence, reinforcing accountability and maintaining confidence that the justice system will respond meaningfully when victims come forward.

The ACT government should review whether sentencing laws for serious sexual offending by juveniles strike the right balance. This is not about abandoning rehabilitation or demanding imprisonment in every case. It is about proportionality and whose interests justice serves. It is about being victim centric.

The offender in this case has been given an opportunity to rebuild his future. His victim must rebuild hers around the consequences of his actions.

Her suffering cannot be suspended. Neither should our commitment to justice.

• Dr John Coyne is director of national security programs at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
• Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14; Canberra Rape Crisis Centre 6247 2525; Kids Helpline 1800 551 800

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