Kenya: Activists Denounce Government for Inaction on Growing Femicide Crisis

On December 10, International Human Rights Day, women and human rights activists took to the streets in Kenya to protest the alarming rise in femicide cases. This was the second of such protests of the year, following the January 27 demonstrations where thousands marched in Nairobi and other cities demanding an end to violence against women. The recent protests coincided with the conclusion of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence (GBV), a global campaign to end violence against women and girls.

The urgency of these demonstrations stems from a chilling report by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Eliud Lagat, revealing that 97 femicide cases were recorded in the past three months—a rate of roughly one woman killed every day. This is compounded by the fact that at least ten women were killed in January 2024 alone, showing a deepening crisis and a concerning pattern.

The January protests, which were peaceful and undisrupted, sought to raise awareness and demand justice for victims and survivors of femicide. Protestors had called on the government to recognize femicide as a national crisis and allocate resources to end this epidemic. Despite promises, tangible progress has been lacking. Recently President William Ruto announced the Safe Home, Safe Space Campaign, supported by a Ksh.100 million budget, but it is yet to yield visible results.

The December 10 protests, however, were met with a different response. Police disrupted peaceful demonstrations with teargas and arrested several protestors in Nairobi’s Central Business District (CBD). These actions drew widespread condemnation from civil society organizations, including the Kenya Human Rights Commission, Amnesty Kenya, the Law Society of Kenya, the Human Is My ID Alliance, and the End Femicide KE Movement. In a joint statement, they decried the arrests and violent police response as “a direct attack on Kenya’s democratic principles and the human rights of its citizens.”

Massive protest against femicides in Nairobi, Kenya on December 10. Photo: Innocent Onyango

Faith, a feminist activist and coordinator of the Kayole Community Justice Centre, emphasized the gravity of the situation. “Kenya is not safe for women,” she told Peoples Dispatch, pointing to data showing that 75% of femicide cases involve intimate partners such as husbands and boyfriends. “Women are not safe in their homes, on the streets, or anywhere.” Faith mentions gruesome cases from June, where mutilated bodies of women were discovered in forests and a quarry in Mukuru. Faith also condemns the government’s failure to apprehend a suspect accused of killing 42 women, who later escaped custody. “How many more cases go unsolved or even unregistered?” she asks, pointing to systemic neglect.

The protests also pointed out the normalization of violence against women and the lack of accountability from elected leaders. Faith criticized the silence of women representatives in the government, noting their absence in the face of state violence against protestors. “The state is doing very little to ensure the safety of not only women but everyone,” she said. “The government’s violent response shows that it fears this conversation growing into a larger discourse of accountability.”

Amid the protests, women chanted “Stop killing women” while holding placards with messages such as “No form of violence is justified” and “Hands off women.” According to the Africa Data Hub, at least 500 Kenyan women and girls lost their lives to gender-based violence between 2016 and 2023.

Kenyan Women are demanding immediate action, starting with policy reforms and robust implementation to address femicide and GBV. This includes recognizing femicide as a national crisis, improving law enforcement to hold perpetrators accountable, ensuring victims’ safety, community education to address the root causes of GBV and dismantling patriarchal norms that perpetuate violence, and increased funding for shelters, counseling, and legal aid for survivors.

The battle to end femicide is far from over, but the growing movement is a step in the right direction to fight for a safer Kenya for women.

Nicholas Mwangi is a member of the Ukombozi Library in Kenya.