The Government has promised to take strong measures against a foreign national who is alleged to have secretly filmed and shared intimate pictures of Kenyan women without their consent. The government considers such an act as a serious breach of personal dignity and privacy.
Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura who was speaking during the weekly media briefing revealed that the security, investigative, and prosecutorial organs have been given the mandate to work on the issue with great urgency. He further informed that due to the cross, border nature of the case, the authorities have involved international partners in the matter.
Mwaura went on to say that the alleged conduct is against Articles 28 and 31 of the Constitution which protect human dignity and the right to privacy respectively. Besides, he said the accused is likely to be charged with offences under the Penal Code and the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act.
The issue attracted a lot of attention after a man who claimed to be a Russian tourist allegedly filmed himself with Kenyan ladies and released the videos online thus prompting public outrage and the condemnations were rampant on social media.
The Government has also instructed the Ministry of Gender, Culture and Children Services to put more effort into the improvement of online safety policies and the provision of digital exploitation prevention mechanisms.
The case has stirred up fresh discussion on the safety of women, especially regarding their online interactions and the concept of alleged blind dates. Somes Kenyans have blamed the police for not safeguarding women enough against sexual predators by pointing to several instances of women being found dead after meeting someone they had connected with online.
Meanwhile, as the probe goes on, victims have been encouraged to get help from the National Gender, Based Violence Toll, Free Helpline 1195 which is ready to support and refer wherever necessary.
The Government made a clarification that it will always be ready to hold to account as well as to protect the rights and dignity of all Kenyans. It also warned that whoever is found to be at fault will be punished in accordance with the law.
