August 9, 2017 remains etched in Benna Buluma’s mind. Something tragic happened in the life of the resident of Mathare slum in Nairobi County.
In a flick of a moment, she lost her two sons whom she says were caught in the fire during protests that followed claims of election fraud by Orange Democratic Movement leader Raila Odinga.
Bernard Okoth, 25 and Victor Okoth, 22 were killed by the police who used live bullets to disperse the protesters at Mathare Number 10, she says.
“They had alighted at Huruma (an estate near Mathare) from town (Nairobi city centre) at around 2pm.They had gone to look for money,” she explains.
Bernard was a tailor at Gikomba market, while Victor was a casual construction worker. On this day, she was expecting them back by 3pm as they had left their children with her. Unfortunately, they were caught up in the chaos as they walked down to their mother’s house. To their children.
Bernard had a three-year-old son waiting for him. While a one-year-old girl was counting seconds to be in her father’s arms again; dad Victor.
But then, at 3pm, Ms Buluma heard loud thunderous gunshots from the side of Mathare Number 10. She knew things were bad. But for her, things would soon turn out worse.
By 3.30pm she was unsettled. “Where are my sons?” she wondered.
Benna Buluma holds a portrait of her son,Victor Okoth,whom she says the police shot dead during a poll protest in Mathare slums, Nairobi county on August 9, 2017.Photo taken on April 11,2022 at her house in Mathare.Moraa Obiria/Nation Media Group.
She opted to make her way near where she had heard the gunshots to have a clear picture of the events.
Even before she would ask anyone what was happening, she heard a man say some young men “wameangushwa”, which would literally mean, “they have been fallen.”
Moments later, Victor’s wife, came running to her saying the same. At this point, she was confused. Another woman told her to go see for herself the crime scene. Together with her daughter-in-law, they went, only to be met by a life-changing moment that made her freeze in devastating shock. Her sons had been shot dead.
It was indeed a painful turning point in her life.
She buried her sons in Kisumu County in November, of the same year and returned to Nairobi to find more than 21 women crying for justice.
In her quest for justice, she joined Mathare Social Justice Centre, a community-based organisation that advocates for social justice and documents human rights violations.
It is here that she met the women, some whose sons had been killed by the police. Others tortured or raped by the officers.
These women had their cases followed up by a social justice organisation but they were too afraid to publicly speak against the violations for fear of reprisal. All their cases involve the police as the perpetrators.
But even in the depths of her pain, Ms Buluma offered to give them a voice.
In December 2017, they decided to form Mothers of Victims and Survivors Network, expanding the scope to Kayole, Mukuru, Kasarani, Kibera, Kariobangi and Dandora. She is the network’s convenor.
Now with more than 60 women under the umbrella body, Ms Buluma has since 2017, documented more than 30 new incidents of abuse of the rights of both gender in the slums.
Her case being among them and she has forwarded all of them to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA). But none of them has since been prosecuted, she says.
“Sometimes it feels like there is no need of monitoring and documentation these human rights violations. But when you remember what you have gone through, you tell yourself, ‘I’ll not stop until justice is delivered,’” she says.
Various organisations including Defenders Coalition have trained the women in the network on monitoring and documenting abuse of human rights violations, she says.
On many occasions, she has been intimidated especially when she visits the victims in their homes.
“You will see someone following you but that does not bother me. I am not afraid of death. They already killed my sons,” she says.
She asserts that: “If you remain silent you will never get help. Even if you say you won’t speak because you will be killed, if he wants to kill you, he will still kill you.”
She says the women are in “so much pain” because their cases have dragged on for too long yet the country is nearing another election.Yet to be concluded at the Milimani law courts are 21 cases of extrajudicial killings by the police, lodged by a social justice organisation on behalf of the women in the network. But hers is still at the hands of IPOA.
She says for her and her fellow women in the network, the mention of holding General Election on August 9, throws them into indescribable illness.
“Our bodies become weak. You walk around filled with anger. I walk around absent-minded,” she says.
“I feel totally abnormal but since I am a leader I’m forced to sober up and be strong for other women,” she explains.
For now, they are trying to find peace and solace in their network.
In June last year, they were lucky to find a sponsor who has rented a room for them in Mathare. The room has become a safe space for them to relieve each other’s pain.
