As I said, these crimes extend far beyond aggravated assault and do warrant a term of life imprisonment. However, because of legal ramifications that would follow from that, perhaps the committee will have a problem with that suggestion. If the term of sentence were changed, if it were vastly reduced—say, it was put to 14 years—that's something I in fact would accept because the difference would be that the victim's experience would be acknowledged. That is absolutely crucial.
Sentencing is not only about punishment. It's about helping the victim overcome what they've been through, the experience that they've dealt with, their ordeal. I think on that basis alone we need to acknowledge the suffering that has taken place and recognize exactly what Adorno said, that if suffering is allowed to speak, then we have a condition of truth.
That is why I'm passionate about this bill. I think it's a way to finally allow victims of torture to have their suffering acknowledged, publicly acknowledged, by the body politic.