Preliminary observations and demands

The Kenya Human Rights Commission takes note of the Presidential Proclamation on the Framework for Compensation of Victims of Protests and Riots, published on August 8, 2025.

Reporting to Mr. Ruto, this initiative is intended to establish a framework for compensating civilians and police victims of protests between 2017 and 2025.

KHRC and its sector partners have long advocated for victim–and human rights–centred approaches to justice. However, given the direct involvement of past and present regimes in the violations under review, we are deeply concerned that the proposed framework risks becoming another exercise in whitewashing and cover-up rather than a vehicle for truth, justice, and accountability.

With decades of experience pursuing justice for victims of state and corporate atrocities, from the colonial era to today, KHRC sets out 10 irreducible demands. The Ruto regime must act on them as a sign of its political goodwill and seriousness. These steps require no new frameworks, only decisive administrative action that rests fully within the regime’s control.

1. An unconditional public apology from Mr. Ruto and a demonstrated expression of remorse for the brutal acts perpetrated by state security forces and complicit corporates.
2. Immediate and unconditional release of the more than 90 youth political prisoners currently detained in various police cells nationwide, as well as dozens of missing people last seen under police custody.
3. Immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all trumped-up, politically motivated charges brought against human rights defenders (HRDs) arrested in different parts of the country before and between 2017 and 2025.
4. Immediate end to political persecution and repression. In particular, we demand the unconditional return of Martin Mavenjina, Senior Program Advisor at KHRC, who was extraordinarily and unlawfully renditioned to Uganda by the regime on July 6, 2025, while returning to Kenya from South Africa.
5. Immediate and unconditional end to arbitrary and prohibitive tech repression manifesting in the surveillance, tracking, and capture of HRDs, and other forms of media censorship.
6. Prompt and full payment of all court-ordered and officially sanctioned remedies to victims of gross human rights violations in Kenya, within the period under review and beyond.
7. The regime must immediately and unconditionally withdraw all appeals filed in cases where it has been found culpable of egregious human rights violations. Ongoing cases against human rights violators, whether state or corporate actors, must be fast-tracked.
8. Immediate and unconditional stoppage of criminalization of public gatherings, including, but not limited to, protests, court appearances, and media events. The retention of the term “riots” in the framework reflects the state’s deliberate framing to delegitimize the right to peaceful assembly and protest, as guaranteed under Article 37 of the Constitution.
9. Immediate and unconditional assurance of victims’ protection, and provision of medical care to survivors of state-sanctioned human rights violations between 2017 and 2025.
10. Immediate and unconditional cessation of state violence, de-escalation of injustices, and an end to the capture of constitutional and independent institutions responsible for justice and governance in the country.

Further policy and legal concerns

While we remain committed to advancing justice for affected victims, we are deeply concerned that the proposed framework blatantly contravenes national and international laws on transitional justice in the following ways:

1. Executive overreach and lack of independence

The framework is initiated and controlled by Mr. Ruto, who is already compromised by his declaration of protesters as “terrorists” and “coup plotters,” and by issuing shoot-to-maim orders. Mr. Ruto himself praised police killings of protesters.

Moreover, the framework ropes in the Ministry of Interior, a state organ implicated in the very violations under review; the Attorney General, who has consistently defended state-led abuses; and the National Treasury, architect of the punitive Finance Bills that sparked the 2023 and 2024 protests.

This alignment of offices, directly tied to the violations in question, destroys the political and institutional independence necessary for genuine investigations and accountability. It amounts to executive capture of a justice process, violating Articles 47 and 50 of the Constitution, which guarantee fair administrative action and impartial hearings before independent tribunals.

2. Erosion of constitutional and institutional mandates

The framework undermines the roles of constitutional commissions and independent institutions, particularly the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) and the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), which are mandated to investigate systemic human rights violations and police excesses, respectively.

3. Violation of the Victims Protection Act, 2014 (Parts V and VI)

Having a separate compensation framework under this initiative contradicts the Victims Protection Trust Fund and Board mandate to provide services, support, and restitution to victims of crime and offences. Still, it is unfortunate that taxpayers bear such compensation despite not committing the crime.

4. Contravention of international human rights standards

Based on the above findings, the framework contravenes the UN Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to Remedy and Reparations for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law. These principles call for:

1. Independent and impartial truth and justice mechanisms;
2. Full investigations and prosecutions of perpetrators;
3. Effective reparations, including compensation, rehabilitation, restitution, satisfaction, and guarantees of non-repetition;
4. Protection of victims and institutional reforms to prevent future violations.