The sponsor also provides a stipend that she spends to visit the victims who are in urgent need of consolation.
Her worry is if the donor withdraws support before they find a sustainable footing to continue doing the human rights work. Before 2017, she was a casual domestic worker in Eastleigh earning a monthly wage of Sh5,000.
She says, they want to start a peanut business but they are stuck at the point of taking off.
“We want to buy a peanut butter machine. But we have not found a place to install the machine because we don’t have money to rent a place,” she says.
This story was first published by Nation Media Group. This is not a reproduction but an amplification of the message.
Read the article of Nation Media Group page here https://nation.africa/kenya/news/gender/benna-buluma-lost-two-sons-in-2017-poll-chaos-she-now-dreads-august-9-3790652
For Florence Achuya, her day is incomplete if she fails to defend the vulnerable in society and ensure justice is served for them.
She has been doing this for the past 11 years despite her daily family activities. She is financially constrained but says she is ready to soldier on.
“I like being a fighter. I represent Women Justice Centre in Vihiga County. I am a defender by nature.”
In her, she says, there exists a spirit of changing lives in any challenging situation that comes her way. This being an election year, she says she is upscaling her resolve to penetrate the political terrain in protecting the rights of women and the vulnerable ahead of the August 9 polls.
As a result, she has been picked as an election monitor and has her job cut out. She began by monitoring the registration of aspirants by the Intendent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, an exercise that saw her move from one office to another assessing the clearance process.
“I fight for women, girls and even boys. I feel that the boy child has been neglected. I am happy being a defender. I feel happy when I succeed in defending people because it leaves me with fulfilment and satisfaction that someone has received justice as a result of my effort.”
But the challenges she faces could be heavier. She, for instance, cites difficulties in reaching survivors and victims, amid financial constraints. She says is if she would be financially empowered, her reach and scope of duty would be widened and she would make more positive impacts on lives.
She got her training in human rights from the National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders, Kenya, and notes that this has equipped her with more information and technical know-how in handling her resolve professionally.
The objective of the National Coalition for Human Rights Defenders, Kenya, is to champion the safety, security and well-being of human rights defenders.
The body is a national organisation that is incorporated in Kenya as a trust. Its mission is to strengthen the capacity of human rights defenders to work effectively and to reduce their venerability to the risk persecution.
t currently has 3,456 members and has trained 2,504 human rights defenders from 14 networks, according to the information on its website. Ms Achuya says the training she got from the coalition is the reason she has been approved as an election monitor by the IEBC.
She says she feels monitoring the election process will place her right at the centre of getting access to first-hand information on the planning of the forthcoming general election. She believes this will also sharpen her skills in championing the rights of women before, during and after the election.
“In the process, we are able to campaign for peace and peaceful coexistence.”
To beat the financial constraints, Ms Achuya says she and a group of other defenders are involved in soap making, handcrafts and farming to boost their earnings and fund their daily activities.
But this is not enough. She appeals to well-wishers to support their activities to ease their movement and communication.
“Despite the constraints, I keep going because I feel I must do something to its logical conclusion,” she concludes.
This story was first published by Nation Media Group. This is not a reproduction but an amplification of the message.
Read the article of Nation Media Group page here https://nation.africa/kenya/news/gender/vihiga-woman-relishes-rights-advocacy-despite-hurdles-3848958
Her facial expression clearly tells how determined she is in the world of activism. Meet Rukia Rashid Ibrahim, the youngest female human rights defender in Lamu County.
Aged just 24, Rukia spends most of her time defending the rights of men and boys, whom she says are forgotten. As a female activist, she boasts of having stood out for being a rare voice for abused men.
Her passion for activism drove her to postpone her teaching course four years ago, just to enable her to engage fully in defending human rights. Rukia believes she was born a human rights activist, nothing else.
Defending her move to fight for the male gender, she notes that in recent years, many campaigns have been concentrated only on women and girls. Men and boys are forgotten, yet many of them lead tough lives, with some stuck in drug abuse due to the stress that comes along with the overwhelming duties that they are expected to carry, she says.
Rukia says that even if women have better jobs than their husbands, the community still expects the men to be the ones taking all the family roles—providing food and school fees, catering for health expenses, and paying rent.
