The Kenya Universities student Organisation (KUSO) wants perpetrators of femicide and gender based violence to be castrated as a deterrent punishment.

KUSO President Antony Manyara and public interest litigation lawyer Wangai John have written to the national assembly to amend the existing legislation, including the Penal Code and the Sexual Offences Act, by introducing Chemical Castration by Injection to the perpetrators and the surgical precision of testicular removal.

In their submission in form of a petition, the two opine that this will address the escalating crisis of femicide and gender-based violence.

“Kenya has seen a sharp increase in femicide and GBV cases, with numerous cases involving extreme violence, abuse, and fatalities, perpetrated by intimate partners or other community members,” the petition reads in part.

Recently, the National Police Service indicated that at least 97 cases of femicide were reported in the last three months, an equivalent of one woman killed per day, the police describing the rising number of cases as alarming.

Kenyan Non-profit Femicide Count, which keeps a tally of only reported incidents, tallied at least 152 cases of femicide in Kenya in 2023 and in 2022

According to a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, about 725 women and girls were murdered over this period.

Manyara and Wangai argue that the alarming statistics paint an ugly picture of the state of women’s safety in the country imploring on the National Assembly to call upon President William Ruto to officially declare femicide a national disaster.

“The declaration will underscore the severity of the crisis and also formally recognize the gravity of this crisis and initiate the mobilization of requisite resources and coordinated measures to address and curtail this escalating menace effectively,” stated Manyora and Wangai.

Thursday, the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops urged the government to take immediate actions to address the growing incidences of killings of women, adding to the long list of organisations and Kenyans calling for action in curbing the social menace that has rocked the country.

Earlier President William Ruto promised the formation of a special unit within the nation police service to deal with femicide, with the Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja announcing gender desks at police stations nationwide will be on high alert to deal swiftly with any cases of gender-based violence.