Women’s rights advocates have launched an innovative campaign using red lipstick as a symbol to demand legal recognition of femicide as a separate criminal offense, as gender-based killings continue to rise across Kenya.

The Project Red Lipstick initiative comes as horrific femicide cases dominate headlines. Recent victims include 69-year-old Ruth Mwelu Mbula, found raped and strangled in Ruaka, and 17-year-old Gaala Aden, who was forcibly married and later murdered for resisting the union. The post-mortem report indicated her body was put it in a mattress and burnt.

Usikimye Organization, the campaign’s lead partner, has documented numerous cases where most perpetrators remain unprosecuted.

The campaign argues that Kenya’s existing legal framework fails to address the gendered nature of these crimes. Unlike countries such as Mexico and Argentina, Kenya does not recognize femicide as a distinct offense with specific penalties.

“The gender related motivation must be succinct to ensure a separation between homicide and femicide,” states the campaign’s memorandum to Kenya’s Femicide Taskforce.

The campaign combines traditional advocacy with modern marketing techniques. The limited-edition red lipstick, produced by Joanna K Cosmetics, serves as both fundraising tool and awareness mechanism, with proceeds supporting violence survivors.

Social media campaigns using #MakeFemicideACrime and #EndFemicideKe aim to maintain public pressure on legislators while the petition to declare femicide a crime seeks 100,000 signatures.