The Presidential Technical Working Group on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) has urged all Kenyans to be tolerant and accommodate each other with a view to preventing gender-based violence.
Speaking to the press after gathering public views from Busia County residents, the group’s leader, Lina Chebii Kilimo said that no single individual had control of his or her gender.
“From what we have gathered since we began the public participation both male and female gender suffer violence, it’s only the proportion that differ in that female gender suffer more,” she said.
Kilimo added that there was a need to return to the traditional African culture where children belonged to the community so that we can uphold values.
She further challenged parents to take their roles seriously and provide for their children’s needs instead of leaving them to fend for themselves.
“It is very unfortunate that young girls can give sexual favors to boda boda riders in order to get comfort and personal effects,’’ she said.
The official further noted that a number of defilement cases in Busia are carried out by domestic workers who have been hired from neighboring Uganda.
’Another issue on defilement is that families want to protect their men by solving such cases at home,” she said lauding the local CSOs for partnering to prevent such practices.
Kilimo also expressed concern that old men were defiling young girls while older women were being raped by young men in Busia County.
“We have also heard from the public that there is a high number of mental cases among men due to trauma that they go through,” she said, adding lack of jobs among men could be one of the causes of femicide cases.
She at the same time noted that youth expressed concern over online sexual violence that led to femicide.
Busia County Representative for Youth Alliance for Change, Tracy Anyango, noted that men were the main perpetrators of femicide and GBV.
Anyango argued that there was a need for leaders in government to act by declaring femicide a national disaster.
She at the same time recommended that the government should prepare a list of sexual offenders in order to deter them claiming, ’When the list comes out, the perpetrators will be ashamed,” she said.
The director of Rural Education and Empowerment Program (REEP) Mary Makokha said there was a lot of corruption when handling GBV cases in the County.
“For your case to reach the court, you must face so many hurdles, spend a lot of money or be mistreated,” she said, adding even the community and religious leaders discourage victims from reporting.
Makokha cited retrogressive cultural practices as another contributing factor to GBV.
‘’How we bring up both the boy and girl child from birth contributes to chances of being abused,’’ she said adding that there was need to ensure that they unlearn some cultural practices,
She at the same time stated the CSOs play a major role in fighting GBV as opposed to both County and National governments.
The official called for the implementation of the existing policies, expressing fears that public views might not be implemented.
Busia County Coordinator of End Femicide Kenya Sarah Akinyi also called upon the government to declare femicide a national crisis so that action can be taken and structures put in to ensure that perpetrators are dealt with severely.
By Salome Alwanda
