We mutually agreed as a family that I should stop working immediately after I delivered our first children (twins) about fifteen months ago. The main motive was for us to give the best care for the little angels as my husband's salary (and allowances to boot) could take care of the family very well. However, he has recently changed and I suspect that he has another woman for whom he is paying rent and providing upkeep. Moreover, he has of late turned verbally abusive whenever I ask him to provide for the family. He insists that I should not go to work because I agreed to be a stay-at-home mum. Would I have a remedy in law should he go overboard and become physically abusive? Are there laws that prevent domestic violence? Miriam, Nairobi.
Yes, you do have recourse in law – especially under the recently passed Protection Against Domestic Violence Act. The main objective of the law is to protect spouses, children and dependents from domestic violence.
Back to your husband, failure to provide necessities while he is working and able would put him on the wrong side of the law.
The law outlaws the denial of the right to seek employment or engage in any income- generating activity.
It provides for economic abuse, which includes the unreasonable deprivation of economic or financial resources that a dependent is entitled to or requires - including household necessities, medical expenses, school fees and rent among other expenses.
With the new law in place, it is also possible for spouses to move to court claiming emotional, verbal or physical abuse.
For starters, the law defines emotional, verbal or physical abuse as a pattern of degrading or humiliating conduct to a spouse.
Legally, failure to report domestic violence converts you (the victim) into an accomplice as prevention is better than cure.
This law is progressive as domestic violence has been meted out on men, women and children over the past decades without any specific legislation on the crime.
It opened a new chapter as some of the non-conventional offenses that are now prosecutable include economic violence, emotional abuse, stalking and also interference from in-laws.
Additionally, the law provides that any person can report abuse on behalf of the victim - initially reporting was restricted to the victim alone.
There are also measures to ensure protection of the victim and dependents, for instance the State is supposed to provide protection orders for victims and the courts can also order for counseling services and compensation for victims.