None of these requirements is guaranteed under the proposed framework. We are aware that there are officials within the regime who know and understand these positions, and we are dismayed and disappointed that they have now seemingly abandoned their principles and are now behaving like praise singers of the regime.

Our position

Given these political and legal realities, we call for the immediate disbandment of this compromised and unlawful initiative. Instead:

1. KNCHR and IPOA must be granted operational and political support to conduct joint investigations and report directly to Parliament.
2. The state must operationalize the Victims Protection Trust Board, long frustrated by political interference, to oversee reparations to victims.
3. Human rights organizations, UN human rights experts, and mandate holders should be allowed to monitor and supervise the investigations, compensation, and reparations.
4. To guarantee non-repetition, the Kenya Kwanza regime must ensure that all its decisions comply with the Constitution, uphold the rule of law, protect human rights, and respect the sovereignty of the people.
5. Moving forward, and to deepen individual and command responsibility and public financial accountability, we recommend amending the Victims Protection Act, 2014, to ensure compensation for victims of state-sanctioned violence is drawn from the proceeds of the perpetrators, not from the public purse. This mirrors the ICC Trust Fund for Victims, which is partly financed through fines and asset forfeitures imposed on offenders.

The Kenya Human Rights Commission is thrilled to announce the appointment of veteran human rights defender Maina Kiai as the new chairperson of its board of directors.

He assumes the leadership of the human rights sector at a time when the soul of the nation and region is under relentless assault from severe governance abuses manifest in gross violations of fundamental freedoms and rampant grand corruption.

Kiai wears the title of ‘Chief,’ after his installation as paramount chief of the Mende community for his human rights work in Sierra Leone.

He is a distinguished and bold icon in the fight for justice, bringing decades of frontline experience and political leadership in defending civil liberties in Kenya and globally.

Kiai has served as UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association and was the inaugural chairperson of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. Most recently, Kiai worked as Human Rights Watch’s director of alliances and partnerships, returning to an organisation he had previously served as Africa Director. He was the founding executive director of KHRC.

Following his appointment, Kiai said: “Kenya is under attack by a regime that fears its people. But we will not blink. I am committed to guiding KHRC to resist, expose, and push back against any force, be it the William Ruto regime, or its enablers, that tramples rights, freedoms, and the Constitution.”

Kiai takes over from Davinder Lamba, a battle-hardened human rights general whose steady leadership anchored KHRC through turbulent times. KHRC salutes Lamba’s dedication and strategic guidance.

Kiai will be deputised by Betty Okero, who continues in the role after serving alongside Lamba. We look forward to a renewed and fearless chapter in defending human rights and freedoms.

Editor’s note: Read the report here and watch its launch here.

A new report by the Kenya Human Rights Commission has sharply criticized the Hustler Fund, describing it as a politically expedient but economically disastrous initiative that has failed to deliver on its promises of financial empowerment for low-income Kenyans.

The report, “Failing the Hustlers,” concludes that the Hustler Fund is structurally unsound, economically unsustainable, and politically manipulated, and recommends that the government scrap it entirely.

Launched in November 2022 with a startup capital of Sh50 billion, the Hustler Fund was marketed as a game-changer for the Kenya Kwanza regime's “bottom-up” economic transformation agenda.

It promised to boost sectors such as agriculture, MSMEs, healthcare, housing, and the creative economy by offering accessible, affordable credit to millions of Kenyans locked out of the formal financial system.

However, the KHRC study found that this has not been achieved.

Quick money become dead money

By September 2024, over Sh53 billion had been disbursed. But the study found no measurable impact on enterprise development or job creation.

The loan amounts, ranging from just Sh500 to Sh1,000 for first-time borrowers, were too small to start or grow any meaningful business. Borrowers were given just 14 days to repay, a window KHRC deems unrealistic.

Worse still, the design of the Hustler Fund locks borrowers into a debt cycle.

A mandatory five percent deduction is made from each loan for savings before the money is disbursed, further reducing its utility. Borrowers must continue borrowing to qualify for slightly higher amounts, an unsustainable pattern that pushes low-income Kenyans deeper into financial distress.

Huster Fund’s performance metrics are equally poor.

By the end of 2022, the default rate stood at 68.3 percent. KHRC calculates that for every Sh500 disbursed, Sh340 is effectively lost. When added to the average Treasury bill rate of 8.2 percent (as of December 2022) and the three percent operational cost prescribed by law, the total estimated cost to the taxpayer reaches 71.5 percent.