She is concerned about how society, particularly the Muslims population, has been unfair on matters of dowry payment. She says many parents and brides have a tendency of demanding hefty bride prices, a situation forcing some men to remain single.
Others have to do awkward jobs for years, just to get money for a wife. But she is determined to have the community change.“You can’t demand Sh300,000 and above as dowry and you expect a man without a job or one who just does menial jobs to pay such a hefty amount. I feel that’s unfair to the male gender.
“Parents and even the brides need to be considerate of such matters. I am happy that through my sensitisation campaigns, society here has started to embrace negotiations and lowering the bride prices,” she says.
The firstborn in a family of seven is also concerned that men’s voice has continued to dwindle in recent times because of the frequent awareness and empowerment campaigns only targeting the female gender.
“As we fight for gender equity, some things are not really taken care of keenly. Nowadays, it’s easy to see the representation of women in a conference to be 70 per cent at the expense of only 30 per cent of men’s representation. This makes the men have a lesser voice, which I feel isn’t right.”
She is also worried about the fate of boys’ education. Boys’ education in Lamu has continued to dwindle as all efforts have always been concentrated on girls, she says.
He cites a recent statement from Lamu director of education Joshua Kaaga, who said many boys are dropping out of school and such a situation could see crime rates go up drastically in the near future.
“As per my observation, there has been less effort and attention geared towards the education of the boy child. In most cases, the boy child is less supervised, leaving him with a dangerous opportunity to stray. That’s why the region has very few boys’ schools as compared to their female counterparts. This has impacted negatively on boys’ education and needs to change,” says Rukia.
Lamu County has only two boys’ secondary schools—Lamu Boys and Mpeketoni Secondary schools. Tens of schools are for girls.
She emphasises the need for balance in matters of school infrastructural developments so that both boys and girls enjoy a productive learning environment and an equal opportunity for education.
Apart from fighting for men’s rights, Rukia has also been advocating equal land ownership for men and women. She has also been at the forefront of fighting against child abuse, including molestation, defilement, and sodomy, and ensuring justice is served to victims.
One of her biggest achievements is seeing the Lamu recognise that both men and women have equal rights when it comes to land inheritance and ownership.
“Through our efforts as activists, the women in Lamu are more informed of their day-to-day rights and this has reduced societal conflicts.”
Her life’s lowest point is that despite the sacrifices she has been making, especially in fighting for the rights of men, the same men have not really valued her efforts, with some despising her.
Some men are unwilling to come forward when they face challenges. She says society has always viewed her as someone with no vision just because of her dedication to fighting for people’s rights.
But she maintains that activism is in her blood and has pushed her to move forward in life with ease. “Male chauvinism is real in Lamu. The same men that I have fought for their rights are the ones viewing me as a lesser being just because I am a woman. Some even prefer not to share their problems with me. But that hasn’t hindered my pursuit for activism.”
Born in Langoni, Lamu Old Town, in 1998, she attended Lamu Girls Primary School between 2007 and 2013. She joined Shella Bright Girls High School in 2014 and completed her secondary education in 2017. In 2018, she enrolled at Shanzu Teachers Training College, Mombasa, for a P1 teaching course.
By that time, she had already made a name as a human rights defender in Lamu and neighbouring counties, having started it during her primary school days. In 2019, she reached a point where she had to quit her teaching career and immerse herself fully in the world of activism.
She has worked and received mentorship from various human rights organisations, including the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), and the National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders – Kenya.
She is currently pursuing a Diploma in Community Development and Counselling at the Technical University of Mombasa, a course she says will assist her to strengthen her service to humanity.
“I am proud as an activist. It has enabled me to attend various conferences across the country and outside.”
She advises women and girls not to fear but speak up and help others as well.
The story was first published by Nation Media Group. This is not a reproduction but an amplification of the message.
Read the article of Nation Media Group page here https://nation.africa/kenya/news/gender/meet-rukia-a-young-woman-championing-men-s-rights-3848382
The story was first published by Nation Media Group. This is not a reproduction but an amplification of the message.
Read the article of Nation Media Group page here https://nation.africa/kenya/news/gender/raya-famau-real-change-begins-with-activism-3848164
Raya Famau married at 20, only to be divorced three years later.
