Women members of Parliament have come out to denounce archaic and retrogressive cultural practices being witnessed in the country in reference to an incident where a woman was viciously assaulted during the burial ceremony of her estranged husband in Nyamira County.
During a press conference held in parliament buildings, the women leaders drawn from the National Assembly and the Senate under their umbrellas, the Kenya Women Parliamentarians Association (KEWOPA) and Kenya Women Senators Association (KEWOSA)condemned the incident.
The legislators, including Nominated Senators Veronica Maina, Catherine Mumma, Karen Nyamu, Hamida Kibwana, and Women Representatives Doris Donya (Kisii) and Betty Maina (Kirinyaga), wondered how the violence upon the helpless mother happened.
Mellen Mogaka was violently attacked by a gang of men who forced her to participate in burial rituals against her will in Nyabisimba village, in a video clip that went viral on social media platforms, provoking outcry among Kenyans.
“It is quite unfortunate that a rowdy group of adult men, in a most detestable, uncivilized, barbaric, form of gender violence attacked her purporting to implement some retrogressive and uncouth cultural practice, ” they said in a joint statement.
The legislators said that the most disturbing thing is that all this was taking place in broad daylight in the presence of all those who were in attendance at the funeral and assumed by among others the church that was presiding, community leaders, and administration officers.
Migori Women Representative Fatuma Zainab criticized the church for watching as the woman was being mistreated without taking action, saying the incident portrays Kenyan women as lesser humans without any law that protects them.
“We wonder if the culprits would want their daughters and their wives to be treated in the same manner; culture protects and preserves dignity, and no amount of hiding behind any culture can ever justify this form of violation of Mellen Mogaka’s rights,” she stated.
The incident has sparked national outrage, leading to the arrest of three suspects with authorities promising further investigations.
