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Kenyan police fired tear gas at demonstrators rallying against femicide.

 

News Mania Desk / Piyal Chatterjee / 10th December 2024

Kenyan police shot tear gas and arrested at least three people on Tuesday as hundreds rallied in Nairobi against a rise of femicide, according to a Reuters reporter and human rights activist.  Approximately 300 women marched through downtown Nairobi, blowing whistles and chanting, “Stop killing women!” They were frequently scattered by police officers firing tear gas from moving cars before reforming again.

The protesters were nonviolent, so it was unclear why the cops acted. The national police spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  According to Mathias Kinyoda, who also works for Amnesty, among those arrested were Irungu Houghton, executive director of Amnesty International Kenya, and Faith Odhiambo, president of the Law Society of Kenya.

The protests were organized in reaction to increased gender-based violence. According to the National Police Service, at least 97 women in Kenya were slain in femicides (intentional homicides motivated by gender) between August and October.The police could not disclose information for earlier times, but estimates collated by the Africa Data Hub collective based on media accounts show at least 75 femicides in 2022 and 46 the previous year.

According to academics, patriarchal ideas and weak legal protections are important factors contributing to Kenya’s high rates of gender-based violence. In a piece for X, Odhiambo noted: “The habit of violent response by police to Kenyans expressing their constitutional right to demonstrate and picket is increasingly becoming incorrigible.”

“The police must refocus their energy on ending and fighting atrocities, not perpetuating them.”

At least 60 people were killed in June and July during protests against a government plan to raise taxes. The authorities have broadly defended the police response but said investigators were looking into specific allegations of misconduct.

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