Anger in Cameroon over femicide after eight women killed in a week

In Cameroon, the death of at least eight women over the span of a week has ignited widespread outrage, prompting calls for the government to take stronger action to safeguard women and girls. Football star Nchout Njoya Ajara has spoken out against the "tragic wave" of attacks targeting women. Government officials have expressed concern over the surge in such incidents, with official records showing that 50 women were killed between January and April of this year, compared to 77 during the same period last year.

The most recent case unfolded on Tuesday, when a 44-year-old woman was fatally stabbed in her hotel room in the capital city of Yaoundé by a 22-year-old suspect, who has now been apprehended. Njoya Ajara warned in a statement that "being a woman in Cameroon should never be a risk," emphasizing that silence in the face of this "tragic wave" of femicides is complicity.

The opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement party has condemned the "tragic recurrence of domestic femicides" and accused the government of being passive on the issue. The femicide cases, predominantly linked to domestic violence, have been reported in various regions across the country. The minister for Women's Empowerment and the Family, Marie-Thérèse Abena Ondoa, lamented the "worrying" increase in these killings in a video released by state media, stating that the government is actively seeking solutions.

She mentioned a bill aimed at protecting women from gender-based violence, which is currently under review by the prime minister.

However, civil society organizations and women's rights groups have criticized the government for its perceived delay in transforming the bill into law. A parliamentary session scheduled for November is the final one for the year, but Viviane Tathi, whose organization tracks femicide cases in Cameroon, expressed uncertainty about whether the bill will be passed during this session.

"We are worried because the November parliamentary session focuses on budgetary debates…So, we don't know by what magic this bill will be passed," she told the BBC. Tathi has called for the establishment of a specialized court to handle family disputes that often escalate into domestic violence.