KENYA

Reports on Ethnic Relations  /  Rapports sur les relations éthniques

The following section is consisted of part, full or summaries of articles from diverses sources (newspapers, newsletters, etc...).
La section suivante est constituée d'exraits, de la totalité ou de résumés d'articles provenant d'origines diverses (journaux,bulletins, etc..).

02 / 28 / 2003

IRIN

The Article: "Government urged to probe past human rights abuses"

The human rights body, Amnesty International, has urged Kenya's new government to launch thorough investigations into all alleged human rights abuses committed in the past, as part of its commitment to uphold the rule of law and stamp out impunity.

In a memorandum sent to the government, Amnesty said it was encouraged by the "positive signs" for human rights in Kenya expressed by the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) government.

NARC, which swept to victory in the December 2002 elections, promised to make sweeping changes in the government in order to fight impunity and corruption, and to revive most of the country's dilapidated institutions.

"As the new government takes office, Amnesty International calls on the newly-elected leaders to commit themselves to respect and uphold the fundamental rights and freedoms of the people, enshrined in domestic law as well as in the international human rights treaties signed and ratified by Kenya," the human rights body said.

"In line with these commitments, the government of Kenya should take prompt actions in these areas by introducing the appropriate legislations in parliament where these are required and taking any other required administrative steps," it added.

In particular, Amnesty urged the government to act on the human rights abuses described in the Akiwumi Commission report, which investigated politically motivated ethnic lashes in the country between 1992 and 1997, as well as all political assassinations and "disappearances".

"Those found responsible must be brought to justice," Amnesty declared.

It also urged the government to prioritise the ongoing constitutional reform process, in order to guarantee the human rights and freedoms of all Kenyans in the long term.

"Every Kenyan has the right to live in a society where their basic rights are respected in law and in practice," it said. "All those who now govern Kenya should commit themselves publicly to making human rights a reality for Kenyans."

02 / 13 / 2003

IRIN

The Article: "Government pledges to investigate rights violations"

A section of the human rights fraternity in Kenya has welcomed the new government's intention to open up fresh inquiries into human rights violations attributed to the previous Kenya African National Union (KANU) government.

Gitau Wanguthi, the coordinator of the grass-roots pressure group, Release Political Prisoners (RPP), told IRIN on Thursday that the government's decision to set up a new commission to inquire into past human rights abuses by KANU since independence from Britain in 1963 indicated the commitment of the current National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) government to beginning the process of eradicating impunity in order to heal the country. "I think it is a very positive move, because it gives us hope that no-one will ever do that to other people," Wanguthi said.

Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Kiraitu Murungi said at the weekend that his ministry would establish such a commission. The alleged violations, which include torture, extrajudicial killings and the unsolved murders of prominent politicians such as the opposition MP, J.M. Kariuki, in 1975 and former Foreign Minister Robert Ouko in 1990.

Murungi was speaking when the Narc government, which was sworn in on 30 December following a landslide election victory, opened up for the first time the dungeons in the basement Nyayo House in the capital, Nairobi, where hundreds of political prisoners were tortured and killed during the height of political repression in the 1980s.

In a new report, RPP has cited at least 30 cases of people arrested and charged or jailed for political offences, and urged the government to review the cases. "We are asking that those in prison be released and cases to be withdrawn," Waguthi said.

Wanguthi, himself former political prisoner, said human rights groups had recently held a meeting and prepared a list of demands - including the establishment of a South African-style truth and reconciliation commission, and opening up the prisons to scrutiny - which they subsequently presented to Murungi. Murungi has promised to look into the issues, according to Wanguthi. "As a graduate of the torture chambers, I am very positive that the government will look into all the things we have been fighting against," Wanguthi said.

KANU has, however, accused the Narc government of "witch-hunting". "Narc is free to witch-hunt as much as they want, but we are demanding that they should at least have the courtesy to respect the law and try to do whatever they want within the constitution," the Nairobi-based Daily Nation quoted William Ruto, KANU's director of elections, as saying.

"Those who perpetrated crimes must first be proven guilty. Rather than approach things by using street mobs, they can approach them in a much more sober and reconciliatory manner, and consolidate the people as one nation," Ruto added. [ENDS]

02 / 06 / 2003

IRIN

The Article: "Rights groups condemn rape by police"

Kenyan women's rights groups have expressed outrage at recent incidents in which policemen have been accused of rape, and urged the authorities to take appropriate action to instil discipline within the force in order to stamp out such crimes.

Simon Ndudu, a policeman in Nairobi's Kamukunji area, was arrested on Monday, and has been charged with raping a 14-year-old orphaned girl. His arrest came in response to pressure from outraged women's groups. Sources said the girl, who had travelled to the capital, Nairobi, to seek a relative for financial assistance, was still in hospital following surgery.

Two other cases - one involving a four-year-old child, and the other, a 22-year old woman, both also reportedly raped by policemen - were reported this week, but suspects are yet to be arrested.

According to the Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW), the three rape cases are a sign that sexual offences are rampant not only among the public but also within the police force country-wide, but most go unreported as victims are intimidated.

