Sexual Offence Bill and child protection

CHINAZA Ekpere (not real name) a 4- year-old girl was brutally raped at Ogidi, Anambra State by their
landlord's 28-year-old son. It happened at night, when she was  sent to  deliver something to him in his room.
  According to her mother, nothing was done because the landlord paid them not to talk and  threatened to send them out from the compound.
  In Chiamaka’s story, the mother of two, who sent her daughter on an errand at about 7pm. She  waited for her to return but realized she took longer time than usual.
   When  she finally returned, she couldn't explain to her mother what happened to her as she demanded to know her whereabouts.
  It was next day, when her mother noticed how she was walking that she  told  her that Obiora, their neighbour dragged her into  a corner of the house and dipped his finger in her private part and later had his way into her. When the police was involved, the cops couldn’t do  anything. They simply asked Chiamaka to forget  about the issue and settle with Obiora.
  “ How can police tell me that, he wanted to pay N40,000, so that I would forget  that my daughter was raped?” queried the mother.
   Many states in Nigeria do not have accurate data of reported rape cases.
  According to the body Partner for Justice, statistics shows that eighty percent of sexual assault victims in Nigeria are children between the ages of 4 and 15.
  And Nigeria police lacks the training and poor logistics to respond to calls. Mostly, they do not know how to handle sexual violence case. Most heinous of sexual crimes sometimes end up unprosecuted because, sometimes the only witnesses to the crime are too young or too afraid to explain what had happened. Based on this, the police dismiss such cases.
  National Assembly was thrown into a rowdy session last month  following the passage of 46 Bills into law in less than ten minutes. The Sexual Offence Bill (SOB) which is also called Anti-Rape Bill was among the bills passed, to see that sexual assult on Nigerian Child comes to an end.
  Here are the provisions made, in order to protect the child.
  The controversial section 7 Sexual Offence Bill, sub Section 1-4, provided that 
1. A   person who commits an act which causes penetration with a child is guilty of an offence called defilement.
2. A person who commits an offence of defilement  with a child aged 11 years or less, shall upon conviction be sentenced to life imprisonment.
3.   A person who commits an offence of defilement with a child between the age of 12 and 15 years is liable upon conviction to life  imprisonment,
4. A person who commits an offence of defilement with a  child between the age of 16 and 18 years is liable upon conviction to life imprisonment.
 No person shall have sexual intercourse with a child, any person who contravenes the provision of sub section (1) of this section commits an offence of rape and is liable on conviction to life imprisonment, see also Section 31 (1-2) of Child Right Act 2013.
  Section 7 (5) SOB, provides for defence to the charge of defilement where the accused is deceived to believe that the person was above the age of 18 years at the time of the offence and the accused reasonably believed the child to be above the age of 18 years. Though the defence will not avail an accused he /she is within the prohibited degree of blood affinity, section 7(7) 30B.
  Apart from much debated section 7, there are other sections directed towards safe-guarding the child’s interest, such as Section 8 which criminalizes attempt to defilement. Section 10 criminalizes the promotion of sexual offence against a child, Section 11 criminalizes child trafficking for sexual purposes, Section 12 criminalizes child sex tourism (though not included in intended 2015 SOB), Section 13 criminalizes child prostitution, while Section 14 criminalize child pornography, and  Section 19 criminalize incest and attempt to incest by male.
   Another compelling provision for the  interest of child's right is the  possibility of declaring a child witness as a vulnerable witness,  Section 31 (1) (b) SOB.
   Also Section 39 (1)(c ) SOB provides that a person who is convicted of a sexual offence against a child as a  dangerous sexual offender who is  subject to supervision and whose particulars and sample may contain in the Dangerous Sex Offender data based.
  The passed Sexual Offence Bill (SOB)is yet to be assented by the President command, came about in the first place as a result of worrisome  incidence of rape, especially of children.
  According  to Senator Chris Anayanwu, sponsor of the bill and Chairman Senate Committee on Defence, Navy, Nigeria now is in a state where a father rapes his 3 year old boy repeatedly and the mother weeps at night and cannot speak out of shame and fear of her life, where a six years old child is raped to death and then set ablaze in Nigerian, just  seems like nothing has happened unlike before such  a story will go for a week.
   In other words, offenders would never be employed in any institution where they may pose a risk to unsuspecting persons.
  But new bill which awaits President consent, attracted criticism from children right groups politicians, who oppose the bill, to be against child protection.
  In phone  interaction with National Light, a lawyer with Ministry of Justice  Rivers State, Barr. White, said  that it is about  time Nigerian woman stand up to this nonsense in unison How can anyone especially a female stand  to say, they are proud to be a Nigerian when educated elected people that could not  bothered to read and look into children welfare, have censored legislations stating that it is lawful for children to be effectively roped in marriage to pedophiles.

Sexual Offence Bill and child protection Sexual Offence Bill and child protection Reviewed by Vita Ioanes on Saturday, July 04, 2015 Rating: 5

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