Human Rights Watch has slammed Kenya’s government’s reaction to a spike in gender-based violence, (GBV) during the coronavirus pandemic, particularly during times of lockdown.
COVID19 pandemic threatens to exacerbate existing gender disparities and undo Latin American women’s achievements. According to HRW, Kenya failed to assist during the COVID19 pandemic, which increased violence against women and girls.
The US-based rights organisation alleged in a new study released on Tuesday that the government failed to ensure that women have access to health, economic, and social support services despite movement limitations. According to Human Rights Watch, the Kenyan government aided a spike in GBV as a result. According to the data, in the first two weeks of the lockdown, between March and April 2020, there was a 301 percent rise in calls alleging violence against women and girls.
“The Kenyan government should have anticipated and planned for a similar uptick during the COVID19 health emergency,” HRW stated, citing prior studies that show GBV infections rise during health emergencies.
Other study on sexual assault and gender-based violence has revealed that Kenya’s current government institutions and policies are inadequate to respond effectively to violence against women and girls” during such emergencies, according to the report.The report based on 26 interviews, 13 with survivors of GBV, conducted between June 2020 and February 2021.
Sexual abuse, beatings, being driven out of the house, being forced to marry, and being forced to undergo female genital mutilation (FGM) were among the forms of violence described by the group. Many of the assaults occurred “in the home,” with perpetrators being “close family members, including husbands, while other abuses occurred in the community, perpetrated by neighbours,” according to the report.
Kenya has a clear tendency of growing violence against women and girls, despite already having high levels of violence. Human Rights Watch started.
