PHOTOS: Group marches on Lagos Assembly, seeks legislation against femicide

A group focused on women and children matters on Friday marched on the Lagos State House of Assembly to seek legislation on femicide.

Ololade Ajayi, the convener of the DOHS Care for Vulnerable Women and Children Foundation, led the march.

Femicide is the intentional killing of a woman or girl because of their gender.

Members of the group marched chanting “End femicide,” “Not one woman more, not one woman less,” Call it femicide,” from the Shoprite Mall in Ikeja area of the state to the Lagos State House of Assembly.

The demonstrators carried banners and placards with varying inscriptions like ‘#CALLITFEMICIDENG, Resist not Cry, ‘Legislate against femicide’, ‘STOP STOP STOP FEMICIDE’, ‘Stop killing of women and girls’ and others.

Ms Ajayi said they had sent a letter with a proposed bill on femicide to the state House of Assembly in April.

Letter, proposed bill

In their letter, they told the speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, that the Domestic Violence Law of Lagos State and the Criminal Code of the state do not accommodate femicide.

Omolara Olumegbo, the lawmaker representing the Lagos Island 1 Constituency and chairperson, House Committee on Women Affairs, Poverty Alleviation and Job Creation, replied to the letter this month, maintaining that there are existing laws that addresses their concerns.

She wrote, “Whilst the intent behind this bill is notable, it is important to state that the Lagos State in 2021 passed the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Law,” she wrote.

“The Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Law protect survivors of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence from all forms of discrimination, stigmatization and ensure that they have access to medical legal and counselling assistance.

A group member held a placard in front of the Lagos State House of Assembly.

“The law further ensures the protection of women against all forms of domestic violence experienced at home, in public or at the workplace.

“It is opined that the Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency law is also sufficient to cover incidences of Femicide against women and girls.”

Ms Olumegbo further said that chapter 23 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015 “sufficiently addresses cases of homicide, murder and suicide, Femicide is a subset of Murder and there are comprehensive provisions on murder in the law that ensures that those convicted don’t go without punishment.”

Demands

Meanwhile, Ms Ajayi argues that existing laws do not explicitly mention femicide.

She pointed out that the response does not address the patterns behind the killings of women, which the femicide bill aims to address.

Ms Ajayi also argued hat the bill should be considered to ensure justice for women and girls who have died and to prevent future deaths.

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“We are saying to him (the speaker) that our femicide bill has to be recognized, introduced on the floor of the House, and adopted either into the criminal code or into the domestic violence law, either as an amendment,” she said.

A group member held a placard in front of the Lagos State House of Assembly.

“We are saying that we want an invitation from the speaker and the house in general to deliberate about this bill, because ignoring the murders, the intentional murders of women and girls in Lagos State is tantamount to discarding women, saying that our lives are not important,” she said.

She urged the House to recognise and adopt the femicide bill, emphasizing that the bill will address the high number of women and girls who have died due to domestic violence, which the current laws do not “adequately cover.”

She insisted that the current laws only cover the survivors of sexual and domestic abuse.