NAIROBI,

05 MAY 2017

“The National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders – Kenya (NCHRD-K) welcomes the judgment entered, on 4th may 2017, by the High Court in Nairobi granting Ms. Lucy Hannan a two year work permit as she finalizes her application for citizenship. Justice Isaac Lenaola ruled that the decision by the government not to renew Ms. Hannan’s work permit in 2013 was unprocedural and in violation of the Constitution.

This positive decision comes after a protracted four year court battle where Lucy Hannan, a British journalist and human rights defender who has been resident in Kenya since 1988, sued the State in December 2013 for refusing to renew her work permit on grounds that she was a “subversive”, a ‘threat to national security’and ordered she be removed from the country.

“At a time when the prevailing environment for human rights defenders in Kenya can only be described as volatile, the judicial system remains an instrument of intimidation of HRDs. Therefore, this ruling inspires a level of confidence in the independence of the judiciary in ensuring justice for human rights defenders. ” Says Kamau Ngugi, Executive Director of the NCHRD-K.

The position of the NCHRD-K is reaffirmed by the findings of a report released on 3 May 2017, KENYA: 2017 Elections: Broken Promises put Human Rights Defenders at Risk, after a fact finding mission by the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, that human rights defenders in Kenya are often criminalized on the basis of trumped-up charges, which aim at intimidating them through episodes of frequent arrests, detentions in police stations, long trials and punitive bail and bond terms. This inevitably prevents them from pursuing their legitimate human rights activities.

Lucy Hannan with Main Kiai, the immediate former UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of peaceful Assembly and Association, established a human rights institution, InformAction in 2009 and have been instrumental in driving community discussions to encourage ordinary citizens to speak out and take action against human rights violations. The organization has empowered hundreds of thousands of Kenyans in rural and marginalized areas using mobile human rights clinics. Consequently, they have received numerous threats, both online and offline since 2013.

The NCHRD-K:
1. States that the work of human rights defenders is essential in upholding democracy and the
rule of law and this can only be achieved by ensuring a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders to work.
2. Calls upon the State to support the work of human rights defenders and put in place mechanisms that will ensure the protection of human rights defenders from harassment, intimidation, threats and attacks.

For additional information contact Kamau Ngugi on dkngugi@hrdcoalition.org or Yvonne Wamari yvonne@hrdcoalition.org

Signed,
KAMAU NGUGI
Executive Director, National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders – Kenya”