Before her marriage in 2000, they had agreed that she would find a job to support her parents. She had trained as a community nutritionist. She then joined her husband in Nairobi, where he was working.
“But the moment we got married, he said ‘No, I want a housewife,’” she recalls.
“That is when my problem started. For three years, I was undergoing a lot of stress [and] frustrations. I wanted to go back to college, [but] he refused. Luckily, we got divorced.”
She had to return to her poor parents in Lamu, starting all over again—a turning point, not just for her, but for her community. It started with the awakening reality of having to struggle to experience menstruation with dignity. “I wouldn’t afford a Sh100 sanitary pad. I had to ask my mom for money.”
The experience jolted her. She had to find means of providing for herself. A search for a solution landed her at Kenya Red Cross, Lamu branch, as a volunteer. She was attached to Lamu District Hospital, now Lamu County Referral Hospital. At the end of the month, she got a stipend that covered her expenses.
During the time, she felt the push to get into activism. “I felt like I needed to do activism and help other suffering women.”
Now, Ms Famau is a renowned environmental activist and a founding member of Save Lamu, a coalition of community-based organisations.
In December 2019, Coast Woman Magazine feted her as woman activist of the year. This was after President Uhuru Kenyatta awarded her a certificate of recognition as a ‘Shujaa’ of Lamu County during the Mashujaa Day celebrations held in Mombasa.
Her venture into activism has seen her defy the odds. She says, women’s responsibilities under Islam are limited to indoor-cooking and taking care of their families, and not going out to protest against violation of rights.
Her defiance has been beneficial to herself and her community. Firstly, she went back to school—Technical University of Mombasa—and started with a certificate in community development and counselling. She later advanced to a diploma. And finally, she has Bachelor of Development Studies from the same institution.
Ms Famau was married just after she finished her certificate in community nutrition, but when she volunteered at the hospital, she felt working in a health facility was not her forte, hence the switch of the course.
Secondly, under Save Lamu, she participated in petitioning the government against establishing a 1,050MW African Development Bank-funded coal plant in the Kwasasi area of Hindi/Magogoni sub-county.
In 2016, the coalition, alongside other petitioners, filed a suit against the National Environmental Management Authority (Nema) and Amu Power, the company that was to establish the plant, at the National Environmental Tribunal in Nairobi.
The ruling was made in 2019, with the tribunal suspending the environmental impact assessment licence that Nema had issued to the company. It was a judgment preceded by aggressive advocacy. “We did demonstrations in Lamu [and] Nairobi. We travelled to African Development Bank to advocate that our government needs to stop this project.”
She says her near two-decade advocacy work has inspired many Lamu girls and women into pursuing education and speaking out against human rights violations.
In 2021, she founded Lamu Women Alliance, through which she is spearheading empowerment of women and girls. She runs projects on girls’ education, women economic empowerment, climate change and sexual and reproductive health.
But then, her activism has turned out to be sinking her in some deep waters. She says the national and county governments fear employing her as the officials have labelled her “a stubborn woman”, yet she applies for state jobs for which she is qualified.
For now, she is making ends meet from a portion of the seasonal grants her organisation receives to implement projects. Nevertheless, she is looking beyond the challenges.
“The future is bright for the women in Lamu. Even though we are struggling, I know [there is light] at the end of the tunnel, and we will get positions. We will work with the government and our voices will be heard,” she says.
The story was first published by Nation Media Group. This is not a reproduction but an amplification of the message.
Read the article of Nation Media Group page here https://nation.africa/kenya/news/gender/raya-famau-real-change-begins-with-activism-3848164
THE HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS AWARD 2022
CALL FOR NOMINATION
Civic space in Kenya continues to be under pressure as a range of actions is being directed against the work of Human Rights Defenders (HRD) and Civil Society Organizations (CSO) in Kenya. Physical attacks, criminal and administrative actions, reprisals, legislative restrictions, negative rhetoric and limitation of human rights have undermined the constitutional and international protections available to HRDs.
It is against this backdrop that the Working Group on Human Rights Defenders in Kenya, which brings together CSOs, the United Nations, missions and development partners concerned with the protection of HRDs, is organizing the seventh (7th) edition of the HRD Awards on Friday, 25 November 2022.