“This is not financial empowerment. It is a loss-making scheme disguised as progress,” the KHRC said in the report. “Quick money has become dead money.”

KHRC also flagged governance failures.

The Office of the Auditor General could not conduct a full audit due to missing documentation and unsupported transactions.

The Fund was also launched without an oversight board, violating the law. Only after litigation did the government move to appoint one. Transparency around loan allocation criteria, regional disbursement data, and performance tracking remains missing.

KHRC contends that the Hustler Fund has become more of a political tool than a financial solution as it was rolled out after elections to fulfill campaign promises rather than to address fundamental economic needs.

“There is a growing perception that the Fund is a political reward for voting, and therefore repayment is optional,” the report warns. “This perception threatens the Fund’s credibility and undermines public accountability.”

Attempts to reform the Fund, KHRC says, would be futile. Technical tweaks cannot fix its design, political, and legal flaws.

“The evidence leads to a singular and inescapable conclusion that the Hustler Fund has failed and should be scrapped,” the report states.

Tanzanian authorities in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday abducted and forcibly disappeared Mwabili Mwagodi, a Kenyan activist working in the country’s hotel sector. His whereabouts remain unknown, and the Kenyan and Tanzanian regimes have remained ominously silent.

His family confirms that Mwagodi was under state surveillance in Kenya before his abduction after he exercised his constitutional right to protest. On June 23, 2024, Mwagodi led a demonstration against the William Ruto regime during a church service in Nyahururu, Laikipia.

In retaliation, officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations visited Mwagodi’s parents, issuing threats and intimidation in an apparent attempt to silence him and break his spirit through fear and familial pressure.

Kenya’s oppressive alliance with Tanzania in the use of brutal state machinery to crush activists is deliberate, coordinated, and criminal. These are the hallmarks of an authoritarian regime that has lost the legitimacy to govern.

We have not forgotten that just two months ago, Kenya was complicit in the abduction, torture, and sexual assault of activist Boniface Mwangi by the ruthless Tanzanian operatives. Ugandan lawyer and journalist Agather Atuhaire faced a similar degrading treatment after she and Mwangi had traveled to Tanzania to observe the sham trial of opposition leader Tundu Lissu.

This pattern of repression, enabled by cross-border collusion, is a grave violation of local, regional, and international human rights law. The Kenya Human Rights Commission demands:

1. Immediate and unconditional release of Mwagodi from unlawful detention.
2. In the interim, full disclosure by the Tanzanian and Kenyan regimes on Mwagodi’s exact whereabouts, physical and mental condition, and immediate access to his family and legal counsel.
3. An end to Kenya’s complicity in cross-border abductions, torture, and enforced disappearances.
4. Independent investigations into the threats made against Mwagodi’s family by Kenyan security agencies.
5. Regional and international accountability for Kenya and Tanzania’s repressive actions.

Editor's note: Watch the attack here and here:

At exactly 2:08 pm EAT on July 6, 2025, hired goons stormed our office—sent by the state to silence dissent.

They violently disrupted a press conference by Kenyan mothers calling for an end to arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings targeting protesters ahead of Saba Saba demonstrations.

Saba Saba has been marked annually as a symbol of resistance and civic courage in ongoing struggles.

This was a calculated escalation in the campaign of intimidation by the William Ruto regime against the KHRC—following the extraordinary illegal rendition of our staff Martin Mavenjina—and human rights defenders holding it accountable for gross human rights violations.

We will not be silenced!

The Constitution protects our right to protest and speak out. See you on the streets on Monday!

Thousands around the world are holding mobilizations in time for the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4), a once-in-a-decade gathering of governments held under the auspices of the United Nations to agree on international responses to urgent finance issues. Movements, civil society groups, communities and publics are mobilizing in 41 countries, in 149 cities, towns, and districts from June 27th to June 29th.

The global actions are calling for a transformation of the international financial system, as well as immediate demands such as debt cancellation, wealth taxes, and the delivery of climate finance. Movements and civil society groups are challenging Global North governments and the UN system to take the lead in bridging the development and climate finance gap, estimated to be in the trillions. A core part of this is financial reparations for historical and continuing injustices inflicted by the Global North on the peoples of the Global South.

According to Jean Saldanha, director of EURODAD: “The global financial architecture is dominated by rich countries and not responsive to the needs and priorities of the global south. It is in the interest of all of us, in the global south and north, to build a Financing for Development system that reduces inequality, provides stability and ensures adequate public finance for climate change. Yet the global north has chosen to defend an unjust status quo instead of seizing this opportunity to advance essential reforms that would give the global south a seat at the decision-making table. We in civil society will continue to demand this reform, before, in and after Sevilla.”

