An expose by a UK Newspaper, The Daily Mail uncovered that British soldiers training in Kenya participated in initiation ceremonies, where young recruits were coerced into engaging in unprotected sex with prostitutes.
The findings, uncovered during an investigation by the Mail on Sunday, have raised concerns among defence chiefs due to the high rates of HIV/AIDS in the country and apprehensions about global reputational risk.
According to the report compiled by the Ministry of Defence for a study published in the British Medical Journal Military Health, senior soldiers reportedly flipped a coin to determine whether the soldier would use a condom or not.
Soldiers were then questioned upon their return regarding their interactions with prostitutes, who frequented the area outside the base.
The initiation was purportedly designed to test the bravery of the new recruits.
British Soldiers Forced to Have Unprotected Sex
An anonymous soldier disclosed to the Ministry of Defence, “When this unit deploys on exercise [to the British Army Training Unit Kenya], they have an initiation ceremony for all the new soldiers who haven’t been deployed to Kenya before.”
“The more senior soldiers would flip a coin – heads you could use a condom, tails you could not.”
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Despite the issuance of a sexual health guide to soldiers upon their arrival by the Defence Medical Services, the report highlighted an increase in the number of soldiers seeking assistance for related diseases compared to UK-based troops.
Kenya’s HIV-positive population stands at five percent, in contrast to 0.2 percent in the UK. However, the report also noted that a third of the soldiers did not recall the advice given to them.
Further, the report also warned of the rising presence of prostitutes near the British base in Nanyuki, Kenya, with some services even being 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 barber then asked if he would like any ‘extra services,” the report noted.
“The officer revealed his shock at how suddenly the events unfolded, and said he related the encounter to demonstrate to other soldiers the close proximity of sex workers and to advise soldiers on ‘how to politely decline any similar offers.”
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Authority Responds Over Alleged Ritual Ceremony
Former Army intelligence officer Philip Ingram criticized the military leadership over the incidents.
“Sexual health is a part of annual training for all service personnel.”
“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, once again [it] highlights a failure in leadership and that the culture in the Army is still fundamentally broken.”
In response to the findings, Ministry of Defence spokesman stated, “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.”
Nearly 10,000 British troops are deployed to Kenya each year for eight-week firing exercises.
