Hundreds protest stripping of women over 'indecent' dressing

Hundreds of Nairobi residents took to the streets yesterday to demonstrate against the recent wave of violence directed towards women.

The demonstration comes after a woman was stripped naked by matatu touts for allegedly dressing indecently last week.

Purple ribbons, posters and flyers with different messages on the plight of women, white Tshirts in purple writings were visible all over town.

'Dignity, Respect and Justice for all','Sexual violence survivors. Who takes care of them?', 'Before I became a woman, I was a human being. All rights attached. I dress for myself, not for you.', 'My body, my right', were some of the messages displayed.

Calls for: 'My dress, my choice', 'we want respect now', 'what we decide to put on is our choice' filled the air from Uhuru Park to the Central Business District.

Public stripping

The event organisers said the woman's public stripping is a testament to the growing impunity and disregard for human rights in the country.

"Such attacks, which seem to be on the rise, do not only offend our constitution but are also morally offensive and only serve to ridicule this great nation," said Ruth Knaust, one of the organisers.

They asked President Uhuru Kenyatta to end his silence on the matter and issue a Government statement.

Onesmus Mboya, who joined the protests, said women are victims and the problem is with men.

"I joined the protests to correct that bad image that those men created, and reaffirm that not all men behave in such manner. Decency is a subjective issue," he said.

Thuku Njuguna, representing Men for Gender Equality Now agreed with Mboya saying women should feel free to walk the streets while men should realise that sexual offences are crimes.

"Men should not stand by when fellow men misbehave and harass our women. That woman can be your sister, mother, wife or daughter," he said.

However, some men were against the protests and started their own demonstrations against women who they believe dress indecently.

"Women should stop dressing in a manner that provokes men. They should respect themselves and not show us that much skin. Who takes you serious when you dress indecently?" asked Kennedy Mosike.

Esther Passaris, a businesswoman and one of the organisers, condemned the men who started demonstrating against the women, some going to the extent of harassing a woman in front of the inspector General (IG) of Police's office.

Frog marched

"It is unbelievable that men dare do this in front of the IG's office. We are grateful to the men who joined us in condemning gender based violence and ask the IG to set an example. Let him arrest and charge the perpetrators of this shameful act," she said.

Nancy Wafula, a member of Kilimani Mums Group, also observed that if men can harass women in front of the IG's office, then the safety of women in the country is compromised.

"If men can frog match a woman right in front of the police, how secure are women in their homes, or in the streets?" she asked.

Passaris also said this trend is not good for the economy since tourists will fear coming to Kenya.

"Who wants to come to a country where they are not free to walk around? Who defines decency?" she asked.

The organisers had a petition where they demanded the IG launch investigation on the assault of the woman and all other gender based violence in the country. They also asked the Director of Public Prosecution to prosecute those involved in the assault.

Special petition

They also demanded that the Chief Justice set up special courts to prosecute cases of gender based violence, Parliament to pass the Family Protection bill, and the Judiciary to issue strict sentences according to the Sexual Offences Act.

Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, on receiving the petition at his office, said he will look at it and take necessary action.

He also urged the public to stop sharing the video saying they are undressing the woman all over again by doing so.