Civil society groups want expungement of criminal records after a High Court ruling decriminalised consensual adolescent relationships.

📻 Breaking It Down

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 12 — Civil society organisations are calling for the expungement of criminal records and the provision of psychosocial support for minors previously prosecuted under Kenya’s Sexual Offences Act.

The push follows a landmark High Court ruling that declared the criminalisation of consensual adolescent peer relationships unconstitutional.

The coalition of rights groups said the judgment marks a fundamental shift in Kenya’s approach to adolescent justice, moving the country “from punishment to protection and from stigma to dignity.”

📌 What You Need to Know

In a joint statement, the organisations welcomed the May 20 ruling by Justice Bahati Mwamuye, which found that the application of Sections 8, 9 and 11 of the Sexual Offences Act to prosecute adolescents engaged in consensual, non-coercive relationships violated multiple constitutional rights.

The groups are now urging the government to go beyond the court’s orders by clearing the records of young people convicted under what they describe as unconstitutional applications of the law.

“We call for the expungement of criminal records for those previously convicted under these unconstitutional applications of the law and for the provision of psychosocial support for affected minors,” the organisations said.

The ruling arose from Petition E490 of 2025, filed by four petitioners who challenged the broad application of laws designed to protect children from sexual abuse but which, in practice, were also being used against adolescents involved in consensual relationships with peers.

According to the organisations, the enforcement of the law had subjected many teenagers to arrest, detention in adult facilities, and long-term stigma associated with criminal convictions.

“The landmark decision by the High Court of Kenya on May 20, 2026, marked a transformative milestone for justice, jurisprudential development, and human rights,” they said.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya