On Dec. 9, 2023, Nigerian Twitter (X) was awashed with the debate on what entails sexual coercion and if the act is a crime in Nigeria.
The argument was sparked due to a tweet posted by Daniel Alaneme. He had alleged that he did not coerce a lady into sex. Although the lady tweeted that he begged him multiple times to have sexual encounters with him after her initial refusal, practically coercing her into sex.
“I told you no severally; I begged you severally to let me be. You kept on mumbling, “You’re so sexy to be left alone…You know I have always liked you…It’s just sex, let’s get it over with…I told you multiple times I never wanted to be intimate with you… I did not… once consent to you taking advantage of me,” part of her tweets read.
The incident led to some bold claims on social media that “begging for sex isn’t sexual coercion”.
Several researchers and experts have established what sexual coercion is. Office on Women’s Health defines sexual coercion as an unwanted sexual activity that happens when you are pressured, tricked, threatened, or forced in a nonphysical way.
A similar study, states that sexual coercion is a “persistent attempt to have sexual contact with someone who has already refused.”
In regards to if sexual coercion is the same as rape, Koss et al. 2007 state: “Sexual coercion refers to penetrative sexual contact through verbal pressure, whereas rape involves sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration through physical force or the exploitation of the victim’s incapacitated state, for instance, through alcohol or drugs.”
This clarifies that begging someone for sex after a refusal is sexual coercion while using physical forms or other forms of exploitation is rape.
Is sexual coercion a crime in Nigeria?
SheHUB.tv’s freelance journalist Simbiat Bakare spoke with Nigeria lawyer Esq. Ifiokobong Uko on the subject.
Esq. Uko shared that: “The Nigerian Constitution does not specifically provide for sexual coercion, but the right to life and dignity is more fundamental than any other rights.” He added, “When it comes to sex with any person, consent is key. Once that consent is not present, then it is tantamount to abuse.”
Section 34 of the constitution of Nigeria is about the right to dignity of the human person of the people of the country. It is under Chapter IV (Fundamental Rights) of the constitution, which states (1) “Every individual is entitled to respect for the dignity of his person.”
However, while sexual coercion can be prosecuted through angles such as Section 34 of the Nigerian constitution, four Nigerian laws provide room for the prosecution of offenders regarding rape.
They include The Criminal Code, which applies to all the Southern States. The Penal Code is used in all the Northern States. The Criminal Laws of Lagos are useful only in Lagos State. The Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act is a federal law that has only been domesticated in Anambra, Ebonyi and Oyo State. Online legal platform, Legalpedia provides details on all the rape laws in Nigeria, including their inadequacies.
Consent is Key
Although the definite statistics of sexual assault in Nigeria are yet to be determined, the United Nations Women shared that 11,200 rape cases, including children raped to death by men, were reported in Nigeria in 2020. Women at Risk International Foundation (WARIF) founder Kemi DaSilva-Ibru also shared that in Nigeria, 33 per cent of women and girls aged between 15 and 49 have experienced physical and or sexual abuse in their lifetime.
The Technical Specialist, Spotlight initiative of the UN Women, Tosin Akibu, also noted that violence against women and girls had continued to grow at an alarming rate.
Amid the growing rate of male sexual abuse of women, there appears to be confusion about what rape, sexual harassment, and sexual coercion entail. With the umbrella term being sexual violence, it all involves the lack of sexual consent by one party in a sexual activity.
The American Sexual Health Consent explains that consent is an agreement that is willfully given without external pressure or factors. For someone to consent to sexual activity, participants must continuously communicate—before, during, and after sexual activity.
Consent must also be freely given. External factors such as pressure, threat, or physical violence invalidate a verbal “yes” or a silent “no.” In addition, if, at any point in time, there are verbal or non-verbal cues that the person is not interested in the sexual activity, it denotes that consent no longer exists. Most importantly, children cannot consent to sex.
If you have been sexually violated or you know someone who has, please contact The WARIF Centre – 6, Turton Street, off Thorburn Avenue, Sabo, Yaba, Lagos or call their 24-hour confidential helpline on 08092100009 for assistance. You can also find the list of Nigerian organisations that help fight for victims of sexual assault here.
