By Longtong Ibrahim
Kaduna (Nigeria) – Considering reports of rise in rape cases, Kano state government in Northwest Nigeria, has finally put a 14 years jail term without a fine option as minimum punishment for rapists in the state, while the maximum punishment to be served is life imprisonment.
Kano state Solicitor, Mukthar Daneji, stated this, Wednesday, during the Justice for All (J4A) Conference in the State, explaining that the punishment was against the former which was one or two years jail term with a fine.
He pointed out that, as a result of the rising awareness, many parents have come out to report their children being raped – and so far, over 100 cases have been arraigned before the court, convicted and found guilty.
Country Director J4A, Bob Arnot, noted that the organization is working in collaboration with the police and judiciary to increase safety, security and justice reform in the aspect of sexual gender violations.
Amot maintained that the organization also assists Non Governmental Organizations and Civil Society Organizations by establishing referral centers for victims of HIV/AIDS and other sexual abuse problems; adding that it has recorded getting justice for more than 1000 cases.
In 2014, the Kano state police command in its annual crime report released a total of 214 reported rape cases, while earlier in 2014, the then Kano state commissioner for justice, Maliki Kuliya Umar, disclosed that there were more than 100 reported rape cases between November and December 2013, as many more of such cases were settled outside courtrooms within the same period.
The Justice For All program is funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development and is managed by the British Council.
it supports Nigerian-led reform of the justice sector by working alongside counterparts from the entire justice community: the courts, the police, anti-corruption agencies and civil society groups to help develop the capacity, accountability and responsiveness of the sector in delivering access to Justice for all Nigerians – particularly, improving human rights and access to justice for poor and disadvantaged members of society, including women and children.
