Two deaths shine spotlight on violence against women in Kenya

17-year old girl found dead and dumped in River Lusumu, Kakamega [Mumo Munuve, Standard]

Cynthia Makokha was a 17-year-old student and volleyball player. Agnes Tirop was a 25-year-old rising athletics star, who finished fourth in the 5,000m race at the Tokyo Olympics and had won two World Championship bronze medals.

Both women were found dead in Kenya this week, and while their murders are not linked they have shone a spotlight on violence against women, which the government says has grown worse since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.