Kenya

Protests after murder of human rights lawyer in Kenya

In the Kenyan capital Nairobi, hundreds of people have demonstrated against police violence and lynching. Previously a missing people had been found, a lawyer with traces of ill-treatment dead.

In Nairobi, about 300 protesters marched towards the Supreme court building and blocked with a sit-in strike on the road. In chants they accused the police for the murder of Willie Kimani, his client and a driver is partly responsible. The activists wore T-Shirts with blood stains and held up placards saying “stop extra-judicial killings”. At several public places in Nairobi, you requested clarification on the “heinous” killings. On carried banners of the resignation of interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery.

On Thursday, the bodies of the Prosecutor Willie Kimani, of his clients, Josephat Mwenda and the taxi driver Joseph Muiruri were washed up to the side of a river 70 kilometres North of Nairobi. Most recently, the Trio was seen a week earlier, and alive, as the men were temporarily in a police camp is being held. According to the results of the autopsy, the dead are believed to have drowned after being beaten and strangled. The hands of the men are said to have been tied up in the back.

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A special unit under suspicion

Several clues point to an act of revenge by the “Administration Police”. Against this special unit Kimani and Mwenda were lined up in front of court after police officers Mwenda had promised in April 2015, with traffic control. The lawyer had accused the officials before the court the massive use of violence and attempted murder. Three police officers were arrested in connection with the killings. Their remand was extended on Monday to 14 days.

Together with 33 Kenyan and international human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, had Amnesty called on the International protests. The Alliance called for immediate investigation and proceedings against the alleged perpetrators. Kenya’s lawyers launched on Monday in a weeklong strike.

Independent investigation demanded

The murder of the three men was a frightening reminder that hard-won rights are again in danger, said the Director of Amnesty International in Kenya, Muthoni Wanyeki. The police must now allow an independent, effective and impartial investigation. “The execution of these three young Kenyans should prepare for President Uhuru Kenyatta,” said the Director of the human rights Commission of Kenya, George Kegoro. He called on the head of the state for the establishment of a Commission of inquiry, corruption, and unjustified violence in Kenya’s security forces of light should.

Kimani worked for the US American human rights organisation the International Justice Mission, which takes care of cases of abuse of power of state organs. Kenya’s police are considered to be highly corrupt. According to the Kenyan human rights Commission, police have been between 2013 and 2015, at least 25 illegal executions involved.

kle/mak (kna, epd, rtre, dpa)