Socio-Cultural and Economic Determinants of Accessing the Criminal Justice System by Victims of Spousal Abuse in Nairobi City County, Kenya
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Date
2021
Authors
Ollando, Omondi Scholastica Awino
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
Spousal abuse is acknowledged globally as a major social problem that affects the victim, perpetrator, their families and the community in general, irrespective of social, economic, religious or cultural background (Eriksson & Mazerolle, 2015; ICRW & UNFPA, 2009). Globally, there is a high attrition level where cases of spousal violence reported to the police drop out of the ‘justice chain’ (Eriksson & Mazerolle, 2015; UN Women, 2012). Limited studies in Kenya make it difficult to design an effective intervention strategy. The main objective of the study was to investigate the social, cultural and economic determinants in accessing justice from the Criminal Justice System (CJS) by Victims of Spousal Abuse (VSA) in Nairobi City County, Kenya. The specific objectives were to find out the CJS’s response to spousal abuse, to determine the social, cultural and economic barriers and facilitators to accessing justice by victims of spousal abuse, to identify the available alternative mechanisms of resolving spousal abuse and recommend measures towards enhancing access to the CJS by victims of spousal abuse in Kenya. The study applied four theories namely feminist, masculinities in crisis, the family conflict theory and the theory of justice. The research target population comprised of 681 married male and female VSA who had reported their cases to the police, FIDA and GVRC (Nairobi Women’s Hospital) in the last twelve months (2012-2013) before data collection. The study interviewed one hundred and thirty-four spousal-abuse victims (male and female) (20% of the target population according to Mugenda & Mugenda, 1999). Thirty-one key respondents were purposively sampled due to their roles in handling spousal abuse in the CJS. The study conducted three focused group discussions. The study applied interview guides and focused group discussion guides as the instruments to collect data. Quantitative data was analysed using SPSS while qualitative data was analysed using inferences and verbatim citations of the voices of the Respondents. The study found that majority (89%) of spousal abuse victims are unable to access justice from the CJS due to its adversarial nature, formality of procedures, delays, legal expenses, inflexibility and corruption, leading to a ‘pyramidal progression’ of spousal abuse cases in the CJS, as the victims opt for Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms. The study concludes that spousal abuse is a major concern nationally that needs to be addressed urgently to protect the family from its impact and that the current CJS in Kenya is unsuitable for the resolution of spousal abuse cases.
The study recommends that the President should declare spousal abuse as a national concern that threatens the family as the basic unit of society and direct the Cabinet Secretary in charge of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection (in collaboration with Kenyatta University Sociology Department and other NGOs working in the area of Gender- Based Violence such as FIDA, GVRC, Maendeleo ya Wanaume) to develop a policy on family protection. In addition, the Cabinet Secretary in charge of the Ministry of the Labour and social protection should spear head a national debate on spousal abuse cascaded to the regional, county and household levels to re-socialize the society on relationships between spouses. The study further recommends that the Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ) in collaboration with the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), the Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC) and Parliament should operationalize Article 159 of the Constitution and strengthen ADRMs by creating a quasi-judicial system such as a Family tribunal composed of experts from different disciplines to handle cases of spousal abuse. Only very serious and life threatening cases which cannot be resolved by the Tribunal should be prosecuted through the CJS. There is also need for further research to establish and address the causes and impact of spousal abuse.
Description
A PhD Thesis Presented in Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Sociology in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Kenyatta University, September, 2021.
Keywords
Socio-Cultural, Economic Determinants, Accessing, Criminal Justice System, Victims of Spousal Abuse, Nairobi City County, Kenya