Harmful Traditional Practices

 Harmful traditional practices are all traditional behaviour, attitudes or practices, which negatively affect the fundamental rights of women, girls, or any person. It includes harmful widowhood practices, denial of inheritance or succession rights, female genital mutilation or female circumcision, forced marriage and forced isolation from family and friends.

Section Twenty (20), Sub-Section One (1) of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015 states that a person who carries out harmful traditional practices on another commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding four (4) years or to a fine not exceeding #500,000 or both.

 Sub-Section Two (2) of the Act states that a person who attempts to commit the act of violence of harmful traditional practices commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding two (2) years or to a fine not exceeding #300,000 or both.

Sub-Section three (3) of the Act states that a person who incites, aids, abets, or counsels another person to commit the act of violence of harmful traditional practice commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding two (2) years or to a fine not exceeding #300,000 or both.

Sub-Section four (4) of the Act says that a person who receives or assists another who, to his or her knowledge, committed the offence of carrying out harmful traditional practice (s) on another person, is an accessory after the fact and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding two (2) years or to a fine not exceeding #200,000 or both.

Laws are enacted to govern the conducts of the people, after careful consultation and deliberation by the Legislative arm of government. The cries of victims of harmful traditional practices and their loved ones has reached the right ears and it is now a crime. It is left to us as a people to make the law effective by leveraging on it.

Life is to be enjoyed and not to be endured! 

Is Your Kindness Aiding and Abetting?

Some people while trying to be good friends will unknowingly set themselves up for a prison sentence if they are not careful and mindful of the provision in Section (2) Sub-section (3) and (4) of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015 which states that a person who incites, aids, abets, or counsels another person to commit an act of violence commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding three (3) years or to a fine not exceeding #200,000 or both.

A person who receives or assists another who, to his knowledge commits an offence (a violent bodily injury/harm on another person) is an accessory after the fact and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding three (3) years or to a fine not exceeding #200,000 or both.

Hear the town crier's voice people. Advising a friend to beat up his/her wife/husband is now a criminal offence punishable by a prison sentence if convicted. Encouraging your son, brother, uncle, relative to be the man by physically abusing his wife/children is now a crime under the law. Religious leaders that counsel husbands to beat their wives, desist from so doing, for a prison sentence hangs over your head once it can be established that you give such counsel in a court of law.

Anyone that accommodate, house, assist a husband/wife that beats up or maimed his/her wife/husband, with the knowledge of the crime committed by such a husband/wife is guilty of an offence under sub-section 4 of the Act. Anyone that assist an offender from running away from being prosecuted for a crime committed under the provision of this Act shall be liable to go to prison if convicted.

So be mindful of the kinds of friends you keep. The last thing we want to do is to have a husband/wife beater as a friend. Or a violent person generally. Anyone that is prone to physical violence has become a high maintenance friend. Don't become an accessory after the fact for an offensive friend, watch your back!

Life is to be enjoyed and not to be endured! 

A Slap Makes You A Criminal

Section (2) (1) - (2) of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015 states that a person who willfully causes or inflicts physical injury on another person by means of any weapon, substance or object, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term for imprisonment not exceeding five (5) years or a fine not exceeding One Hundred Thousand (#100,000) or both. 

 

A person who attempts to commit the act of violence provided for above, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding three (3) years or to a fine not exceeding Two Hundred Thousand Naira (#200,000) or both.

 

In layman's language, what the law above means is that beating, slapping, hitting, bitting, kicking and  committing any kind of vicious bodily harm on another person in your private life (wife, husband, children, relatives) and public life (employees, employers, colleagues, clients, strangers etc) is a crime that can land one in prison if convicted (found guilty) in a court of law.

 

Gone are the days that a husband will claim he is exercising his husbandly right by beating up his wife when he is angry with her. Except such a wife is self-destructive, she is to go to the police station and report the criminal offence committed against her by her husband, and he will be prosecuted by the state. Battered wives and husbands, the law to vindicate you has been passed, it is now left to you to make use of it or not. No one can put a stop to the physical abuse you're going through apart from you. The best the State can do is to pass laws that will protect the rights of its citizens and punish offenders when found guilty of committing an offence. It is the duty of citizens to report perpetrators to the appropriate authorities for the law passed to become effective and serve the purpose for which it was passed; which is to curb the prevalence of crime by punishing offenders.

