Linnet Nyawira Mwangi, Kisumu, Kenya, SSH Blog Correspondent
There have not been any cases of street harassment in Kenya in the media since last year. I would like to say we are heading in the right direction, men are learning to respect our women, but that is not really the case. There are quite a few isolated cases that you will experience as you transverse the country even as you shift from the urban areas to the rural areas.
Last week I traveled to Nairobi (Kenya’s capital city) and I had two bags with me since I had just left school for holiday. On arrival I had to wait for my friend to pick me up so I moved to a less crowded spot at the station. A lady walked past me obviously in a hurry by the strides she was making and as she tried to make her way out of the station, a man asked her where she was going and grabbed her hand. This is one behavior that is rampant in this place where you just alight from a vehicle and the conductors are all around you asking you where you are going and some will even seize your luggage in attempt to get you in their vehicle. For me it is always a nightmare if I have to travel with too much luggage.
Back to the lady, she started shouting angrily at the man and this brought the attention of the people around her as some moved towards the scene. I could not move any closer because I risked losing my belongings if left untended but I could hear the people as they all aired their opinions. A man appeared from the ticketing office and the conductors and the other men responsible to ensure the vehicles are fully packed tried to find their way out but the man called them back and everybody else fell silent.
When the man found his way to the lady, he introduced himself as the manager of the Sacco (company) and asked her to explain what had transpired and she told him how the man had followed her insisting she get in the vehicle and even grabbed her hand when she said she was going somewhere else. The conductor on the other hand said the lady had insulted him. An old woman from the crowd raised her voice and said that it was untrue because the conductor was the one who had insulted the lady and other voices agreed with her.
The lady told the manager that such behavior was unacceptable since everybody knew where they were going and if they did not they would ask for help and she told him she was going to sue the Sacco and the people around nodded in agreement. They would be glad to support her because harassing passengers was unacceptable some even started saying that they had lost their goods in that manner. The manager asked the conductor to apologize, which he did and then asked the lady to accept the apology and promised everyone around that the situation would not be repeated. He then asked the conductor to follow him and everybody watched, with some suggesting that he should be fired. I did not exactly wish that he was fired but if that would teach others a lesson or two…
Linnet is a student at Maseno University in Kisumu, Kenya pursuing a bachelor’s degree in sociology with IT. Follow her on Twitter @Shantel_lyn and Facebook @lynnette Shantellah.
