On the heels of spiked rape cases in Nigeria, Kaduna State on Wednesday September 16 assented the State Penal Code Law 2020, with a provision, which prescribes surgical castration or removal of fallopian tubes in addition to death penalty for offenders convicted of raping minors below the age of 14.
While the rape of anyone above the age of 14 comes with a punitive surgical castration or removal of fallopian tubes, and a life imprisonment in lieu of a death sentence. No doubt, surgical castration law is invasive, inflict physical harm, irreversible and in the event of miscarriage of justice, this deprive men that unjustly underwent the procedure the right to reproduce.
Apparently, rapists violate the rights of the victims, but surgical castration is not a proportionate punishment. While it is an extreme punishment, care must be taken to strike a balance between the rights of the victims and the perpetrators. The castration law is like killing a fly with a sledgehammer…..
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