Govt Keen To End Domestic Violence
The government today marked a significant milestone in the collective effort to combat domestic violence in Kenya by launching the Rules that were made under the Protection against Domestic Violence Act of 2015.
Preparation of the said Rules involved a collaborative effort between the Rules Committee of the Judiciary, the Department of Gender and other key stakeholders.
They were gazetted by the Chief Justice as Legal Notice N0. 200 of 2020.
The event was graced by the Cabinet Secretary Ministry of public service, gender and Affirmative action Aisha Jumwa, Principal Secretary Veronica Nduva Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris, Hon. Moses Wanjala of the Rules Committee…..Rose Wachuka Chief Staff in the office of the Chief Justice…..It was testamentary that the government is taking decisive steps to address domestic violence and to guarantee the rights and well-being of Children and survivors of all forms of abuse and aggression by intimate partners.
To achieve this, the government intends to disseminate and sensitize citizens on the said Rules as a way of creating an environment that can protect those who are vulnerable and prevent the occurrence of instances of domestic violence.
Speaking during the event, Honorable Moses Wanjala who is the Secretary to Rules Committee of the Judiciary said that the preparation of the Rules had adhered to the laid down procedure and that these Rules were geared towards providing the necessary legal and procedural framework that will operationalize the provisions of the Protection Against Domestic Violence Act. He however decried the fact that sensitization of the public on the Rules after their gazettement has been low.
Hon Wanjala said that the mandate of the Rules Committee and the Chief Justice was to prepare the Rules and have them gazetted but that much needed to be done to publicize and sensitize the right holders and the duty bearers on the contents. He challenged those present to ensure that the simplified forms under the Rules are made freely available at no cost as per the requirements of the Rules.
He further pointed out that training of the duty bearers was necessary to achieve the goals set out in the Rules. ‘I am a judicial officer. I can tell you that since these Rules were gazetted in 2020, I have only had the chance to consider two applications filed under Rules. They were both filed by advocates on behalf of their clients. The first application was withdrawn by the parties and did not reach its logical conclusion. The second one is still pending but was unfortunately wrongly drafted” he said. Hon. Wanjala reiterated the need for stakeholders as well as non-State actors to be involved in the sensitization and training process.
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