Parents and guardians negotiate compensation with suspected defilers risk a Sh500,000 fine, five years in jail, or both.
An amendment bill on the Sexual Offences Act tabled in National Assembly yesterday prohibits parents from soliciting money, domestic animals or any other form of compensation from culprits to conceal the offence.
"Any person who, in order to conceal a sexual offence marries off the victim to the suspected offender, prevents police officers from conducting investigations or distorts evidence or the scene of crime commits an offence," reads the Bill sponsored by Busia women representative Florence Mutua.
Adoption of the proposed law particularly raising the fine to Sh500, 000 from Sh50,000 seeks to tighten the noose in dealing with sexual offences since most cases have been resolved through unlawful local arrangement between parents of the victim and the offender.
Mutua argues that plea bargaining by sexual offence perpetrators with parents of the victim has been making them evade justice.
The bill demands Interior Cabinet Secretary to ensure one special unit, equipped with modern facilities are set up at every police station in all 47 counties to deal with sexual offences. The units should also be under police officers specifically trained to handle and investigate the offences.
The bill provides that any unlawful intentional act of body contact of "genital organs, breast or buttocks" between people of opposite gender and exposure or display of any pornographic material against someone's will amount to sexual offence.
Mutua's bill further bars employers from hiring anyone charged of sexual offence to take care of children or any vulnerable person.
"An employer who knowingly employs a convicted sexual offender in a position of care or access to children or any vulnerable person commits an offence and is liable upon conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to a fine not exceeding Sh 1 million or both," reads the bill.
An employee who was convicted of the offence but did not disclose to the employer during the hiring will be liable of the offence upon conviction to
three-year jail term or Sh50,000 fine or both.