Child sex trafficking: The Coastal problem that needs intervention

Young girls looking for bursary, sweets at play and tricks as an alternative.

These are some of the ways child sex traffickers use to defile underage girls and boys in equal measure at the Coast region.

Statistics released by International Justice Mission in December 2021 says 20,000 cases of child sex trafficking were reported during the Covid-19 pandemic.

But it notes that sex trafficking is however extremely prevalent and on the increase with sexual exploitation deeply rooted in gender and sex-based inequality and discrimination. 

The country has a robust legal framework with targeted policies and laws that are designed to protect women and girls from sex trafficking. 

YEARNING FOR HELP

Despite all this, a series of challenges render this framework ineffective in providing protection and survivors rarely receive the access to justice and support they deserve and are entitled to.

13-year-old Mercy Mwawasi* says an elderly man lied to her about bursaries.

Mwawasi, who is a Class 7 pupil, says she was lured by the man who resides in her neighbourhood.

“I was lured into a villa in the Diani area with the promise that he would assist me with getting bursaries for my education since we are poor,” she says as she breaks down during an interview.

She says the man pretended that he would help her acquire a bursary from Msambweni Constituency Development Fund kitty on September 30, 2020, something that never happened.

Mwawasi realised that she was being trafficked for sex after the neighbour started touching her inappropriately at the villa where she was brought through a hired boda boda man.

“He then plotted with the boda boda rider who already knew the man’s intention. It is then that I realised that what I had been promised was not the bursary but sex,” she says.

Before she could know it, she was raped and told not to report the case to anyone.

However, she told her parents who later informed officers at the Diani police station. 

But the man, who is well known, started threatening the family. He was arrested and later denied the charges, and released on a cash bail of Sh20,000.

Mwawasi whose real name has been changed to protect her identity is one of several girls in Coastal region whose life has been devastated by rape. 

Her story is not unique. Many girls are susceptible to deceit from people they know that leads to grave human rights violations.

SOCIAL IMPACT OF TOURISM

Child abuse has not only been limited to locals in the area but foreign nationals who visit the area as tourists are being found wanting.

15-year-old Sheila Awuor* breaks down as she narrates how a foreigner spiked her drink and later defiled her.

Awuor, who was in Class 7 when this ordeal happened, says she had previously met the able bodied Italian man at a beach bar in Diani. 

“I first met and knew the Italian man in November 2019 at Copa Cabana Beach Bar when I went there with a few friends. We just went to have some fun as girls,” she says as she looked disgusted by the mere thought of that day. 

She says they later met on January 6, 2020. This time round the huge man had the courtesy to talk to her nicely.

“He invited me over to his house on January 3, but we agreed to meet on the 6th instead. So I went to his place,” she says.

Awuor says when she arrived at the cosy house, she was offered a drink and opted for a strawberry yogurt. 

She did not quite remember what ensued after she drank the yogurt.

“After drinking the yogurt, I started feeling a bit dizzy and I tried to look at the man who was seated right beside me but I passed out,” she says.

Sobbing uncontrollably, Awuor says when she regained consciousness, she felt some pains in her genital area. I did not know what to do,” she says.

She says she woke up and found the man but later she was spotted by some community people who noticed the rape incident and reported it to the local police station.

“Someone called the Tourist Police in Mtwapa since they had been alerted of the presence of a young girl in school uniform at one of the apartments,” she says.

Awuor says that when the police came, she explained what had happened before she was taken to the hospital.

HOTSPOT

The matter was reported at Mtwapa police station and the case is ongoing at Shanzu law courts.

Coastal Kenya has long been famous as a hotspot for sex tourism. This industry primarily targets and exploits children, particularly girls.

A joint report between the United Nations Children’s Fund and the government of Kenya in 2006 estimated that a third of all girls between the ages of 12 to 18 in four coastal districts were involved in transactional sex for cash.

In 2018, Trace Kenya, a local organisation that works to end child trafficking in the coast estimated that as many as 100,000 children (girls and boys) were being exploited for sex work in Mombasa.

Rose Mukami* 13 was also sex trafficked although the case was registered under defilement.

Mukami who comes from a poor background says she used to get money in exchange of sex with the man.

“It was not once but many times. I used to go to his place and leave that place with money for my upkeep,” she says with a bit of bitterness in her voice.

Mukami confesses that this behaviour continued for a while without the knowledge of her parents.

“I used to sneak out of the house at night to meet with him for sex and return in the morning unnoticed,” she says as she blushes a bit.

