NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 25 – The government has teamed up with two foreign missions and the UN Women to spearhead a campaign aimed at addressing gender-based violence in the country.
The initiative with Italian and Finish Embassies in the country are keen to end any form of aggression against women and girls who are the most vulnerable groups in society.
It is dubbed ’16 Days of Activism to end Gender-Based Violence,’.
This campaign that was unveiled on Monday seeks to reveal the trauma of rape and the effect it has in society.
In a joint statement, the stakeholders further called for the prevention and elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls.
Women and girls in Kenya experience alternate forms of violence both emotionally and physically this includes child, early and forced marriages, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and femicide which are on the increase in the country lately, with atleast two cases reported weekly over domestic disputes.
The most recent femicide case involves a military officer in Laikipia who killed his wife and children in the military barracks. was later arrested and is expected in court. In Nairobi’s Kibra slum, a man was arrested on Sunday for killing a woman.
Global statistics show that one in three women are affected by gender-based violence. In Kenya, 45 percent of women and girls aged 15-49 have been affected, while one in five women have experienced female genital mutilation. 23 percent of the nation are married before eighteen.
The statement was issued on the day nine women were charged in Bomet for abetting FGM.
Most sexual violence and harassment cases take place in homes, in the public space, workplaces, on the streets, and in colleges or universities.
According to a report by The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), in 2017, sexual assault cases accounted for 25 percent during the electoral violence, hence the need for multi-sectoral efforts to prevent violence.
The health sector, law enforcement, and judiciary are the primary duty bearers in eradicating pervasive and unabated human rights violations in modern society, the campaign’s stakeholders said.
In Kenya, government officials boast of putting in place policies and prevention measures towards any gender-based violence but cases remain on the increase, with some even resulting in deaths.
During the recent ICPD25 summit held in the capital Nairobi, President Uhuru Kenyatta made commitments to eradicate any harmful practices towards women by 2030.