The aim of the ceremony is to honor and publicly recognize the important work of HRDs in Kenya, by giving out awards to individuals who have demonstrated courage, innovation and impact in the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms. The awards are presented in four categories:
The objectives of these awards are to:
The Working Group on Human Rights Defenders in Kenya develops a call for nominations, which is then widely circulated by the National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders in Kenya (also referred to as Defenders Coalition) and other partners. This call outlines the criteria for eligibility for nomination. Individual HRDs can be nominated in the four categories.
A panel comprised of human rights defenders, missions representatives and CSO organizations involved in the planning of the HRD Awards then shortlists five individuals per category within the set-out guidelines for shortlisting candidates.
The panel verifies the HRD’s human rights work through field visits, and interviews with the nominators, the nominees and their references.
The Independent Jury Committee, which comprises of eminent individuals in the human rights sector, makes a final decision, from the names submitted, on the recipient of the three awards and the runner up.
The feting ceremony will be held on 25th November 2022 in the presence of CSOs, the UN, the government, HRDs, representatives from the international missions, and the media who will cover the event.
SELECTION CRITERIA
The following will be taken into consideration:
AWARD
Four awards will be presented to the overall winners: the Munir Mazrui lifetime achievement award, the HRD of the year award, the upcoming HRD award and Global Solidarity Award.
The winners will receive:
WITHDRAWAL OF AN AWARD
The Jury Committee can revoke an award given to past winners if they violate human rights or go against the selection criteria of the HRDs Awards after being awarded.
To nominate your favorite human rights champion by downloading, filling and sending the filled form to us. (A link to download the form will be added).
OR Nominate them online here.
OR Nominate them via video or audio submission not longer than 5 minutes by sending the audio or video via email advocacy@defenderscoalition.org or Whatsapp/Signal 0716 200 100.
All nomination forms should be sent back to the Defenders Coalition via advocacy@defenderscoalition.org with a clear subject line “HRD AWARD NOMINATION” by the 31st of August 2022, 11.59 P.M.
Who is Eligible for Nomination;
Beyond the overall selection criteria as outlined above, nominees under each or the award category should posses/exhibit the following,
Nominee under this category should;
Nominee under this category should;
Nominee under this category should;
Nominee under this category should;
All nomination forms should be sent back to the Defenders Coalition via advocacy@defenderscoalition.org with a clear subject line “HRD AWARD NOMINATION” by the 31st of August 2022, 11.59 P.M.
Mithiini History
Colonial land alienation
Mithiini was a settled area, and some of the residents there actually had their parents living in parts of the land even before independence. Nevertheless, white settlers took possession and ownership of several chucks of land in the area which they occupied until well after the independence years. One of the white settlers, Tom Frazier lived in the area until about 1976 when he left. The reversion of the land after he left remains truly unclear, but many families were actually left settled on the very land.
This is one perspective, but both formerly white settled areas and community settled areas in Mithiini have now been lost to unclear private owners who continue to subjugate and throw out genuine squatters who should be gazetted as the true owners of the land area.
Policy Changes and Land Allocations.
Mithiini did not benefit in the orderly adjudications and distribution of title deeds that ensured a peaceful transition of the land from the former white settlers to new owners. Community members recall that a surveyor known as “Kanyi” was directed by the then President Kenyatta in 1977 to demarcate the land, into five (5) acres each and issue titles but some people from neighboring region interfered with the procedure hence stalling the process. However, adjudication was completed in Ngililya (ithanga), Kaguku and Kirathani. This means that residents of Mithiini could get their land titles.
It is a fairly known history of the area that following the sub-divisions of the land in around 1976, local residents were disenfranchised at the expense of new landowners coming from outside the region, mainly from Lari Division.
As administrative readjustments were made, taking Mithiini sub-location to be part of Kakuzi location, community members lost their voice. New powerful groups emerged associated with government functionaries which made local administration turn a blind eye on the growing grievance of land grabbing and landlessness. Many residents lost their land and had their homes forcefully demolished to pave way to the new settlers. A census of residents soon after independence, of the so-called squatters showed that Mithiini at the time was home to about 600 people.
