Members of Parliament have called for the introduction and implementation of conjugal visits for inmates as part of a renewed push for sweeping prison reforms.
The Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Implementation Oversight (CIOC) made the recommendation during a visit to Kaloleni Main Prison in Kilifi County on Thursday, September 11.
According to the committee, recognising conjugal rights is an essential part of efforts to restore human dignity and strengthen the rehabilitation of inmates.
Led by Suba South MP Caroli Omondi, the lawmakers' visit revealed a broader list of concerns, including poor infrastructure and limited access to healthcare within the prison system.
Although advocacy for prisoners' rights is not a new, the topic of conjugal rights remains contentious with the MPs now promising to undertake reforms to address these issues.
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According to Omondi, the implementation of conjugal rights in prisons remains uncertain without a proper legal framework.
“We have discussed the matter of conjugal rights many times, and not just conjugal rights but also family rights. At the moment, you cannot say that people will access conjugal rights because there is no framework law,” Omondi said.
He added that the committee was working to create a legal framework to address issues such as conjugal rights, voting rights for inmates, and reproductive health.
“First, there has to be a law. These are things we are working to amend so that we can establish a framework for such matters. We have also discussed voting rights for inmates and even [reproductive] health, all these issues,” he revealed.
Omondi further noted that the committee had engaged both inmates and prison officers to find ways of aligning prison laws with the 2010 Constitution, since reforms in the sector remain incomplete.
“We came to speak with the inmates as well as the prison officers so that we can review how to change the laws and align them with the 2010 Constitution, because prison reforms are still not complete,” he stated.
The Committee, however, highlighted several others issues affecting the prisons during the inspections such as overcrowding, chronic underfunding, inadequate healthcare services, and a shortage of professionals such as psychologists and counsellors.
