Human Rights Watch blames state as cases of extrajudicial killings soar
While it was hard to determine the exact figures of disappearances or killings, cases had been documented in Coast, Northern Eastern and Nairobi.
More than 150 people were killed in Kenya under mysterious circumstances last year, Human Rights Watch has said.
Speaking during the release of the World Report 2023, which reviews human rights practices in 100 countries, Mr Otsieno Namwaya, the Kenya researcher, said accountability and justice by the government on police killings and forced disappearances was a major human rights issue.
He noted that, while it was hard to determine the exact figures of disappearances or killings, cases had been documented in Coast, Northern Eastern and Nairobi.
“Between January and December 2021, there were 128 killings and 15 disappearances while, in 2022, 187 cases were recorded over the same period with 32 of them being disappearances. These numbers are very conservative and are only based on the cases we could access,” he said.
According to Mr Namwaya, the issue of extra-judicial killings has persisted. While President William Ruto has given some encouraging comments, he has not put in place tangible steps and measures to address the issue.
Prosecution failed
He also observed that the country has failed in prosecuting police officers implicated in cases of brutality and killings.
“Out of 10,000 cases reported to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (Ipoa) from 2013, there have been only about 17 prosecuted so far,” he added.
Human Rights Watch said other African leaders have also failed to tackle widespread abuses against civilians by security forces and non-state armed groups.
“Government forces or non-state armed groups have been implicated in abuses against civilians in at least 15 armed conflicts, including in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Mali, Burkina Faso, Sudan and South Sudan,” said Ms Mausi Segun, Africa director at Human Rights Watch.
She noted that the regional efforts to address certain crises in Africa last year have lacked sufficient political will and leadership. She accused the African Union (AU) of keeping silent when more than 100 people were killed by security forces, and hundreds of others arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared following the protests that rocked Sudan since October 2021.
Ms Segun further observed that the regional response was muted when elected civilian leaders clung to power by manipulating political and constitutional processes and killing or harassing journalists, activists, and perceived opponents.
She, however, lauded Kenya for being among the countries leading in safeguarding peace and security in the continent.
Despite the overall dismal rating of African governments on accountability for violations, the international body registered some progress in access to justice for victims of grave crimes on the continent.