Consequently, the status of Mithiini residents being squatters have only weakened their claim and entitlement to land that they have occupied for more than 50 years now. A generation upon generation of law-abiding citizens have been born and buried in Mithiini.
There has been no infrastructural development in the area, no certainty of titles and no proper government investments in development plans for Mithiini. However, the hardworking residents have been productively engaged, farming horticultural produce, fruits, and subsistence crops.
Instead, to date, residents face intermittent evictions, usually in the hands of rogue machette wielding youth militia and other illegal land gangs. At least at one time around 2017, a shadowy group, with no know representation from Mithiini known as MITHINI SOCIETY claimed the entire parcels of land (now subdivided into plots) in the area, and had actually promoted them for sale, interalia;
It is still unsure how adjudications, demarcations and titling of these lands were possibly accomplished. Not courts of law, not administrative bodies and not administration personnel from the area have clarified the issues to the residents.
Arrests, criminal harassments & ceaseless intimidation impacts of ‘land grabbing’ and landlessness in Mithiini.
Police stations and courts with jurisdiction on issues emanating from Mithiini area are awash with a myriad of complaints and proceedings touching on land disputes in the area. There is deep mistrust between community members pitting a section of residents against others, as some of them believe that a section of community members invite other powerful people from outside Mithiini to grab land in the area. The patterns of evictions have been accompanied with destructive tendencies involving burning of houses, raiding of livestock and destruction of crops. Several residents have lost fruit crops and their animals to such gangs.
Wherever they are arrested, numerously are not permitted to record their statements. They can neither lay complaints of the land grab in the local police stations nor file cases in court because they are poor. State investigation bodies have not helped the residents much. On occasions, some of the residents have been summoned by the area administration and cautioned against their civic activities questioning suspected fraudulent trends of land acquisition in the area. The entire Mithiini village lives in constant fears, unaware of when the police will feign next criminal and arrest them to give way to the new owners. In order to force them out of the land using charges in the criminal justice system, they are typically handed a litany of familiar charges such as shown below.
Many reports show that some people not originally from Mithiini have land claims within the area. Although they do not live within the community, they occasionally visit the place or send unspecified agents to harass and intimidate residents. Some of the squatters have been forcefully evicted from their homes and have left the area altogether. It has not helped that wherever community members who are in actual possession of the land are attacked, often the local administration (and even the police) side with the attackers, and often because they are show some forms of title deeds. Residents highly believe that such title deeds are fraudulent and should be investigated.
Attempts to gain title to the land
Community members have for a long-time petitioned authorities and leaders to intervene in their long running plea for land justice in Mithiini without success.
The local community members have in the past engaged with the human rights NGO group, Kituo Cha Sheria for a long time on this issue. In early 1990, the organization wrote to the Provincial Commissioner, Central Province pleading the case of the residents who in fact live in the land but have been denied ownership papers. On 22nd July 1997, the organization again reminded the Provincial Commissioner, Central Province that despite living in Mithiini for over 30 years, the families remained squatters and were living in fears of squabbles and unending tensions. Similar grievances and requests for interventions have been filed with non-government agencies including the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC).
In 2020, the Environment and Land Court at Murang’a dismissed on a technicality a petition brought before it by at least 2,200 residents of Mithiini for the land for adverse possession of the land. The Court advised the petitioners to show proper evidence to back their claims[1].
At the same time, mithiini residents have filed varying reports with Makuyu Police Station, among others, and even the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) on related complaints of police abuses touching on forced evictions and harassments of the residents.
[1] See Judgment on Petition No. 1a of 2017 Environment & Land Court at Murang’a
The Gambia, Banjul
Item 3- Human Rights Situation in Africa
25th April 2022
Statement by National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders- Kenya (Defenders Coalition)
Mr. Chair, distinguished Commissioners, State Delegates, and representatives of NHRIs and NGOs.
On behalf of the National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders -Kenya (Defenders Coalition), I would like to thank the Commission to raise some of our concerns about the state of human rights and the safety, security, and well-being of human rights defenders in Kenya.
