The making of the Kenya sexual offenses act, 2006: Behind the scenes

Kenya’s enactment of the Sexual Offenses Bill in 2006 was a milestone in dealing with sexual offenses and gender-based violence. The bill is Kenya’s first legal recognition of the many sex crimes that occur in the country. Among other things, the law criminalizes deliberate transmission of HIV/AIDS and provides rape victims with free medical care and counseling in public institutions. Convicted rapists will now face a minimum sentence of ten years, while a maximum penalty will be life imprisonment. A retrospective study was conducted to document the process leading to the enactment of the law. The objective was to document the sexual offenses law-making process in Kenya, the influence of different actors, and how these interacted with contextual factors to influence the substantive content of the law as well as its enactment. This book explores the circumstances under which the law was formulated and passed, identifies actors and interest groups involved in the law-making process, explores how the law changed over time, and draws lessons learned that could be of interest to other countries intending to invoke similar actions.