Rebecca Cheptgei, Christianah Idowu: How Careful Can Women Be?

A spate of recent murders has put focus on the increased, persistent rates of femicide in Africa. Thinking of all the cases of femicide that were underreported by the media, I felt pleased to know that, gradually, femicide cases are receiving much-needed support and awareness.

The media plays a crucial role in addressing femicide, extending beyond raising awareness and educating the public.

They have the power to shape attitudes and beliefs that can contribute to prevention efforts.

However, irresponsible media representation can be harmful, such as portraying femicides as isolated incidents, downplaying their connection to broader societal issues, focusing on victim behaviour, and implying they were responsible for their own murder.

These harmful representations can perpetuate damaging stereotypes and hinder efforts to prevent femicide.

With hashtags such as #stopkillingwomen trending on Twitter and support from public figures such as Afrobeats sensation Ayra Starr, femicide cases won’t be swept under the carpet anymore.

Femicide, also known as feminicide, refers to the intentional killing of females solely because of their gender.

The term was first introduced by feminist author Diana E. H. Russell in 1976, initially describing it as a hate crime committed by males against females.

Later, she refined the definition to emphasize that femicide is the killing of females by males, specifically because of their female identity.

While anyone can perpetrate femicide, the majority of cases involve male offenders, often due to deeply ingrained gender inequalities, harmful stereotypes, and societal norms that perpetuate violence against women.

Notably, nearly 40% of female homicide victims are killed by their close partners or spouses.

The stories of Nigerian Student Christianah Idowu, kidnapped and murdered by her friend/ church member, and Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei, set ablaze by her boyfriend are a few examples of several femicide cases that have been underreported due to insufficient evidence.

Christainah Idowu, a 21-year-old student at a Nigerian University, was kidnapped and murdered by her friend/church member.

The suspect Adeleye Ayomide a 23 year old student had abducted Christianah on the 19th of August 2024. After this, he contacted her parents using her own WhatsApp contact.

He then requested for a ransom fee of N1,500,000 which Christainah’ s parents was able to raise.

However, after receiving the ransom, the suspect went ahead to kill Christianah and buried her in a shallow grave.

The Nigerian security operatives swung into action and, upon investigation, discovered that the suspect was behind the kidnap and murder of Christianah.

He also confessed to the operatives that in 2018, he killed his ex-girlfriend in the same manner.

Also, in 2020, the suspect’s own biological sister allegedly met the same fate.

Similarly, In Kenya, Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei died days after her boyfriend, Dickson Ndiema, allegedly set her on fire.

The duo was said to have engaged in a domestic dispute, during which Ndiema poured petrol on Cheptegei and ignited it, leaving her with severe burns covering 75% of her body.

This, unfortunately, led to multi-organ failure, which ultimately led to her passing.

These tragedies serve as a stark reminder that women are no longer safe as people who ought to protect them turn around to murder them in cold blood.

How careful can women be?

Following reports of these tragic incidents, there have been several remarks on social media, such as ” Women should be careful”, “Don’t walk outside at night”, and “Stay Vigilant”.

These remarks are not only insensitive but also attempt to make excuses for these inhumane acts.

“Women stay safe”, but Mercy was killed while asleep in her home, Uwa Alli was in Church, Rebecca was with her boyfriend at home, and Christine was with her “friend”.

Should women be careful of their brothers, boyfriends, and friends? How careful are they expected to be? How much more careful can women be around their spouse or family members? How vigilant can they be with their friends or church members?

Urban Women Magazine recently spoke with some women to hear what they had to say about the increased rate of femicide and incessant admonitions for women to be careful.

Laye Okoh, a writer living in Lagos, Nigeria, finds it absurd that people still say women should be careful because, unfortunately, being a woman in society in itself is a vulnerable position.

She continued, “Even though we think because we are not as extremist as some other societies that women should be safer, it’s quite the opposite; women are not only prone to violence from family members but at work, school and everywhere else.

“Women subjugation, unfortunately, is both a cultural and national thing even tho we pretend it’s not, and when we see extreme cases like the cases from last week, I think they force us to the reality that we are not safe. Nowhere is safe, and even your abuser can share a womb or vows with you.

We need to move from trying to prevent being the “perfect victims” to actually holding the abusers accountable. It starts with the home; how many men have actually been punished for hitting women? Why do we not see assault as a crime until it turns fatal? Weak people who derive power from violence make weak institutions. These institutions are just a replica of the same violent power imbalance, which will never give women the protection and safety we deserve in society.

Speaking with Ucheoma Awa, a writer from Denver, she said, “We’ve come from a society where, from time immemorial, we have been advised to be careful. As women, we’re always the victims and perpetrators.

“A crime is committed against a woman, she’s recognized as the victim and at the same time she’s victim blamed, questions are thrown at her from different directions; why was she in the same space with the perpetrator? Why was she fraternizing with the perpetrator? Why was she so comfortable with the perpetrator? Why was she smiling with the perpetrator?

“Different ‘Whys’ are thrown at the victim, but not one why is thrown at the perpetrator. Why couldn’t she feel safe around him? Why is it okay for the girl child to always have her guard up around people who are meant to be her protectors? Must the females start to attend self-defence classes because one day their partner could turn into a predator and her a prey? How much longer can the women in our society feel unsafe in a society that’s meant to protect them?

“As a community, we should come together to answer these questions and to root out the evil called victim blaming in our society. Christianah and Rebecca were with people they relatively should have felt safe with, and today they are no more”.

Angel Clement, a medical doctor, had this to say: “The Nigerian Penal Code, particularly Section 282, essentially permits husbands to beat their wives as long as they do not cause injury or death. Early on, I realized that the laws in Nigeria offer little protection for women. “What shocked me even more was the general societal indifference to violence against women, leading to alarming rates of women being killed and raped by strangers and even their own family members. “This lack of legal and social accountability has made men feel emboldened, knowing there are often no real consequences for their actions. “To ensure the safety of women, we urgently need laws that protect them and strict penalties for those who commit acts of violence”.

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