General Overview
Kenya is set to hold the general elections in August 2022. The pre-election period has been characterized by grave violations, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, heightened gender-based violence primarily against women and girls, stifling of the right to peacefully assembly and picketing, and an increased intolerance towards the LGBTQI persons that is leading to violence and murder.
The election period provides a critical opportunity for citizens to advance democracy and encourage citizen participation in governance through the election of leaders who advance the citizenry’s aspirations. For elections to be meaningful, citizens must have the ability to enjoy their right to free speech, association, and right to privacy, peacefully assemble, as well as to live in safety anywhere in the country without discrimination irrespective of their ethnicity, religion, gender, or political opinion.
Kenyan political landscape has however been marred by violence targeting ethnic and political groups that are/or are perceived to have a different political opinion from the majority group during election periods. Violence that resulted in death, injuries, and destruction have been documented in various elections periods in Kenya ever since 1992. This is often instigated by the political class that through hate messaging and mobilization exploits social fissures within the Kenya society that are informed by our diversity in ethno-culture, religious, and resource capacities. The backdrop currently shows signs of bouts of violence and extremism that raise concern and call for action.
Mr. Chair we would like to bring the following issues to your attention,
Access to Information and freedom of Expression
Freedom of assembly and expression have been constantly violated by the state. There are documented cases that are ongoing in court and others that have been recently concluded where the Judicial officers have made harsh pronouncements on sentences against HRDs especially those charged under violations touching on the right to protest despite the constitution providing for and protecting the citizen’s right to freedom of expression and picketing .Four HRDs were arrested in Nairobi and charged with illegal assembly and assaulted during arrest yet the constitution provides for peaceful demonstration.
Freedom of Association & Article 11- Freedom of Assembly
In the reporting period, the Magistrate Court in Mombasa found six activists guilty of illegally gathering and failing to maintain physical distances in a public place contrary to the covid-19 measures. A land rights activist was also sentenced to six (6) months with other HRDs being arbitrarily arrested and trumped-up charges preferred against them even as they exercise their right. In some instances, police have been seen using force to violently disperse crowds and, in the process, continue to further violate human rights. Cases of HRDs arrested and exposed to physical violence by law enforcement while carrying out peaceful protests have been on the rise. Defenders Coalition also noted an increase in cases of femicide, digital and physical violence against women in Kenya
Right to Privacy
Kenya’s Data Protection Act 2019 sought to give effect to Article 31 of Constitution of Kenya which provides for the fundamental right to privacy. The introduction of compulsory sim card re-registration in April 2022 irked Kenyans with threats of de-registration of individuals’ sim cards as well as hefty punitive penalties for those who defy the registration. The Kenyan Government has continued to wield pervasive power to invasively collect citizens’ data whereas Kenyans have witnessed data breaches that have led to irregular sharing of their data with third parties as witnessed by the many private persons registered under political parties without their knowledge and consent. The government still lacks in safeguarding citizens’ data, which is a worrying trend in this digital era.
In light of these updates and observations, we urge the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to:
Introduction
The Defenders Coalition is a national membership organization established in 2007 and registered under Kenyan law as a trust. The Defenders Coalition works primarily to champion the safety, security and well-being of human rights defenders (HRDs). Among other pathways, the Defenders Coalition does this through strengthening the capacities of HRDs to work more effectively, besides advocating for favorable legal, policy and institutional environments to reduce their vulnerability to the risk of persecution and/or harm.
Defenders Coalition envisions a just society founded on human rights by championing for the safety, security and well-being of Human Rights Defenders. The Defenders Coalition believes that every individual is entitled to the rights and personal liberties, security and social justice and that HRDs play a frontline role of advancing the realization of these rights and freedoms as guaranteed by the Constitution of Kenya 2010.
Critical to these rights is the right to a free, fair, credible and peaceful election and to strengthen democratic practices. Defenders Coalition has over the time deployed human rights defenders to monitor and document human rights violations by state and non-state actors during the election process – prior to, during and post-election and assess the protection and respect of civic actors in the electoral process.
The Kenyan political landscape has been marred by violence targeting ethnic and political groups that are or are perceived to have different political opinions. Vocal human rights defenders and journalists have also not been spared. Key perpetrators have consistently been the police keen to protect the government in power seeking in its bid for re-election or support its preferred candidates which unleash violence on the opposing groups, and at the community, criminal gangs attack individuals perceived to not support the preferred candidates. Since 1992, there have been regional, widespread ethnic and politically instigated violence that has resulted in death, injuries, and destruction of property.
