The Sexual Offenses Bill, 2024 proposes a 10-year prison sentence for anyone convicted of mediating or interfering in capital sexual offenses in Uganda.
The Bill was tabled by Soroti District Woman Member of Parliament, Anne Adeke, more than a year after being granted leave by Parliament to introduce a private member’s bill. She argued that consolidating all sexual-related offenses into one statute would simplify enforcement.
“The scattered nature of sexual offenses across various laws denies the public a single piece of legislation to guide prevention, protection, and prosecution. We need legislation that responds to evolving trends in sexual offenses, curbs sexual violence, and adopts international best practices for prevention,” Adeke stated.
Speaker Anita Among referred the bill, which aims to consolidate all sexual offenses into a single piece of legislation, to the Committee on Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and the Committee on Gender, Labour and Social Development for further scrutiny.
Adeke has proposed stringent penalties and enhancements to existing punishments as part of efforts to address persistent capital sexual offenses. She specifically targeted cases where capital sexual offenses, such as rape and defilement, are settled before reaching the police.
Clause 42 of the bill proposes a 10-year prison sentence, without the option of a fine, for anyone convicted of entering into a settlement or compromise with a suspect or their relative in cases of rape, aggravated rape, defilement, aggravated defilement, or any other offense involving a child victim.
The bill also introduces penalties for those who fail to report sexual offenses. If passed, anyone with knowledge of a sexual offense who conceals it instead of reporting it to the police could face three years in prison.
In response to the rise of social media use, the bill addresses offenses related to the intentional exposure of sexual organs. Clause 6 makes it a crime to intentionally expose one’s sexual organs or buttocks to another person in public, to expose such images online, or to unlawfully intrude on another person’s privacy by displaying bare sexual organs, breasts, or buttocks. Conviction for this offense could result in a three-year prison term.
Adeke also seeks to impose a five-year sentence for indecent exposure in the presence of a person’s spouse, family member, or child, while the creation of indecent materials through artificial intelligence, video, pictures, or other visual formats could also result in a three-year sentence.
Drawing on international best practices, Adeke has called for the establishment of a sex offenders’ registry to protect vulnerable individuals, especially children. The registry would contain details of convicted sex offenders and would be maintained by the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA). Offenders would remain on the registry for life unless their conviction is overturned on appeal.
The bill proposes amendments to punishments for defilement-related offenses. While maintaining the death penalty for aggravated defilement, Adeke suggests 18 years’ imprisonment for attempted aggravated defilement, 15 years for attempted defilement, and 10 years for procuring defilement.
For offenses such as incest, the bill proposes life imprisonment. It also includes provisions for brothel operators and prostitutes, with operators facing up to seven years in prison, and prostitutes or those who engage in sexual acts with them facing two years.
Adeke further proposes that courts forward the details of sex offenders to NIRA within 10 days of conviction for inclusion in the sex offenders’ register. Access to the register would be granted under conditions set by authorities.
In Clause 39, Adeke seeks to criminalize conspiracy to defeat justice and interference with witnesses in sexual offense cases. A person convicted of obstructing, intimidating, or harassing witnesses, or otherwise preventing the course of justice, could face a five-year prison term.
If passed, the Sexual Offenses Bill would repeal several sections of the Penal Code Act and import specific provisions from laws such as the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act, the Domestic Violence Act, the Children Act, the Computer Misuse Act, and the Persons with Disabilities Act.
