Gov. David Ige signs Women’s Caucus bills

Gov. David Ige signed three bills presented by the Women’s Legislative Caucus into law Thursday.

“These measures are important to prevent potential abuses, to assist victims with transition from a hostile situation and to increase penalties for those who benefit from exploiting others,” Ige said. “The exploitation of another person is totally unacceptable in our community, and increasing the penalties for such egregious action sends the signal that we will not tolerate it here in our community.”

Senate Bill 834 established the importation, sale or possession of a childlike sex doll as a felony in the state. State Rep. Linda Ichiyama (D, Salt Lake-Moanalua Valley) said that based on the experience of law enforcement, the dolls are indicative of an individual’s desire to harm a human child.

“Unfortunately, Hawaii has been used as a gateway for the importation of these dolls into the rest of the United States,” Ichiyama said. “By prohibiting the sale, importation or possession of childlike sex dolls in Hawaii, it not only prevents the obscene representation of the sexual abuse of children, but can also help protect the public from predatory sex offenders across the nation.”

House Bill 887 amended Hawaii’s laws regarding sex trafficking and created a separate offense for those who provide anything of value, such as drugs, housing and other nonmonetary compensation, to engage in sexual conduct with another.

The bill also changed the names of certain offenses in the Hawaii Revised Statutes to more appropriate terms, such as renaming prostitution to commercial sexual exploitation.

“That changes the narrative. It creates a narrative that supports victims. It talks about what survivors are going through, and it helps us not only talk again to the public, but to move these victims through our systems differently,” state Attorney General Clare Connors said. “We support them. We treat them the way they need to be treated so that they can really feel the justice that we’re all trying to work to achieve on their behalf.”

Senate Bill 828 removed the six-month residency requirement to file for divorce in the state. According to Angelina Mercado, executive director of the Hawaii State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, for survivors of domestic violence who file for divorce, this six-month period is “probably one of the most dangerous times in their lives.”

“What this legislation we hope will do will provide opportunities to reconnect to families, support networks, and, quite frankly, flee when they can,” Mercado said.

The Women’s Legislative Caucus, which presented the three bills, is a bipartisan group of legislators that works to advance legislation on behalf of women, girls and children.

“We appreciate the fact that we can come together and put together a package that not only is endorsed by our women colleagues, but by our male colleagues as well,” state Sen. Rosalyn Baker (D, West Maui-South Maui) said. “We need everybody in the community to understand that actions against women, girls, children is just not acceptable in our state.”