A wave of horrific killings of women in several African countries in recent weeks has sparked outrage and outrage, sparked a wave of protests and precipitated calls for governments to take decisive action against gender-based violence.
Kenyans were shocked when 31 women were killed in January after being beaten, strangled or beheaded, activists and police said. In Somalia, a pregnant woman died this month after her husband allegedly set her on fire. In the West African country of Cameroon, a powerful businessman was arrested in January accusations, which he denied, of brutalizing dozens of women.
The surge in killings is part of a broader trend that has worsened during tough economic times and pandemic-related lockdowns, human rights activists say. An estimated 20,000 gender-related murders of women were recorded in Africa in 2022, the highest rate in the world, according to UN experts who say the real figures are likely higher.
“The problem is the normalization of gender-based violence and the narrative that, yes, women are disposable,” said Njeri wa Migwi, co-founder of Usikimye (Swahili for “Don’t be silent”). , a Kenyan non-profit organization that works with victims of gender-based violence.
Feminist scholar Diana Russell popularized the term femicide – the killing of women or girls because of their gender – to create a category that distinguishes it from other homicides. According to a United Nations report, killings are often carried out by male partners or close family members and are preceded by physical, emotional and sexual abuse.
Critics say many African leaders, as well as police, ignore or downplay the problem, or even blame victims.
On a recent afternoon, Ms. Migwi, co-founder of the nonprofit, was leading a training session for girls and women when she was suddenly called to a nearby house in Kayole, a low-income and crime-ridden east of Nairobi.
Inside the dimly lit house, Jacinta Ayuma, a day laborer and mother of two, lay lifeless with bloody bruises visible on her face, neck and left arm. Police said she was killed by her partner. He fled and they haven’t arrested him yet. An autopsy showed she died from blunt force trauma that resulted in multiple organ injuries.
Anguished cries echoed in the air as several police officers carried the body into a police van using a thin quilt. Three neighbors reported hearing someone screaming for help throughout the night, until around 6 a.m. But they said they did not intervene or call police because sounds of banging and distress were common and they considered it a private matter.
Ms Migwi, back in her nearby office, said she had seen too many similar cases. “I am in mourning,” she said, her head in her hands. “There’s a helplessness that comes with all of this.”
To coincide with Valentine’s Day, women’s rights activists in Kenya organized a vigil they called «Dark Valentine» in the capital to commemorate the women who were killed. At least 500 women were victims of femicide in Kenya between 2016 and 2023, according to a recent report from the Africa Data Hub, a group of data organizations working with journalists from several African countries who analyzed the cases reported in the Kenyan news media.
About 300 people dressed in black T-shirts held red roses, lit red candles and observed a minute of silence.
“Why should we keep reminding people that women should be alive,” said Zaha Indimuli, co-organizer of the event.
Among the women whose names were read out at the vigil was Grace Wangari Thuiya, a 24-year-old beautician who was killed in Nairobi in January.
Two days before her death, Ms Thuiya visited her mother in Murang’a County, about 35 miles northeast of Nairobi. During the visit, her mother, Susan Wairimu Thuiya, said they talked about a 20-year-old student who had been dismembered days before and what appeared to be an epidemic of violence against women.
Ms Thuiya warned her daughter, whom she described as ambitious and jovial, to be careful in her dating choices.
“Fear gripped my heart that day,” Ms. Thuiya said of their last meeting.
Two days later, police called Ms Thuiya to inform her that her daughter had died after her boyfriend attacked and stabbed her several times. Ms Thuiya said her daughter never revealed she was seeing anyone. Police said they arrested a man at the apartment where Grace Thuiya was killed.
“This is all just a bad dream that I want to wake up from,” Ms Thuiya said.
The murder of Mrs. Thuiya, among others, sparked large-scale protests across Kenya in late January. In recent years, anti-femicide protests have erupted in Kenya following the killing of female Olympic athletes, as well as in other African countries, including South Africa, Nigeria and Uganda.
Activists say the demonstrations are among the largest non-political protests in Kenya’s history: at least 10,000 women and men took to the streets of Nairobi alone, and thousands more joined them in protests. ‘other cities.
At a time of rising anti-gay sentiments, the protests also aimed to highlight the violence faced by non-binary, queer and transgender women, said Marylize Biubwa, a Kenyan queer activist.
The movement has sparked backlash, particularly online, from men who argue that a woman’s clothing or choices justify abuse. Such comments are spread with hashtags like #StopKillingMen and by social media influencers like Andrew Kibe, a men’s rights advocate and former radio presenter whose YouTube account was shut down last year for violating terms of service of the company.
“Shut up,” he said in a recent video, referring to people outraged by the killings of women. “You’re not allowed to have an opinion.”
Activists say they don’t see enough outrage from political, ethnic or religious leaders.
In Kenya, President William Ruto has been criticized for not personally addressing femicide. A spokesperson for his office did not respond to requests for comment. But following the protests, his government sworn to speed up investigations and set up a toll-free number allowing the public to report offenders.
Yet in Kenya and across Africa, activists say more investigators need to be recruited, judges need to decide cases more quickly and legislatures need to pass laws to punish perpetrators more harshly.
Data collection and research on femicide needs to be funded, said Patricia Andago, a researcher at data company Odipo Dev.
For now, the massacres continue to leave devastating traces.
On a recent afternoon, Ms. Thuiya, whose 24-year-old daughter was killed in January, sat and cuddled her two granddaughters, Keisha, 5, and Milan, 22 months. She said Keisha believed her mother had ascended «to heaven» and asked if she could get a ladder to follow her.
“It was very painful,” Ms. Thuiya said of hearing her granddaughter’s questions. “I just want justice for my daughter. And I want this justice now.