MOSCOW, July 5 (UPI) -- A Russian legislator has introduced a bill for mandatory chemical castration of child molesters.
In May, President Dmitry Medvedev called for the same procedure to be voluntary, The Moscow Times reports.
The measure's sponsor, Anton Belyakov, said: "It's the same child molesters committing crimes over and over again. They sit out their time and then do it again."
Under his bill, child molesters, usually sentenced to eight to 20 years in prison, would be required to start drug treatment to inhibit sexual desire six months before release.
The treatment, which suppresses testosterone, would be renewed every few months after release.
Britain, France and nine U.S. states use the procedure on serious sex offenders. Side effects include breast enlargement and reduced bone density, which raises risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis.
"I'm glad that Medvedev has also started to take the issue of pedophilia seriously," said Belyakov, a pediatrician. "But I disagree that it should be voluntary."
