New laws in Ukraine will see convicted paedophiles and rapists forcibly castrated by chemical injection.

The legislation will potentially apply annually to thousands of men aged between 18 and 65 found guilty of raping or sexually abusing minors.

Paedophiles will face “coercive chemical castration” under the new system.

This “involves the forced injection of anti-androgen drugs consisting of chemicals that should reduce libido and sexual activity”, reported Ukrinform news agency.

The law will apply to all child rapes including “unnatural” rape and sexual abuse of children above and below the age of puberty.

In 2017 official figures showed 320 child rapes in Ukraine but the numbers of paedophile sex abuse cases are believed to run into the thousands.

National police chief Vyacheslav Abroskin said this week: “Five children were raped in four regions of Ukraine…within just 24 hours.

“And these are the crimes which parents reported to police despite their fear and anxiety to do so.

“We can only guess how many latent sexual crimes against children we have in the country.”

In one horrific recent case, 11-year-old Daria Lukyanenko, from Odessa region, was killed after she “fought back” against an alleged rape attempt by a family friend Nikolay Tarasov, 22.

Her body was found after a six-day search in a village cesspool and the man was detained for attempted rape and murder.

Hundreds attended her funeral and the suspect’s mother Maria publicly “disowned” her son.

Earlier armed police intervened after his family home was besieged by angry locals.

Under the new laws, Ukraine is also to set up a public register of paedophiles jailed for child rape and sexual abuse of minors.

Such criminals will be monitored for life by police after release from jail.

In another move, the maximum jail term for raping a child was increased from 12 to 15 years. (Agency report)

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