Children are paying the price for Kenya's worrying GBV crisis

While Kenya grapples with rising cases of gender-based violence (GBV), some of the deepest wounds are borne by innocent children who suffer emotionally, socially, mentally, and academically. Though public discussions often focus on survivors and perpetrators, children remain silent victims whose pain is rarely acknowledged.

The rise in GBV cases across the country has become impossible to ignore. Incidents trend on social media, spark public outrage, and attract sympathy for victims. When violence turns fatal, communities mourn with grieving families. Yet once headlines fade and public attention shifts elsewhere, many children remain trapped in silent pain confused, emotionally wounded, and carrying burdens far beyond their years.

For how much longer will innocent children continue bearing scars from violence they neither caused nor deserved? How long will they continue suffering silently in homes meant to protect and nurture them?

As domestic violence cases continue increasing, children remain the most overlooked victims. Public attention often focuses on direct survivors while young witnesses fade into the background. These children endure nights filled with fear and emotional turmoil, lying awake listening to arguments and violence unfolding behind closed doors. As we condemn GBV, who is listening to the quiet tears of children trembling in fear?

Homes should be places of safety where children feel loved and protected. Sadly, for many children, home has become a place of terror. Witnessing violence replaces safety with fear, anxiety, trauma, and emotional instability. In the process, children lose not only their sense of security but also their childhood itself.

The painful reality is that children who grow up surrounded by violence may begin to see such behavior as normal. Home becomes their first classroom, shaping their understanding of relationships. Some grow up believing that love must be accompanied by pain and fear, creating a cycle that risks repeating across generations.

Even more heartbreaking are cases where  GBV escalates into murder. The tragedy does not end with the loss of one life; it shatters an entire child's world. A child who loses a mother to femicide loses more than a parent — they lose love, comfort, security, and guidance.

In some cases, the perpetrator takes their own life after committing the crime, leaving children orphaned overnight. In others, one parent is buried while the other is imprisoned. Whatever the circumstance, the outcome remains the same: children are left drowning in grief, confusion, abandonment, and unimaginable pain.

The aftermath of femicide extends beyond children and affects society at large. Grandparents, relatives, or guardians may step in, but no one can truly replace a parent. These children carry emotional scars that often take years to heal.

The impact of GBV also reaches classrooms. Imagine a child sitting quietly in class, expected to perform like everyone else, yet the previous night was filled with screams, tears, fear, and violence at home. How can such a child concentrate or focus on lessons and examinations?

Many children from violent homes carry invisible wounds that teachers may not immediately recognize. Some become withdrawn and silent; others struggle with concentration, miss school frequently, or gradually lose interest in learning. This often leads to poor academic performance and, in some cases, school dropout.

However, families often urge victims to endure the unbearable, believing that a broken family is better than none for the children's sake. But is it truly better for a child to grow up surrounded by fear and violence, believing abuse is normal? A woman who chooses to leave is often judged and labeled a failure while her abuser escapes scrutiny. Yet we must ask ourselves difficult questions: Should a woman remain in a violent home or walk away to save herself and protect her children? What if she loses her life while trying to hold a family together for the sake of those children? Who then wipes their tears and helps them carry that pain? Is staying with a violent partner truly better than leaving? Surely no child should pay such a heartbreaking price just to maintain the appearance of a complete family.

Gender-based violence is a violation of humanity and fundamental rights. If Kenya is serious about ending GBV, then we must stop overlooking the smallest victims. Protecting children is a collective responsibility. We cannot allow violence to destroy future generations when action is within our reach.

It is time to wake up, break free from violence, and build safer homes and a brighter future for Kenya's children.

-The writer comments on topical issues