“I felt like a celebrity but in a bad way”- Kalekye, a young women viral without consent in Kenya

A series of videos surfaced online showing a man filming women in public places like Kenya and Ghana. The fact that they were unaware of being filmed reflects a clear case of non- consensual filming.

 In one of these videos a young women named Kalekye is seen standing by the road in Nairobi. A man approaches her, talks to her and records the interaction without her consent and even uploads it leading to violation of her privacy. Later, a content creator Kelvin Karume downloads it from Russian you tube channel and re- uploaded it on Tik TOK. The video gets viral with more than one million views in just two hours.

The women due to this not only faced online insults and harassment but in real life also as strangers were shouting offensive remarks at her.  People even criticized her based on her appearance, behavior and morality. The actions apparently reflect the deep-rooted victim- blaming attitude in society.

The activist and politicians marked the matter as a serious concern and called for a legal action against the man. While neglecting the fact that the viral exposure led emotional distress, public humiliation for women, many people still blamed the women and judge them on how they dressed or acted.

The matter shows growing concern on how digital culture normalizes exploitation and society continue to judge women harshly instead of respecting their privacy. The change requires an accountability from victor and when consent is treated as non- negotiable.