COVAW's Anne Gathumbi told IRIN that two out of every five women in Nairobi suffered sexual abuse. "The problem is that what we are seeing are just the reported cases, but the actual figures could be staggering," she said.

Gathumbi also complained of delays affecting the arrests of suspects. She told IRIN that although the 14-year-old had reported the offence immediately after it occurred on 30 January, the suspect was not arrested until five days later. "It is good he [the policeman] has been charged, but we are watching very closely to ensure the due process of the law is followed," Gathumbi said.

According to media reports, when the girl went to the nearby police station, officers on duty refused to take her statement, saying she could not sue a policeman. Women's groups also want those policemen to face charges.

The Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Kenya chapter, said it would assist the minor and her family to pursue the case. "We note the callous attitude demonstrated by the officers who were on duty at the time the girl went to report the abuse," FIDA said in a statement. "To say that they would not take her statement because the perpetrator of the abuse is a policeman amounts to complicity on their part. They too must be investigated with a view to having disciplinary action taken against them."

The Kenya Anti-Rape Organisation, an NGO, said it was "unfortunate" that the crime was committed by a law enforcer. "We condemn the heinous crime involving the defilement of minors, especially when committed by people in law enforcement," the East African Standard quoted Abeyd Anyanzwa, the organisation's secretary-general, as saying.

The rapes have brought the police force's already damaged image into sharp focus, especially in the context of the new government, which came to power in December 2002 and immediately pledged to uphold human rights.

02 / 04 / 2003

IRIN

The Article: "Government reconsidering encampment policy for refugees"

The Kenyan government is reviewing its policy of keeping the country's refugee population in camps in the north of the country.

"The indications from the government [Ministry of Home Affairs] are that they will review the encampment policy so that refugees will become producers, not just consumers," a spokesman from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Emmanuel Nyabera, told IRIN on Tuesday.

The much-criticised encampment policy has placed about 220,000 people in two camps in the extremely arid regions of Kakuma (Turkana) and Dadaab (Garissa). They are denied the right to own cattle or cultivate, move freely, work, or integrate with local people, thus rendering them entirely dependent on humanitarian hand-outs.

"The government has indicated that it would be willing to review the policy with a view to allowing refugees to farm and produce goods," said Nyabera. This could refer to them being resettled in more productive areas than those they were currently in, he said.

In discussions held over the last two weeks, the government had indicated that Kenya's refugee policy was to be made a priority, Nyabera said. Kenya's first national refugee legislation (currently a pending bill) was due to be introduced soon, and the government had expressed an interest in becoming more involved in management of the refugee camps, and in the refugee status- determination and registering process, he said. Currently these are managed almost exclusively by the UN agency.

Plans were also under way to introduce joint UNHCR/government ID cards for refugees, he said.

In a separate development, the World Food Programme (WFP) confirmed to IRIN that the US government had donated 6,280 mt of food for the camps to help ease current food shortages. The food would arrive at Mombasa port in May, and in the meantime WFP would borrow against this pledge.

In February, the average food ration given to each refugee would be 1,878 kilocalories, Paulette Jones, a WFP spokeswoman confirmed, adding that if more donations were not received, rations would have to be cut further. In January, rations in both camps were cut from 2,120 kilocalories per day to about 1,600.

An appeal launched this month by an umbrella of church-affiliated groups, Action by Churches Together, reported that almost 45 percent of families were eating only one meal per day in Kakuma. Firewood supplied by UNHCR met only 30 percent of cooking needs, which meant that some families were unable to eat even when they had food, the report said. Water was also in short supply, due to disrepair of water storage facilities and taps, in a region where temperatures averaged 35 degrees Celsius.

02 / 03 / 2003

IRIN

The Article: "Women complain over latest appointments"

Barely a month in power, the new government of President Mwai Kibaki is coming under fire from certain sectors regarding the latest senior appointments.

The latest voice of discontent has come from the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) - Kenya chapter, which claimed that recent political appointments were particularly unfair to women.

Last week, Kibaki - whose opposition National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) won a landslide majority in the 27 December elections - announced a wide range of changes in senior ministerial posts, in which a number of permanent secretaries were replaced and others transferred.

FIDA however accused the NARC government of failing to fulfill the promises it made to Kenyans before coming to power to appoint more women to decision-making positions.

Out of the 19 appointments made last week, only four were given to women. Sally Kosgey, the head of the civil service, was replaced by former ambassador Francis Muthaura.

FIDA said on Monday that the female permanent secretaries did not deserve to be dropped, and even if they did, other qualified women should have been picked to replace them.

"It is our strong feeling that key women permanent secretaries affected by the reshuffle did not deserve to be dropped," FIDA said in a statement.

"We find the latest action to be contradictory to the pre-electoral commitment given to Kenyans in the presidential inaugural address when President Kibaki expressed his commitment to appoint public officials on the basis of merit and qualifications," it said.

"We find the trend to remove women from leadership quite alarming and contrary to the spirit with which Kenyan women voted overwhelmingly for NARC."