These actions have affected the conduct of free, fair, peaceful and credible elections. Although they have been fouled by local and international laws and practices. Defenders Coalition plays the critical watchdog role against such malpractices, often demanding for the electoral body (IEBC) to implement its mandate independently, unhindered and calling for accountability for violations.
Conscious of the fact that there are targeted attacks against women and WHRDs during the election period, Defenders Coalition envisions enhancing the capacities of WHRDs to monitor, document and report human rights violations that happen to individual WHRDs and women-led human rights organizations.
It’s on this basis that Defenders Coalition will conducted a two-day training of Monitoring, Documentation and Reporting for HRDs who will monitor the electoral process and human rights situation in the country during the 2022 election period. The training will equip the HRDs with advanced skills on monitoring and documentation of electoral malpractices, legislative framework on elections as well as safety and security during the monitoring period.
17 May 2022
The Defenders Coalition joins individuals across the globe to commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOBIT) 2022. We join hands to call to action and emphasise our affirmation that all people have an equal right to live a life of dignity, free from violence, persecution, discrimination and stigma.
Today, Defenders Coalition celebrates the courageous advocacy efforts carried out by human rights defenders, activists, journalists, media workers and civil society organisations to raise awareness about the issues affecting SOGIE persons and human rights violations they may face.
While acknowleding increasing efforts in many countries to protect the rights of members of Sexual, Orientation, Gender, Identity and Expression (SOGIE), we remain seriously concerned with the widespread violation of the human rights of community members in Kenya in recent years, from elements including close family, community and members of the public.
Defenders Coalition is concerned that the limiting and discriminatory legal framework on the rights of sexual minorities in Kenya is acquiescely increasing the vulnerability of SOGIE persons to bias and social stigma, discrimination, economic impact, the risk of violence and domestic parental violence, and continues to contribute to the lack of access to gender-affirming health services. We are also concerned with the lack of a dedicated state agency to work on issues related to their safety and security.
We are concerned that within the past one year, Defenders Coalition has documented 23 cases of either/or violent murder, assault, forceful eviction of LGBTQ+ individuals across Kenya with little to no action by the relevant duty bearers in promoting the safety and security of sexual minority individuals as well as seeking justice for the victims. Among the documented cases, we noted that the victims of murder were brutally stabbed to death or sexually abused through corrective gang rape or strangled and/or violently assaulted before being killed.
In consideration of these grave concerns, pursuant to the rights and freedoms provided for in the Constitution of Kenya 2010, Defenders Coalition calls on all Kenyans to commit towards the promotion and protection of the rights of LGBTQ+ persons in Kenya. We call on Kenyans to strive to realise dignity, respect, and the rights of all citizens.
Article 27[2] of the Kenyan Constitution provides for protection from discrimination by the state through taking legislative and other measures, including affirmative action programmes and by designing policies to redress any disadvantages suffered by individuals or groups because of past discrimination. We call on duty bearers to commit towards achieving this by encouraging reviewing of legal frameworks including Section 162 (a) and 165 (b) of the Penal Code to realize enjoyment of inherent dignity.
We invite you to support our goals of realising safety, security and wellbeing of human rights defenders. We condemn these acts of violence and inaction by the state actors to hold perpetrators to account.
Annex: LGBTQ+ individuals killed in Kenya between January 2021 – May 2022
See details of the known victims and cases documented by various human rights institutions whose quest and wheels of justice have stalled or not commenced at all.
1. Sheila Lumumba was discovered dead on 22 April 2022 at their home in Karatina Town. Post-moterm reports indicated that they were hit by a blunt object on the head, raped and stabbed to death.
2. A 50 year old intersex was found murderd on 4 May 2022 by the roiadsie in Cherang’any constituency, Trans Nzoia County. Reports indicate that the victim was raped.
3. Joash Mosoti was found murdered by strangulation in his house in Bamburi, Mombasa County on 11 May 2021.
4. Erica Chandra was found dead in westlands Nairobi on 29 August 2021.
DEFENDERS COALITION