Sexual Violence Infrastructures (SVIs): Hotels and Cyberspace as Enablers of Sexual Crimes in Nigeria

Abstract

Majority of the literatures on sexual violence in Nigeria deals with the crime from a structural perspective; that is – how the legal system or cultural practices within the society creates an enabling environment for different forms of sexual violence. Only very few of these literatures deal with sexual violence at the micro level; which is, to analyse how individuals plan and carry out acts of sexual violence and what instruments they deploy to successfully facilitate such crimes. This paper attempts to address such gaps. The study draws from a prominent criminology theory – routine activities theory to analyse the necessary conditions under which sexual predators select potential targets or victims. These conditions include the availability of three essential factors: existence of a motivated offender (sexual predator), an attractive target, and that the target must lack capable guidance or protection. It argues further that in Nigeria, hotels and cyberspace have become ‘sexual violence infrastructures’ (SVIs), and essentially veritable instruments used in carrying out sexual violence. In the end, it recommends enhanced surveillance in hotels as a means of curbing their continued use as spaces for sexual crimes.