Civil society organizations and movements are reiterating the urgent demand for debt cancellation and calling for a UN Framework Convention on Debt Convention to pave the way for a democratic, multilateral and transparent mechanism to address unsustainable and illegitimate debt. They assert that it is vital to move away from creditor-dominated forums that have failed to prevent and resolve the accumulation of unsustainable and illegitimate debts, and have resulted in debt relief schemes that protect creditor interests.  In 2022, developing countries paid USD 49 billion more to their external creditors than they received in fresh disbursements.

UN Member States are also being challenged by civil society to support and ensure a robust outcome from the negotiations for the ​​UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation, in order to effectively address international tax abuse, avoidance and evasion especially by multinational corporations and elites, which are resulting in losses in public revenues of at least USD 492 billion a year. Similarly, there is strong clamor for wealth taxes to help mobilize the trillions needed for sustainable development and climate action.

Dereje Alemayehu, executive coordinator of Global Alliance for Tax Justice, said: “The international tax system is broken. Developed by the 'rich countries' club' of the OECD, it has failed to deliver the resources urgently needed for public services, development, human rights, gender equality, and climate justice. Tax abuse by the rich and multinational corporations has instead taken these resources, deepening the debt crisis faced by so many of our countries. Now, a historic process is underway as countries will meet in August to begin negotiations on a UN Tax Convention. We expect all UN Member States to negotiate in good faith to deliver a robust Framework Convention and two early protocols.”

In addition to debt service payments and tax abuse, developing countries’ public coffers are being depleted by climate disasters. Developed countries that have historically caused the climate crisis are legally obligated by the UN Climate Convention to cover the costs of climate mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage and just transition in developing countries. Although developed countries have long claimed that they lack the public funds for climate finance, research has shown they can raise trillions by taxing polluters and profiteers, redirecting fossil fuel subsidies, and redistributing even just a fraction of their enormous military budgets. Civil society organizations and climate activities emphasize that climate finance must be delivered in the form of public, predictable, grants-based finance, instead of loans that will only exacerbate the already unsustainable debt crises in the developing world.

Tasneem Essop, executive director of Climate Action Network International, said: “The world is on fire - and the systems meant to protect us are feeding the flames. The intersecting crises of debt, climate collapse, and inequality are not abstractions — they are lived realities for people in the Global South, every single day. While governments dither and elites profit, it’s up to us to raise the alarm and demand justice. We will not stand by while wealth is siphoned from our communities, our land, our labour, to line the pockets of corporations and the ultra-rich. We will not be silenced.”

Aid cuts recently announced by the US, UK, and other Global North governments will also make it much harder for developing countries to address immediate financial needs arising from the multiple crises and undertake systems wide changes for a rapid, equitable and just transition to sustainable and climate resilient societies. Civil society groups are denouncing the cuts and asserting that aid must not be seen as charity but rather part of the reparations owed to the South.

Lidy Nacpil, the coordinator of the Asian Peoples’ Movement on Debt and Development, said: “What our world needs is a massive transfer of resources from North to South, as part of the reparations we are owed for historical injustice. For centuries, the people of the Global South have been exploited and our natural resources have been plundered–all to enrich the elites and governments of the Global North. Their enormous wealth was accumulated at the expense of our people and planet, and it is past time for them to pay up for the damage they’ve done.”

The different protest actions denounce the Global North governments for spending trillions on subsidies for fossil fuels, on wars and genocide, on militarization and domestic authoritarian operations while failing to deliver their financial obligations.

Bronwen Tucker, public finance lead of Oil Change International, said: "We're facing record-breaking cost-of-living, record-breaking fossil fuel production, and a record-breaking debt crisis. These problems are connected. They are all driven by a financial system that is catering to a tiny number of billionaires and CEOs. The only thing that can stop this is record-breaking people power. That is why we are on the streets today. At the last Financing for Development a decade ago, a UN Convention to rewrite tax rules was rejected, but now it has been won because of persistence from Global South governments and civil society. A UN Convention on debt is next. It's incredibly shortsighted for the EU, Canada, Japan, and UK to be blocking this."

Civil society has called for wider social transformation and a just transition to new modes of production, distribution, and consumption that prioritize peoples’ needs over profit. To achieve this, the inequitable economic and political relations between countries must change, and the institutions that control global economic and financial governance must be transformed.

