KHRC condemns Kenya government’s disregard for constitution and civil society – JURIST

The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) on Thursday expressed deep concern over the government’s disregard for the constitution, independent oversight organizations, and civil society. In a press statement issued during the Fourth Civic Space Protection Summit, KHRC condemned what it described as a culture of impunity within the state and urged Gilbert Masengeli, the immediate-former acting Inspector General, to obey the court order and serve his six-month contempt of court sentence before the Commission General or Prisons.

The KHRC reiterated its call to end to extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and abductions targeting state actors and activists opposing the regime. According to KHRC:

Over 60 civil society leaders and human rights defenders have lost their lives over the past two years. We demand the suspension and interdiction of police officers invilved in these criminal acts and continued harassment and abductions. We further condemn the police actions against Trever Mathenge Muerithi, a first year student at Multimedia University who was severely injured and had a teargas canister lobbed at him at close range. He is currently admitted to a medical facility in critical condition. The use of such lethal crowd control weapons by police has been normalized despite a court order banning their use.

The organization also criticized the 2024 Assemblies and Demonstrations Bill, which seeks to restrict Kenya’s constitutionally granted freedom of assembly and demonstration and widespread surveillance that stifles digital activism in the country. They also noted the state’s lack of fiscal accountability, arguing that poor resource management, corruption, and continuous intimidation of monitoring institutions undermine Kenyans’ right to transparent governance and impair the government’s ability to provide basic services.

The KHRC further called on the public to initiate a citizens’ arrest of former acting Inspector General Gilbert Masengeli if Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki fails to take steps to have him commit to his conviction. Masengeli had been sentenced to six months in jail for repeatedly ignoring court summons—seven times in total—regarding the abduction of three men on August 19. Coincidentally, the three missing men were found alive on the same day Masengeli was due to appear in court. When he eventually appeared, Masengeli apologized to the court and claimed his absences were unintentional, leading the judge to set aside the conviction and recuse himself from the case.