UK lawyers express concern on Unilever tea unit sale
Farm workers at a tea plantation in Kericho county.
A group of British lawyers has warned that buyers of Unilever’s tea business in Kenya would be liable for the historical injustices and unethical practices perpetrated by the consumer goods firm including from the forceful acquisition of the expansive farms.
Acting for the aggrieved shareholders of Unilever Tea Kenya and sister company Limuru Tea, the Society of Black Lawyers warned that should the sale continue the new owners of the business would fully bear the liability that Unilever seeks to dodge through the disposal.
“In the event that you decide to proceed with this purchase we will hold you fully liable for any failure to follow the appropriate regulatory framework, and any failure to adhere to the rights of tea workers, according to national and international law that will become your full liability,” reads a letter signed by the Black Lawyer’s chairman, Judge (Rtd) Peter Herbert.
Unilever chief executive Alan Jope on November 18 announced that the company had struck a deal to dispose of its global tea business called Ekaterra, worth Sh571.2 billion ($5.1 billion), a move that leaders in South Rift counties of Kericho and Bomet where 70 percent of the tea farms sit have protested.