MORE QUOTES HERE:

Patricia Miranda, global advocacy director of LATINDADD (Latin American Network for Economic, Social and Climate Justice): “Debt is the greatest challenge for the Fourth Financing for Development Conference. As we face a new debt crisis trapped in a system that concentrates power in few hands, it is urgent to initiate real reform and lay the foundations for truly democratic governance. A UN Convention on Sovereign Debt, in which all countries have a voice, can deliver fair, sustainable and equitable solutions for all."

Jenny Ricks, general secretary of Fight Inequality Alliance: "We are living in the era of the billionaire, but this is also a time of a debt crisis. Across the Global South, people are not waiting for summits to create a just world — we are on the streets to demand it. Governments need to hear the urgent cries for systemic changes like debt cancellation and taxes on the super rich, not cosmetic tweaks.”

Ingo Ritz, director of Global Call to Action Against Poverty: “As a European I am ashamed. In the FfD4 negotiations the EU - together with other rich countries - blocked the proposals from the global south to solve the global debt and financing crisis. These northern governments are defending the status quo - an international financial architecture that protects the interests of big corporations. Billions of people are suffering under austerity and conditionalities of IMF and World Bank that cut public services, increase inequality and create poverty and hunger. To ensure health, education and social protection for all we need a transformed financial international architecture.”

Absolom Jim, chapter lead of Debt for Climate: “The FFD4 process has proved a façade, another Global North-sponsored theatre where the debt noose around our necks is tightened under the disguise of false solutions. Zimbabwe and much of Africa are not asking for charity, we're demanding system change. We reject debt swaps, delays, and greenwashed gimmicks. The time for compromise is over. The world must hear this from Africa: cancel the debt and dismantle colonial finance.”

Petro Damian, chapter lead of Debt for Climate: “Africa is rich in people, culture, and resources yet trapped in debt it did not create. We demand the cancellation of illegitimate debt and the creation of a fair financial system that allows our continent to thrive, not just survive.”

Arjun Bhattarai, co-chair of Global Call to Action Against Poverty: “We need to halt the debt crisis and prevent it from occurring again. Economic Justice is the key to ending poverty, reducing inequalities and solving the climate crisis.”

Editor's note: Read the petition here and the orders here.

The High Court has barred law enforcement officers from shooting at, firing tear gas into, or attacking hospitals, ambulances, emergency medical centers, and places of worship during protests or any form of civil unrest.

This followed a suit filed yesterday by KHRC, which argued that police on Wednesday deliberately targeted these safe spaces to inflict greater harm on injured protesters and medical staff.

On Wednesday, as thousands of Kenyans flooded the streets to demand justice for those killed during the 2024 Gen Z protests, police at around 2 pm fired tear gas canisters at a medical response center set up at Jamia Mosque in Nairobi, injuring patients and medical personnel.

During the 2024 demonstrations, police also fired tear gas into hospitals and churches, including Nairobi’s All Saints Cathedral. Ironically, some of the targeted facilities were treating injured police officers at the time.

Judge Bahati Mwamuye further barred police from using tear gas, chemical agents, water cannons, or any crowd-control measures against unarmed people who have taken shelter in vehicles, enclosed or semi-enclosed spaces, or areas with poor ventilation or limited means of safe and orderly exit.

The KHRC petition argues that police also intentionally blocked key access roads to Kenyatta National Hospital, where many injured protesters are taken, suggesting a deliberate effort to maximize harm.

Now, KHRC seeks to hold the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General accountable if security forces continue to target such protected spaces.

Protesters often seek refuge in churches, mosques, and emergency medical centers, which are regarded as safe havens from state violence. These institutions also provide critical, often life-saving medical treatment during crises.

Under international law, including the Geneva Conventions and Customary International Humanitarian Law, hospitals and other zones established to care for the wounded, the sick, and civilians are considered protected areas. Any attack on such spaces is expressly prohibited.

Last year, police killed at least 63 protesters and injured hundreds more. By 4 pm on Thursday, at least 15 additional protesters had been killed by police during a fresh wave of demonstrations demanding an end to police brutality and enforced disappearances. Over 400 were injured, and dozens remain hospitalized, some with gunshot wounds.

The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) strongly condemns the unlawful detention, denial of entry, and subsequent deportation of Kenyan human rights defenders Hanifa Adan, Hussein Khalid, and Willy Mutunga—Kenya’s former Chief Justice—by Tanzanian authorities at Julius Nyerere International Airport on May 19, 2025.

