The controversy surrounding legality of cousin-cousin marriages in Kenya has been clarified after the High Court ruled that the act was not an offence of incest.
While ruling in an appeal case where a man had earlier been convicted of alleged incest with his cousin, High Court judge James Makau said that the Sexual Offences Act did not find cousin-cousin marriages illegal since cousins were not on the list of those classified under incest by law.
Justice Makau further revealed that a number of cultures were allowing cousin-cousin marriages and that classifying it a crime would be an infringement of the cultural setup of the people.
"This means it is permissible to have sex with a cousin," he said in the ruling. "My understanding of the said section (Section 20(1) of the Sexual Offences Act) is that if any sexual act takes place between two cousins, that does not amount to incest within the meaning of the provisions of the Sexual Offences Act."
The accused had earlier been found guilty and handed a 10-year imprisonment but Justice Makau said that the lower court had erred.
"I find that it was an error in law for the trial court to have imported the relationship of a cousin and included it within the provisions of the law when that relationship was not among the specified relationships to be considered in determining a case of incest," the judge ruled.
With the ruling, it now becomes clear that cousins in Kenya may engage in sexual interactions and even marry without being convicted over incest.