Femicides: WaxJotna raises its voice after two new murders of women

In a press release published on October 26, 2026, the WaxJotna collective condemns the murders of Mame Diarra Sow in Thiès and Aminata Sy in Podor, which occurred on October 24 and 25. The organization calls for the strengthening of prevention and protection mechanisms for women and girls, as well as the recognition of femicide as a specific crime in the Senegalese Penal Code.

The WaxJotna collective is sounding the alarm after the tragic discovery of the bodies of Mame Diarra Sow and Aminata Sy, killed a few hours apart on October 24 and 25, 2026. These tragedies bring to thirteen the number of publicized feminicides recorded in the space of ten months in the country. In Thiès, Mame Diarra Sow, a 24-year-old hairdresser, was stabbed to death during the night from Saturday to Sunday in the Keur Massamba Guèye district, and her companion was quickly arrested by the police. Simultaneously, in Podor, the body of Aminata Sy, a final year student aged only 17, was found lifeless and tied up in a bag in the Lao Demba district. Missing since the day before, she was allegedly murdered by her partner, the main suspect and actively sought by the gendarmerie.

Faced with this “intolerable” escalation, which occurs a little more than a month after the officialization of the second National Action Plan to combat Gender-Based Violence (VBG PAN 2), the organization deplores that these tragedies are a reminder that the commitments made do not yet protect women and girls. She therefore demands that full light be shed on these two cases and that those responsible be held accountable for their actions before the courts, calls for the immediate strengthening of prevention and protection mechanisms, and urges the recognition of femicide as a specific crime in the Senegalese Penal Code.

Yaya SOW