Garissa: Sheikhs and Imams in Garissa have been cautioned by High Court Presiding Judge Justice John Onyiego against facilitating marriages for minor girls, with a stern warning that legal action will be taken against any perpetrators found guilty of such practices. Justice Onyiego made these remarks at the launch of the 16 Days of Activism to end Gender-Based Violence, stressing that cultural and religious practices that contradict morality will not be tolerated.
According to Kenya News Agency, the Garissa Child Protection and Gender Technical working group has reported an increase in cases of sexual violence, including defilement, early and forced marriages, and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). In response, Justice Onyiego emphasized the need for a collaborative approach among stakeholders to educate communities about the harmful effects of these practices and to ensure that cases are reported promptly and perpetrators are apprehended.
Justice Onyiego stated, “You are prohibited from marrying a baby, young girl, or minor. While some interpretations of Islam allow marriage at 15, it has been communicated to religious leaders that the law takes precedence over religious practices regarding early marriage. Celebrating a marriage for someone under 18 will lead to arrest.” He further urged religious leaders and communities to support the education of girls, allowing them to pursue careers in fields like law and medicine rather than being married off at a young age.
Additionally, the Judge warned against the involvement of elders in Maslah sessions, an Alternative Justice System (AJS) for Muslim communities, in presiding over criminal cases such as murder, defilement, and gender-based violence. Justice Onyiego noted that while the judiciary supports empowering Alternative Justice Systems as outlined in the 2010 Constitution, the AJS is limited in its jurisdiction, and decisions made outside their scope would not be binding.
Justice Onyiego stated, “We encourage Maslah as a form of AJS, but there is a category of cases they are prohibited from presiding over. Such cases are sexual-related offenses, murder cases, matters of terrorism, and others. We discourage them from such cases, and anything they decide would not be binding. If an offender pays something in the Maslah, they will still be arrested and charged in the courts of law.”
Currently, there are at least 100 active cases at the Garissa law courts regarding child marriages, defilement, sexual and gender-based violence, and FGM. According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022, 20 percent of ever-married women aged between 15 and 29 have experienced physical, sexual, or emotional violence from their most recent partner.
Recommendations from the Garissa gender working group include institutionalizing survivor-centered court procedures to ensure dignity, privacy, and respect at all stages, in-camera hearings for SGBV, defilement, and child abuse cases, fast-tracking these cases, establishing child-friendly testimony spaces with age-appropriate furnishings, and introducing anonymous survivor feedback mechanisms.
