- The book is titled Kenya Judicial Bench Book on Trafficking in Persons for sexual exploitation.
- The theme of this year’s World Day Against Trafficking of Persons was "Leave No Child Behind in the Fight Against Human Trafficking" augments their focus on the vulnerability of women and children.
Image: LEAH MUKANGAI
The International Association of Women Judges in Kenya has partnered with Equality Now to launch the first-ever bench book to tackle sex trafficking in the country.
The book is titled Kenya Judicial Bench Book on Trafficking in Persons for sexual exploitation.
In a statement, they said despite the enactment of the Counter-Trafficking in Persons Act, prosecution and conviction rates for human trafficking cases remain low.
"Kenya continues to have one of the highest rates of human trafficking in Africa, with trafficking for sexual exploitation being one of the most common forms," read the statement.
The theme of this year’s World Day Against Trafficking of Persons was "Leave No Child Behind in the Fight Against Human Trafficking" augments their focus on the vulnerability of women and children.
The Bench book is the first bench book on sex exploitation to be launched in Kenya, but the second one on human trafficking in the country.
It complements existing Bench Books and other legal resources that have been developed by and for the Judiciary in Kenya, including the Bench Book on Labour Trafficking (2022) and the Bench Book on Criminal Procedure (2018).
Chief Justice Martha Koome acknowledged the importance of the bench book on World Day Against Trafficking of Persons.
“This Bench Book on trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation seeks to facilitate a greater understanding of this form of trafficking, further bringing attention to the elements of this crime, including the institutional barriers, to support access to justice for victims and survivors,” Koome said.
The Bench book is designed to sensitize judicial officers including judges, magistrates, and other court users such as prosecutors, advocates, and probation officers in understanding the dynamics of trafficking for sexual trafficking.
The guide should help lawmakers identify potential victims, aid them in being alert and responsive to their need for support and protection, and adopt responsive strategies for dealing with trauma. Further, it highlights the legal issues that arise in trafficking for sexual exploitation cases.
"The bench book is the first on sex trafficking in Kenya and includes special features such as unpacking common misconceptions related to sex trafficking which can impact the ability of the courts to prosecute and adjudicate effectively, and a call for all actors to adopt a human rights and trauma-informed approach when handling cases of sex trafficking," read the statement.
"It also cites 87 cases and judgments taken on sex trafficking in various countries across the globe including Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, Malawi, Namibia, Australia, Canada, Seychelles, Netherlands, Philippines, Romania, and many others."
The bench book is a welcome initiative to the numerous policy efforts the Government of Kenya has made to combat trafficking, including increasing investigations, prosecutions and specialized anti-trafficking police units.
“We welcome the steps taken by the government however prosecution of human trafficking is dismal especially trafficking for sexual exploitation despite Kenya’s robust legislative framework,” Equality Now’s program officer Marion Ogeto said.
The bench book highlights that women and children remain particularly vulnerable when it comes to trafficking for sexual exploitation.
In 2022, the National Crime Research Center reported that sex trafficking stood at 44 per cent, with women being the most affected at 41 per cent, children at 33 per cent, and men at 21 per cent.
The bench book cites that the vulnerability of women and girls to trafficking for sexual exploitation is exacerbated by structural and systematic sex and gender-based discrimination and inequality, which manifests through gendered poverty, lack of viable employment opportunities, lack of control over financial resources, limited access to education and low social status of women and girls.
In addition, with the prevalence of technology, sex trafficking continues to be a major concern for Kenya, and invariably in the legal system.
The "Out of the Shadows: The Internet and Child Sexual Exploitation" global report cited that with Child Sexual Exploitation and abuse increasingly being perpetrated online and through the use of digital technologies, Kenya, a technology hub in East Africa, has not been immune to the prevalence of child sexual trafficking.
The Anti-Human Trafficking and Child Protection Unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations alone handled 3,160 online child sexual exploitation cases in 2018 and 4,133 in 2019.
The Bench book comes as a welcome addition to the growing judicial ecosystem on trafficking of cases, where in 2022, the government launched the Kenya Judicial Bench Book on Labour Trafficking.
In 2018, the government also launched a Bench Book on Criminal Procedure.