Lawmakers have shot down a proposal to introduce a specific law against sextortion, saying existing legal provisions are adequate to deal with the offence. Sextortion involves threatening to expose intimate images or demanding sexual favours in exchange for services, jobs or benefits.
The proposal, fronted by Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris on behalf of survivors and advocacy groups, sought to amend the Penal Code and the Sexual Offences Act to create a separate offence with clear penalties and victim protection measures.
It came amid increasing reports of blackmail involving intimate content, some allegedly targeting MPs through jilted lovers or individuals seeking to exploit their vulnerabilities.
After months of deliberations, the National Assembly’s Public Petitions Committee dismissed the petition, arguing that introducing a fresh law would be unnecessary.
In a report tabled in Parliament this week, the committee chaired by Runyenjes MP Muchangi Karemba stated that existing sections of the Sexual Offences Act already address abuse of power, sexual harassment and coercion.
“The enactment of the bill would duplicate existing laws... the aspects are adequately provided for in Section 43 of the Sexual Offences Act,” the committee observed. It added that provisions under Sections 23, 24 and 43 of the Act already cover acts that constitute sextortion.
“Therefore, the committee rejects the proposal to amend the Sexual Offences Act (Cap 63A) and other relevant criminal laws to explicitly define sextortion as an offence, make clear provisions on penalties, support for victims and for connected purposes,” the report reads in part.
Petitioners had described sextortion as a “silent corruption” crisis affecting many Kenyans, particularly women and girls in informal settlements. They highlighted situations where individuals were forced to exchange sexual favours for basic services like water, fish, employment, grades or even police protection.
Studies cited by the petitioners showed that 41 per cent of women in some informal settlements had experienced sextortion. To curb the vice, they proposed a penalty of 15 years in prison, a fine of Sh5 million or both for offenders.
The Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) supported the push to criminalise sextortion, noting that the current legal framework lacks clarity.
The KLRC described the practice as “psychological coercion” that disproportionately affects women seeking services such as IDs, sanitary pads, education and employment.
“Female politicians have been vulnerable to image-based disinformation campaigns that manipulate media to sexualise them... these cases set out the need for urgent legislative intervention to include the offence of sextortion in the statute books,” the commission said.
The EACC also pointed out a legal gap, arguing that explicitly defining sextortion would give law enforcement stronger tools to deal with the offence.
However, the Office of the Attorney General opposed the proposal, a stance that eventually influenced the committee’s decision. The AG’s office maintained that sextortion involves elements that are already criminal under existing laws on sexual harassment and abuse of authority, making additional legislation unnecessary.