The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, has said it secured only three convictions out of 34 cases of gender-based violence it brought before the court since 2015.
The agency said while a total of 31 cases were pending in court, it was still investigating 18 other complaints.
Speaking on Monday at a stakeholders’ workshop on the effective implementation of Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act 2015, NAPTIP’s Director-General, Julie Okah-Donli, identified conflict in the legal definition of rape, limited acceptability of the VAPP Act, obsolete cultural practices, and duplication of laws as reasons for the low rate of convictions.
She said: “NAPTIP, as the statutory administrator of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015, has secured three convictions and currently has 31 criminal cases pending in Court, and about 18 cases of violence being investigated.
“There is need to move towards a Nigeria where victims of violence not only get justice but also where cultural and traditional lifestyles and practices will undergo such a fundamental change that violence becomes the exception, not the rule.”
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