 

As good citizens, we all have a duty to co-operate and do our part by not allowing sentiments and pressure from stopping us from reporting offenders, no matter who they are; husbands, brothers, uncles, sisters, aunties, friends, etc.

 

The law even says that an attempt to commit the crime of physical violence against another person is punishable under the law!. This means that even if the perpetrator did not succeed in harming the victim, as long as an attempt to do so was made, a crime has been committed. A crime punishable by a prison sentence, fine or both. So abusive individuals/spouses beware! If a person throws a knife at another person and it can be proved that he/she intended to cause bodily harm to that other person, even though the knife did not hit the person, the person who threw the knife will be found guilty of committing an offence under Section 2 Sub-Section 2 of the Act.

 

Join me tomorrow lovely people as I continue sharing the provisions under one of my favourite Nigerian Law, the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015. Lots of love.

 

Life is to be enjoyed and not to be endured! 

Weapons of Rape

There is a new law in Nigeria that I believe everyone needs to be aware of its provisions.  Ignorance is not an excuse in law. It is therefore wise for us to be abreast of relevant laws that are applicable to our every day relation with other people. The provisions in this new  Act are very radical for they address a lot of issues that were previously unattended to in our laws, thereby making a criminal offence many an act considered acceptable in the past.

The Law I'm referring to is the 'Violence Against Persons ( Prohibition) Act, 2015. I'll be sharing the provisions in this Act with us, creating scenarios that will make these provisions easily understandable in layman's language. Take time to follow as I share the provisions of this wonderful Law with you. Knowledge is power. An informed mind is an asset.  You'll never know when the knowledge you acquire will serve you, your loved ones and people in your life right.

The Violence Against Persons ( Prohibition) Act, 2015 prohibits all forms of violence against person in private and public life, and provides maximum protection and effective remedies for victims and punishment of offenders.

Section 1 ( 1) ( a-c) defines Rape thus- A person commits the offence of rape if he or she intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person with any other part of his or her body or anything else without the consent of that person, or the consent is obtained by force, or means of threat, intimidation of any kind or by fear of harm,  or by means of false and fraudulent representation as to the nature of the act, or the use of any substance or additive capable of taking away the will of such person, or in the case of a married person, by impersonating his or her spouse.

To interpret these in layman's language, it is not only when a man penetrates a woman's vagina with his sexual organ without her consent that he is guilty of raping her, it is also rape when he uses other parts of his body like finger, big toes, tongue, etc to penetrate her vagina. It is rape even if he uses objects like stick, fruits etc to violate her. The definition of rape had been extended to include these things because victims violated in the past with these things could not be said to have been raped since the law's definition of rape mentioned only sexual organs. But with this new law, such victims can get justice in a court of law as victims of rape.

Also, consent given out of force, coercion, threat, false representation ( e.g telling a minor that sticking a carrot in her vagina is not a sexual act), fraudulent representation (e.g telling a girl that if you have sex with her, she will be cured of menstrual pain), fear of harm, the use of alcohol, drugs and other harmful substance  and so on. Impersonating (that is pretending to be) the husband or wife of someone and having sex with him/her while doing so is a criminal offence of rape.

Consent given in all the circumstances listed above is no consent under the law. It is considered to be taking undue advantage of the victim involved. We can all see that the crime of rape is much more than when the victim did not give consent. Consent fraudulently got qualifies as rape through the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015.

Life is to be enjoyed and not to be endured! 

No Limit!

