Over one million furious
campaigners have signed a petition demanding
justice after three men accused of brutally gang
raping a Kenyan schoolgirl were ordered to cut
grass as punishment. The ferocious attack on the teenage girl and lack
of action against those who carried it out has
sparked outrage in the country. The 16-year-old, known by the pseudonym Liz,
was reportedly attacked, beaten and then raped
by six men as she returned from her grandfather’s
funeral in western Kenya in June, before the gang
dumped her, bleeding and unconscious, in a
deep sewage ditch. On Monday, the number of those who signed an
online petition started by Kenyan woman Nebila
Abdulmelik and publicised by the campaign
group Avaaz passed the million mark and was
continuing to grow. “Letting rapists walk free after making them cut
grass has to be the world’s worst punishment for
rape,” Abdulmelik said. “It’s an absolute failure of
the entire system and an absolutely shameful
response by Kenya’s police.” The victim knew some of the attackers, and three
of them were taken by villagers to the local police
station, the girl’s mother earlier told Kenyan
media. “The three… were only ordered to cut grass
around the police camp and set free shortly after,”
the girl’s mother told the paper. She is now wheelchair-bound with a broken back,
caused either by the beating or by being hurled
down into the pit, and also suffered serious
internal injuries from the rape. “My wish is to see justice done,” the girl told The
Nation newspaper, which first reported the story
and has led a campaign including raising funds to
cover medical costs. “I want my attackers arrested and punished.” Lawmakers have condemned the attack and
subsequent police failures, ordering action to be
taken. “Liz’s ordeal is unbearable to imagine, but the
only way to stop police dealing with victims with
such heartless negligence is by holding them to
account,” said Dalia Hashad, campaign director
for Avaaz. Kenya’s police chief David Kimaiyo said in a
statement at the weekend that “investigations are
complete”, and that the force was awaiting only
instructions from the office of the director of
public prosecutions. He gave no further details. Rape is a major problem in Kenya, and is often
not taken seriously by the police, according to
studies. One government study in 2009 found that as
many as a fifth of women and girls were victims
of sexual violence, although other later studies
have put the rate even higher. Another UN-backed government study in 2010
focusing on children found a third of girls and a
fifth of boys had suffered sexual violence. “Liz is sadly not the first or last victim of rape,”
Abdulmelik added, who works for a women’s
rights group in Kenya. “Her case has to be the moment when we all rally
together, express our solidarity, our outrage and
demand public accountability and an end to the
culture of violence and impunity that has become
the norm.”
campaigners have signed a petition demanding
justice after three men accused of brutally gang
raping a Kenyan schoolgirl were ordered to cut
grass as punishment. The ferocious attack on the teenage girl and lack
of action against those who carried it out has
sparked outrage in the country. The 16-year-old, known by the pseudonym Liz,
was reportedly attacked, beaten and then raped
by six men as she returned from her grandfather’s
funeral in western Kenya in June, before the gang
dumped her, bleeding and unconscious, in a
deep sewage ditch. On Monday, the number of those who signed an
online petition started by Kenyan woman Nebila
Abdulmelik and publicised by the campaign
group Avaaz passed the million mark and was
continuing to grow. “Letting rapists walk free after making them cut
grass has to be the world’s worst punishment for
rape,” Abdulmelik said. “It’s an absolute failure of
the entire system and an absolutely shameful
response by Kenya’s police.” The victim knew some of the attackers, and three
of them were taken by villagers to the local police
station, the girl’s mother earlier told Kenyan
media. “The three… were only ordered to cut grass
around the police camp and set free shortly after,”
the girl’s mother told the paper. She is now wheelchair-bound with a broken back,
caused either by the beating or by being hurled
down into the pit, and also suffered serious
internal injuries from the rape. “My wish is to see justice done,” the girl told The
Nation newspaper, which first reported the story
and has led a campaign including raising funds to
cover medical costs. “I want my attackers arrested and punished.” Lawmakers have condemned the attack and
subsequent police failures, ordering action to be
taken. “Liz’s ordeal is unbearable to imagine, but the
only way to stop police dealing with victims with
such heartless negligence is by holding them to
account,” said Dalia Hashad, campaign director
for Avaaz. Kenya’s police chief David Kimaiyo said in a
statement at the weekend that “investigations are
complete”, and that the force was awaiting only
instructions from the office of the director of
public prosecutions. He gave no further details. Rape is a major problem in Kenya, and is often
not taken seriously by the police, according to
studies. One government study in 2009 found that as
many as a fifth of women and girls were victims
of sexual violence, although other later studies
have put the rate even higher. Another UN-backed government study in 2010
focusing on children found a third of girls and a
fifth of boys had suffered sexual violence. “Liz is sadly not the first or last victim of rape,”
Abdulmelik added, who works for a women’s
rights group in Kenya. “Her case has to be the moment when we all rally
together, express our solidarity, our outrage and
demand public accountability and an end to the
culture of violence and impunity that has become
the norm.”
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