Kenya bans teachers over sexual abuse

Kenya’s authorities have banned 126 teachers for “gross misconduct”, most for sexual abuse of their students.The governing body said the teachers would not be allowed to teach again.They were found guilty after a disciplinary process, the Teachers Services Commission (TSC) said.A Child Welfare Society of Kenya has urged the director of public prosecutions to ensure those convicted are imprisoned, to protect other children in future.This ban is a departure from previous reactions to sexual abuse by teachers, said the Kenyan newspaper the Daily Nation, as it said previously the TSC just transferred suspended teachers.The list is compiled from complaints between 2011 and 2014.Before this, in 2010, more than 1,000 Kenyan teachers were sacked for sexually abusing girls. Most of those cases occurred in rural primary schools.The post Kenya Bans Teachers Over Sex Abuse appeared first on Daily Independent, Nigerian Newspaper.

Anti rape Bill: Falana Threatens Legal action Over President's Assent

Lagos lawyer and human rights activist, Chief Femi Falana (SAN) has joined forces with nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, in urging President Muhammadu Buhari to withhold his assent to the Sexual Offences Bill, otherwise known as the anti-rape bill passed by the 7th National Assembly.In a letter he co-wrote with his wife, Funmi, and addressed to Soyinka yesterday, Falana, who threatened to go to court if the controversial Sexual Offences Bill is passed into law, accused members of the last National Assembly of not paying attention to the provisions of the bill.“Having passed the Bill, the Senate cannot plead non est factum in the circumstance. It has to bear full responsibility for the legislative negligence,” he stated.Falana and Soyinka’s grouse with the bill borders on the age limit set for potential victims by the bill. The bill stipulates a life imprisonment for any individual found guilty of rape or sexual intercourse with children under 11 years; 10 years for incest; 10 years for child pornography or a fine of N2 million; and 14 years for sexual abuse, among others.The implication of this provision in the bill is that incidents of rape will not be considered crimes if the victims are older than 11.

6 Indian women's Rights organization that are bravely fighting for change

Sadly, women in India have faced significant violations of their human rights for centuries. From rape and domestic violence to forced labor and denial of educational opportunities, the struggle for rights and empowerment is a daunting one for Indian women. In the world’s second-largest country, hundreds of millions of women are still affected by some of these issues. Women’s rights are vital to the success and growth of developing nations, making projects that empower Indian women vital to the well-being of the entire country.While Indian women and girls technically have constitutional rights equal to men in many regards — including citizenship and access to primary education — the reality is often radically different. Socially, women can be regarded as lesser humans, and face frightening levels of sexual assault and violence.Because India has a population of 1.2 billion, and has manydistinct cultural groups, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to generalize about the population of the entire country. However, it is entirely clear that overall, women need advocates and allies across the country that will fight with them for not only their safety and health, but also for access to further opportunities for empowerment and autonomy. Here are some of the major players committed to improving the lives of women in India.

Lagos records 120 rape cases, convicts 140 sex offenders

Lagos State Government recorded no fewer than 12, 120 rape cases and other sexual violence matters in the last four years.State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Mr. Ade Ipaye, who disclosed this on Monday  said the government in the last one year also convicted about 140 sex offenders.Ipaye explained that one of those convicted was a notorious rapist that bagged life imprisonment.He said the government established the domestic and sexual violence response team to improve the safety of vulnerable persons and ensure offender are prosecuted.Ipaye said the team facilitated the signing of the Executive Order that established the Sex Offenders’ Register.He also informed that the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) in the last one-year recorded 526 rape cases, with 227 still pending in court., while adding that at least 15 judgment were made, ranging from life to seven years imprisonment.Ipaye further stressed that OPD in the last four years also recorded about 12, 120 rape cases.

Turkish mother, 36, shoots dead pregnant daughter

A Turkish mother, 36, shot dead her daughter, 17, after finding out that she was three months pregnant, media reports said on Saturday.The mother, named as Emine A., found out that her daughter Meryem A. was pregnant during a visit to neighbours, the Hurriyet daily reported.She then went back home to find a gun and returned to shoot her daughter — who worked as a cashier in a market — five times, it said.Bystanders outside the apartment block in the Selcuk district of the southern city of Nigde rushed to help and took Meryem to hospital but she died on the way.The mother was detained by police but then had a nervous collapse and was hospitalised. The investigation is continuing.Turkish authorities acknowledge there is a grave problem of violence against women in the country, although the vast majority of cases involving attacks perpetrated by men.According to the non-governmental Platform to Stop Violence Against Women, 286 women were murdered in Turkey in 2014 and 134 so far in 2015.

Nigeria's proposed sexual offences law obnoxious -Falana

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has threatened to go to court if the controversial Sexual Offences Bill is passed into law.In a letter addressed to Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, on Sunday, Mr. Falana accused members of the 7th National Assembly of not paying attention to the provisions of the bill.“Having passed the Bill, the Senate cannot plead non est factum in the circumstance. It has to bear full responsibility for the legislative negligence,” Mr. Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, stated in the letter co-written with his wife, Funmi.Messrs. Falana and Soyinka raise eyebrows on the age limit set for potential victims by the bill. The bill stipulates a life imprisonment for any individual found guilty of rape or sexual intercourse with children under 11 years; 10 years for incest; 10 years for child pornography or a fine of N2 million; and 14 years for sexual abuse, among others. With the provision, the bill appears to stipulate those incidents will not be considered crimes if the victims are older than 11; with Mr. Falana saying those age limits were inserted wrongly into the original bill.

SOYINKA'S OPEN LETTER ON SEXUAL OFFENCES

Dear Friends and Comrades,Regretfully, I am unable to be with you tomorrow morning.  However, I extend a warm embrace to you in your resolve to keep within Nigeria’s short memory the events that have been central to the attainment of our democracy – warts and all – enjoyed today by you and me. June 12 remains the true Democracy Day despite the unprincipled efforts of some prime beneficiaries of that struggle to expunge it from a people’s chronicle.Prof. Wole SoyinkaIf I had been able to join you, I would most certainly have asked you for help. It has to do with the nation’s latest alleged legislative stance against sexual abuse – molestation, rape, paedophilia etc etc. I am only a layman, not a “learned brother”, so any help from the learned is earnestly solicited. The question on my mind is this: is that legislative reinforcement not merely a case of rubbing vaseline on leprosy?In this supposedly progressive bill, sponsored by the respected Senator Chris Anyanwu, I could not help but notice a reiteration – as if to ensure that there is no ambiguity – of the word “child”, near superfluously.