There is no limit to what we can be, the height we can attain, the achievement of our dreams, the opportunities in life, and the potentials within us. The limitation we experience is in our mind. If we can remove every form of limitation from our minds by believing that nothing is impossible for us to do if we are meant to do it,  we'll see all impossibilities becoming possible in our lives. There is nothing impossible if we can believe. There is no one beyond reach, no goal is untainable. No desire is unachievable. No dream is too big, too late, too small, too hard.
 Remove every self-imposed limitation you've placed over your life. Don't say what you want is not worth the effort of bringing it to pass. Don't say fighting for your wellbeing and future is impossible. Who says it's impossible? Because it will be difficult does not mean it cannot be done. You can start all over again if necessary. You can insist on what is right in your relationship/marriage till it's done. You can change that adverse situation you've in. It's not too late. It's not impossible. If there is a will, there is a way.
 Nothing is impossible for those who believe. You must believe that you deserve to be happy. You must believe you deserve to live a decent life. You deserve the enjoyment of your human rights. When you believe all these and more, it becomes possible for you to go all out and do your part in ensuring you enjoy these rights and impossibility becomes a limitation you cannot afford. You remove the very existence of the word and its meaning in your life. As a man thinks, so is he. Remove all mental limitations in your mind, and you'll see your self soaring and your dreams coming to fruition.
 Life is to be enjoyed and not to be endured! 

When there is Life, there is Hope.

 A lot of times as human beings,  we get upset when things don't turn out as we expect, or when we expect or in the circumstances we expect. We want what we want,  when we want it and with whom we want it. We feel secured only when things go our way. But the truth is that everything cannot go our way. We cannot always have what we want and the ability to handle this truth and accept it will go a long way in helping us to maximise the opportunities in every situation we find yourself.
 For clarification, I am not saying we cannot have what we want, I'm saying we cannot ALWAYS do. And when we get to have what we want, we do not have the power to control the how and when and where of it. We've got to trust the process, pick our battles and stay positive.
 It is not healthy to see your life and situation in a negative light. Every disappointment is a blessing. Delay is not denial. Stop seeing the delay of a need or blessing as bad. There is a right time for everything in your life. And everything is made beautiful at the right time. Be patient, be positive, be full of hope! When there is life, there is hope!
 While waiting for a blessing, don't fold your hands. Keep working, keep living, keep making impact. Enjoy your life. Be a source of joy to people around you. Never look down on yourself. Don't allow anyone to steal your peace. Stay focused. Do your part, and all will be well.
 See life's challenges as a stepping stone to your greatness and fulfilment in life. What you are going through presently is not a mistake. There is a good reason/purpose for your pain. No pain, no gain. Your future is bright. For every pain and shame you suffer, you shall have double joy.
 Life is to be enjoyed and not to be endured!

Abusers Are Habitual Liars.

 

If you are involved with an abusive person, you must learn and master how to process his/her speech rightly. The truth of an abuser is more often than not a lie. The aim of an abuser is to destroy, damage, deceive, control, manipulate and oppress the person he/she is abusing. To be able to do all these, he/she must get that person ( the victim) to believe his/her lies. So the abuser attacks the self-confidence, self-esteem, self-worth and dignity of the abused, through derogatory words and actions.

 

Gradually chipping away the victim's emotional and mental health. The abuser makes the abused feel like a nobody (irrelevant, useless, unworthy, unattractive),a liability and a hang on. In no time, the abused starts feeling that the abuser is doing him/her a huge favour by managing him/her as a partner. The abused becomes totally dependant on the abuser, having been stripped of his/her individuality, faith in self and all healthy feelings for self. That is when a victim starts rationalising the abuse, holding him or her self responsible for the vicious attacks the abuser constantly unleash. The victim becomes a willing captive that takes up the blame for the abuse. He or she has been conditioned overtime (without being aware of it) to believe that he/she deserves to be ill-treated and abused.

 

But with time, through relationship with other people, or  by re- connecting  with someone from the past, a victim becomes aware of the drastic negative change that had occurred in him or her which usually prompt a self re-evaluation and assessment.

 

It will serve a victim well while trying to sort out issues,  to believe the opposite of whatever the abuser say about his/her person. If the abuser say that you are ugly,  he or she is saying you are handsome/beautiful. If the abuser says you are worthless and useless, he or she is saying that you are priceless and deserves better. If the abuser says "you cannot make it without me", he or she actually means "You can do without me and I'm scared of that fact."

 

Being able to see through an abuser's lies will help a victim to know the truth and be empowered by the truth. Stop believing the lies of an abuser. You are an asset and a world changer.

 

Life is to be enjoyed and not to be endured!