Interrogating sexual crimes

Book: Author: Published: Year: Sexual Crimes Odesola, F. Johnson Smashwords Edition 2016

The book, Sexual Crimes, provides insights and perspectives on sexual offenses, including defilement, incest and unnatural sexual intercourse, impacts on society and how the instruments of the law are employed in certain countries including Nigeria to deal with the malaise.

In reviewing the book, the principal criteria include content, organisation and reference sources.

In this work, Johnson Odesola critically examines various forms of sexual crimes such as rape, sexual assault, statutory rape, child sexual abuse, and pandering obscenity. He highlights role of sex offenders, their accomplices, plights of victims and the application of the Zambia Penal Code to sexual crimes.

The writer impresses it on readers that parties to sexual offences can involve more individuals than the actual perpetrators both before and after the commission of the act.

The readers are taken through the various provisions on sexual crimes, including acts and omissions of offences.

The book discusses how offenders are liable, what constitute sexual crimes in certain societies such as adultery and those permissible in others, submitting that laws do have distinctive social basis that both shapes and is shaped by the society in which it operates.

Divided into nine chapters of serious deep intellectual research, it opens with what constitute sexual offences, parties to it, in-depth examination of the Penal Code and elements of a crime. It progresses through discussion on what constitute rape, its various forms, issues of consent, and grounds for prosecution and defence.

The book provides comprehensive information on terms while the bibliography provides sources for obtaining information. The appendices provide extract from the Zambia 2005 Penal Code Bill.

Each chapter tackles a sub topic, explores legal frameworks, and provides various scenarios to illustrate certain points which fit logically into the topic of the chapter. Within each chapter are plenty of citations from sexual crime cases, discussions on applicable sections of Penal Code, and the author explores society’s stance on such issues. The book presents a broad analysis of sexual crimes and the legal frameworks for application of justice.

Chapter two looks at what constitute a crime and how these elements determine whether one is guilty or not. The third and fourth chapters deal with rape and defilement.

The third chapter examines issues relating to consent, its revocation and how offenders are subjected to prosecution. It also shows that circumstances under which a victim was raped are important when prosecuting a case.

Chapter four dwelt on sub units such as proof of age in defilement cases; age at which a girl can consent to sex, who can defile a girl or a retarded woman, indecent assault and possible causes of defilement as well as defence to charges of defilement.

The Fifth chapter provides a general overview of how police deal with rape and defilement cases in Zambia. While Chapter Six focuses on incest and unnatural sexual intercourse. The author explores relationship in incest cases, pointing out that the Penal Code definition of incest does not include sexual intercourse with in-laws as incest, thus creating conflict between traditional laws and criminal law.

In examining what constitute unnatural sexual intercourse, the book states that this is an offence that is considered as total taboo by society. Such offences are bestality, homosexuality and lesbianism.

In Chapter Eight, the author focuses on police statistics on sexual offences, sentencing of offenders and also emphasises the need for Victims Support Unit, a dedicated section for handling of sexual crimes. He also examines the principle of sentencing of sexual offenders, saying in defilement, it’s the lower the age of the girl, the higher the sentence for the offenders.

The author in Chapter Nine provides insights into sexual offences in other Commonwealth countries such as Botswana, Malawi, Kenya, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Nigeria.

Thebook,whiletreatinglegalprovisions, touches on some gray areas the law failed to cover or provided penalties. It also examines relevant areas in need of amendments to reflect trends and contemporary happenings in society. It also emphasises that the police cannot enforce a lawthatdoesnotexistandpointsout that government must enact laws in suchgrayareastoeffectivelyprotect against sexual crimes.

For instance, it highlights the need to raise defilement age from 16 to 18 years as enshrined under the Zambia Penal Code and stressed more importantly that government should enact laws to protect girls and women from being sexually harassed. The author maintains that it’s out of sexual harassment in schools, colleges and places of work that reluctant consent to sexual intercourse arises. He also discusses contemporary issues such as defilement of boys, and made the point that relevant laws must be amended to protect them.

The author proposes a law to be passed requiring all registered sex offenders to wear tracking devices to enable the police track or identify them. He urges access to information on the internet to enable parents find out where and how many sex offenders are in their areas.

The book also emphasises how institutions must take steps to counter sexual harassment by developing a strong company policy, putting in place grievance procedures, and setting up sexual harassment prevention training.

The book is detailed, well researched, and well-referenced interface with clear legal scenarios. It is an excellent resource for lawyers, police officers, judicial officials, advocates and civil society, students and all lovers of justice.

Odesola, unassuming and prolific author, is a Special Assistant, Admin and Personnel, to the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye. He is also the pastor in charge of RCCG Region 1, Lagos.

The author of several books, Odesola holds a degree in Theology from Greenwich School of Theology, London; Mth in Missiology/ Anthropology from Queens University of Belfast, PHD in Christian Education from Ashland University, PHD in Intercultural Studies from Trinity International Institute of Advance Studies.