speech by dpp on sgbv training manual

8/13/2019 SPEECH BY DPP ON SGBV TRAINING MANUAL

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HANDING-OVER CEREMONY OF THE SGBV PROSECUTORS TRAINERS MANUAL

WELCOME REMARKS

BY

MR. KERIAKO TOBIKO, CBS, SC; DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS, KENYA.


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Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1. On my own behalf and on behalf of the Office of the Director of PublicProsecutions I am pleased to preside over the hand-over ceremony of the SGBV

Prosecutors Trainers Manual.

2. The development of the manual was necessitated by the need to improve theknowledge, skills and competencies of prosecutors in handling Sexual and

Gender-Based Violence cases in the Republic.

3. The process of developing the manual began in March, 2011 when theconsultants, Ms. Violet Mavisiand Ms. Dianne Postwere hired with the generous

support of the UNODC and GIZ. This was back when the Office was only a

department within the State Law Office.

4. The Directorates role in the process at the time was to offer logistical andtechnical support and office space to enable the consultants to discharge their

duties.

5. The consultants developed a zero draft of the manual and the same wassubjected to review in a successful workshop held on 16th - 20thMay, 2011. This

workshop was attended by prosecutors and investigators from across the

Country.

6. The workshop also served as a train-the-trainer workshop for would be users ofthe manual.

7. Further, a one-day validation workshop was held on the 26th August, 2011 atKICC, which was attended by 40 participants, who validated the contents of the

manual. The participants included representatives of :

the ODPP, the National Police Service (Gender-Desk and CID training School), Judiciary, the Taskforce on Sexual Offences Act, the Government Chemist, the Kenyatta National Hospital, the Kenya Institute of Education,


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16.Moreover, with the support of GIZ we have developed prosecution guidelines onSGBV cases which are part of the growing prosecutorial policy framework for the

ODPP.

17.Despite these positive developments, there still remain numerous challenges inthe prosecution of SGBV cases; Key among them is poorly investigated cases

due to inadequate capacity within the investigative agencies.

18.The ubiquitous challenge of lack of timely reporting and preservation ofevidence by complaints and the lack of a DNA database for sexual offenders as

required under the Sexual Offences Act also impact on the effective prosecution

of SGBV cases.

19.We also face limited resources in prosecuting these crimes, alongside protractedtrials, the impact of social stigma on victims/witnesses of SGBV crimes, witnessinterference, inadequate witness protection facilities and the ever-problematic

challenge of prosecuting minors alleged to have defiled fellow minors.

20.To redress these challenges effectively, the ODPP requires your support incapacity building and support towards greater inter-agency linkages and

collaboration.

21. Such support should also be geared towards improving investigative capacityand infrastructural and systems needs for various agencies, including the setting

up of the DNA databank.

22.Ladies and gentlemen, allow me once again to express our sincere gratitude toour partners and the consultants for their support and for this great milestone.

23.With this few remarks, I Thank you.

speech by dpp on sgbv training manual

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