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British soldiers march during the official opening of the new Nyati Barracks at the British Army Training Unit Kenya in Nanyuki on January 26, 2021. File | Nation Media Group
Senior British soldiers have been accused of initiating new recruits deployed at the Nanyuki military base in Kenya into having unprotected sex with prostitutes as part of hazing, thus exposing them to sexually transmitted infections.
This is according to a report published in the UK-based Mail on Sunday which reveals that the new recruits can decide whether to wear a condom or not at the toss of a coin as part of an initiation process.
Read: British army base in Kenya attracts criticism
“The more senior soldiers would flip a coin – heads you could use a condom, tails you could not,” said the report written by the British Medical Journal Military Health.
The claims have reportedly alarmed Defence bosses in the UK due to the prevalence of HIV/Aids in Kenya, where it affects five percent of Kenya’s population compared with 0.2 percent in the UK.
The report also warned of soldiers' growing patronage of prostitutes close to the British base in Nanyuki, with some services even offered at barber shops, as revealed by a senior officer who had gone for a trim.
“When the haircut was complete, he was ushered towards a back room and shown a number of female sex workers,” the report said. The barber then asked if he would like any 'extra services.'
The officer told how he was shocked at how suddenly the events unfolded, and said he related the encounter to demonstrate to other soldiers the proximity of sex workers and to advise soldiers on 'how to politely decline any similar offers'.
Sexual health
While there is a guide to sexual health is issued on arrival in the East African country, the number of soldiers seeking help for related diseases increased compared with UK-based troops, said the report which also found that a third of squaddies could not remember being given the advice.
Former Army intelligence officer Philip Ingram criticised the military leadership over the incidents. “Sexual health is a part of annual training for all service personnel,” he said.
“To hear that soldiers are being forced into some form of sexual initiation ceremony... where HIV rates are very high shocks me to the core. [It] once again highlights a failure in leadership and that the culture in the Army is still fundamentally broken,” he added.
Read: Soldiers, girls and cash: Bittersweet mix that keeps Nanyuki fun but dangerous
British High Commissioner to Kenya Neil Wigan has, however, indicated that the rules have tightened significantly in recent years referring to the report as “historic in nature”.
“The article seems to stem from a new research article just published, but which actually relies only on interviews with nine soldiers,” he told Nation.
The report said the risk of catching a sexually transmitted disease from a prostitute not only has the potential to reduce the operational effectiveness of the unit but also presents a 'global reputational risk'.
10,000 British troops
Around 10,000 British troops are deployed to Kenya every year to carry out live firing exercises for up to eight weeks.
On their return, soldiers were quizzed on the use of prostitutes, who hang around outside the base, for a study which has been published in the British Medical Journal Military Health.
UK Ministry of Defence spokesman has cautioned that all sexual activity which involves the abuse of power, including buying sex whether in the UK or abroad, is prohibited.
“We are committed to preventing sexual exploitation in any form,” he said. By VICTOR RABALLA, The East African
