Kenya: Now MPs back sex offences bill

The Kenyan Parliament now seems united in supporting the Sexual Offences Bill, whose fate hung in the balance last week as MPs opposed it due to various loopholes. During the third day of debate on the Bill, all MPs who spoke rooted for the proposed law, saying it was long overdue. Its shortcomings could be corrected later, they said. That contrasted sharply with last week when several MPs opposed the Bill, citing a number of flaws. Some of the weaknesses identified in the Bill include failure to define sexual offences, providing different punishment to errant age-groups, criminalising female circumcision, and legislating on matters cultural.