Suddenly one day her mother noticed a sudden, unusual behaviour change in her.

“She sat me down and had a long discussion with me before I opened up. She really got angry with me but later understood my point of view,” she says.

Mukami says they reported the case to Kijipwa police station vide OB 32/20/5/2021 where she was taken for medical examination. 

“When the suspect got wind that the case had been reported, he ran away from the neighbourhood, '' she says.

In as much as Mukami says this, her angered face could not hide the disgust of the incident

“This guy did this to me then he just ran away. Who does this? How is it possible that big people can defile children and just disappear? “ she posed.

But she notes that after a few days, the man was arrested with the assistance of residents and the case is ongoing at the Kilifi law courts.

In 2018, the Anti-Human Trafficking and Child Protection Unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations handled 3,160 cases. In 2019, the unit handled 4,133 cases.

LEGAL FRAMEWORK GAPS

Kenya has a robust legal framework with targeted policies and laws that are designed to protect women and girls from sex trafficking. 

Despite all this, a series of challenges render this framework ineffective in providing protection for the children. Survivors rarely receive the access to justice and support they deserve and are entitled to.

Aggrey Juma, a lawyer from the International Justice Mission, says most cases are registered under defilement rather than child sex trafficking.

“We have taken 120 cases to court since January this year and right now we are supporting about nine cases,” he says.

Juma says getting convictions of the cases is no easy feat since the prosecution and the court categorises the cases as defilement rather than sex trafficking.

“Currently, we look at sex trafficking from exploitation component which is defilement but it ignores other participants such as the facilitators of the crimes,” Juma says.

“When prosecuting for defilement, we avoid the facilitators who enhance these behaviours and these are the reasons why cases are rampant.”

Hi sentiments were echoed by Head of ODPP in Kilifi Jami Yamina who says they receive cases but are registered under sexual offences. These include defilement, rape and incest, among others.

He agrees there is a need for training of law enforcement agencies to understand the dynamics of child sex trafficking, including identifying and differentiating rape and trafficking-related sexual violence against girls. 

“For example, when a minor is taken to a lodging, the hotel should not admit such a person without the authorisation of a guardian. If that hotel admits the girl then they are part of that ring,” he says.

“There is a commercialisation aspect of people gaining from this girl. In this case, everyone should be held accountable.”

Yamina says everyone handling these cases are insufficiently trained on who to go to or what loose ends they need to tie. 

“We need a multisectoral approach in tackling these cases.  Let's do a joint training of sectors involved in these cases like the prosecutors, investigators, judiciary, the community,” he says.

But Mary Goretti of Children Services says they have done sensitisation on the differences between defilement and trafficking for sexual offences that is needed. She however did not disclose the numbers trained.

“We have laws that we are implementing like the counter trafficking acts," she says.

"We have also trained law enforcement officers so that they know what child sex trafficking is and we have programmes to assist victims.”

Goretti says the training has been done on investigators, police and even the prosecutors.

She says that while they strive to train more law enforcement officers, they are constrained to reach everyone and therefore urges members of the public to report these crimes relating to children to the police.

“People should be reporting these cases. The police will take action and prosecutors will take action. We should not see things happening and keep quiet. They should expose them,” she says.

HOPE

Even as the gaps exist, the victims still have questions in their minds.

Mwawasi says she is not sure if she will get the justice that she deserves.

“I am afraid that if this case does not go through. What will happen to us? What about my family?" she says.

On the other hand, Awuor says she has faith in the justice system.

“I'm not happy that this happened to me. I got pregnant as a result but for my child's peace of mind, one day justice shall prevail in my favour,” she says. 

The government has put policies to deal with Gender-Based Violence, including provision of timely and efficient services to victims ot survivors. 

This Policy is informed by The Constitution of Kenya, Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2003, the Sexual Offences Act, 2006, and the Sexual Offences, among others

The policy goal is to be realised as laid out in the key objectives which seek to ensure: a coordinated approach in addressing GBV and effective programming and enhanced enforcement of laws and policies towards GBV prevention and response.

Tweenage and Beyond child educator Liz Mungai says it is unfortunate that children are still being exploited around the country.

“What needs to be done is to empower parents and give them knowledge in regards to the implications of child sex trafficking,” she says.

Mungai says policy makers should empower communities through education about their responsibilities as parents towards their children.

She further recommended that children too can benefit from such empowerment.

“Let us also give the children the knowledge. Let's teach them how to protect themselves and how to use their voices when confronted with such issues,” she says.

(edited by Amol Awuor)