By Leow Si Wan

IT IS a sign of the times - More girls aged below 14 are having sex. The police have now tabbed this as a worrying crime issue, and are trying to keep a lid on the problem.

Crime statistics issued on Wednesday for the first half of the year showed that the number of statutory rape cases involving girls under 14 jumped more than 70 per cent, to 37 cases, compared with 21 in the same period last year.

Consensual sex was often at the heart of the problem. Many of the girls had sex with casual friends and boyfriends, most of whom were about the same age. But when the girls' parents, or in some cases, teachers, found out, they were determined that action be taken, and reported the cases to the police.

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