Let’s end the horror of defilement
It is a tragedy that most cases of defilement go unreported because the parents of the victims reach out-of-court settlements with the defilers.
What you need to know:
- Despite the existing laws and policies that protect children’s rights, we haven’t seen a significant reduction in defilement.
- It is disheartening that a parent can accept as little as Sh10,000 and pretend to forgive a person who has defiled a young girl and conceal the crime.
This week’s edition of the Voice is a dark one—literally. It focuses on two heartbreaking issues that society has not given the attention they deserve: defilement and incest.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my five-year-old friend Lisa*, who was defiled by a relative. The case is due for judgment this month. I believe my friend will get justice.
Hers is one of the few cases that has been reported and, with any luck, will not go through a lengthy legal process. Defilement of girls remains a heinous and abhorrent crime in society. It is a tragedy that most cases of defilement go unreported because the parents of the victims reach out-of-court settlements with the defilers.
How appalling that in this day and age, a parent can accept as little as Sh10,000 and pretend to forgive a person who has defiled a young girl and conceal the crime.
Section 8(1) of the Sexual Offences Act defines what defilement is. The gender of the child is irrelevant. Again, Article 53 of our Constitution states that every child has the right to be protected from abuse, neglect, harmful cultural practices, all forms of violence, inhuman treatment and punishment, and hazardous or exploitative work.
Worse, the implementation of these laws is often poor and insensitive to the needs of survivors. This vice is fast becoming an endangered species with child abuse experiencing an uncanny boom in recent times.
I cannot understand the perversion of a person who is sexually attracted to a three-year-old and the heartless and immoral people who cover it up. That at least 37 cases of child defilement have been reported in Kenya in the last eight months is alarming, especially when you discover the extent of collusion between the victims’ parents, security officials and local leaders in covering up the crime.
Many cases go unreported, and studies show that many victims will remain silent unless there are visible consequences such as pregnancy. Defilement has destroyed the future of many children. Stricter sanctions should be imposed on these paedophiles and their enablers. The government must enforce strict laws to stamp out this evil. The police must also be more professional and sympathetic, and stop shielding suspects.
Sensitisation to the dangers of defilement and its consequences, personal efforts and a change in the mindset of communities will help end the vice.
Chief Justice Martha Koome has done well to set up specialised courts to deal with sexual and gender-based violence cases. She recently unveiled a list of convicted sex offenders whose details will be permanently recorded in an electronic register.
The Judiciary alone cannot stop this menace; each of us must play our part. Targeted interventions, if implemented in a coordinated and sustained manner, will go a long way in eradicating this cancer from society.
*Name has been changed.