The three, like Martha Karua, Gloria Kimani, and Lynn Ngugi before them, were on a lawful and peaceful mission to observe the judicial proceedings involving Tanzanian opposition leader and renowned human rights advocate, Tundu Lissu. Their detention and removal, without any legal basis, constitute a serious violation of Article 104 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community (EAC) and Article 7 of the EAC Common Market Protocol—both expressly guarantee the free movement of persons within the region.

In a deeply concerning development, Boniface Mwangi is also detained by Tanzanian immigration officials in Dar es Salaam. At midnight, Mwangi was apprehended from his hotel by unidentified individuals who later became Tanzanian immigration officers. He is reportedly being held under Section 45 of the Tanzanian Immigration Act, yet no summons was issued, nor was due process observed.

These actions breach regional agreements and undermine the foundational principles of democracy, the rule of law, and respect for human rights to which all EAC member states are committed. Moreover, the Tanzanian government’s conduct contravenes international human rights obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which uphold the rights to freedom of movement, due process, and participation in public affairs—including the right to observe legal proceedings.

Sovereignty must not be used to justify violations of treaty obligations or fundamental rights. In the landmark case, “Samuel Mukira Mohochi v. The Attorney General of the Republic of Uganda,” the East African Court of Justice affirmed that member states must observe due process when restricting the entry of citizens from fellow EAC countries. Tanzania’s actions, carried out without such safeguards, represent a clear and unlawful breach of its regional commitments.

As such, the KHRC makes the following demands:

1. An immediate cessation of arbitrary arrests, detentions, and deportations of human rights defenders by Tanzanian authorities.
2. Unhindered access for independent observers to all judicial proceedings related to Lissu, in line with international standards.
3. Full adherence by the Tanzanian government to its regional and international human rights law obligations.

The KHRC firmly reiterates that defending human rights is not a crime. Intimidation, unlawful interference, and state-sanctioned repression must have no place in the East African region. We stand in solidarity with all those who work to promote justice, accountability, and democratic freedoms, and we will continue to advocate for protecting civic space across borders.

The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) strongly condemns the arbitrary arrest and unlawful detention earlier today of — at Julius Nyerere International Airport (JNIA) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

The three Kenyan advocates were detained shortly after arriving in Tanzania, where they had travelled on a lawful mission to observe the ongoing judicial proceedings involving Hon. Advocate Tundu Lissu, Chairperson of the opposition party Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA).

Their detention raises serious concerns about violations of fundamental human rights and the erosion of due process. Notably, the trio was engaged in a legitimate and internationally recognized human rights activity — trial observation — which is explicitly protected under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

It is essential to emphasize that trial observation is not merely a procedural formality, it is a critical safeguard that upholds the integrity of legal proceedings, especially in politically sensitive cases such as that of Hon. Advocate Lissu. The presence of independent observers helps deter judicial misconduct, promotes transparency, and strengthens public trust in the justice system.

The KHRC affirms that observers must be granted unrestricted access to all aspects of the trial process, including the presentation of evidence and the conduct of judicial officers. Any obstruction of this right undermines the rule of law and opens the door to political interference and judicial bias.

In view of these serious transgressions, the KHRC hereby issues the following demands:

1. That Tanzanian authorities uphold their binding obligations under international human rights law, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
2. Strict observance of due process in all judicial proceedings, free from political interference or intimidation.
3. That independent trial observers be granted full, unfettered access to all court proceedings related to this case, in accordance with international norms and standards.

Lastly, targeting human rights defenders and legal professionals for lawfully performing their duties constitutes a grave and unacceptable violation of fundamental freedoms. Such actions set a dangerous and regressive precedent with far-reaching implications for the rule of law and democratic governance in the region. We therefore urge the international community, civil society organizations, regional bodies, and all advocates of justice and human rights to unequivocally condemn these infringements and to stand in steadfast solidarity with the impacted individuals.

Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC)

Editor's note: Read the play and the court's decision here.

Scenes of armed, uniformed police barring students, journalists and the public from watching a school play while lobbing teargas at them at dawn are straight out of the Gestapo playbook.

Students of Butere Girls' High School responded with patriotic courage to the cruelty of the Ministry of Education in scheduling their performance at 6 a.m. as part of state repression by singing the national anthem and walking off the stage. The High Court directed that the play proceed, and the Drama Festival Committee staged the performance at dawn to comply with the court's ruling in a criminal manner.

Other schools have elected not to perform at the National School and Drama Festival owing to the repressive atmosphere that has descended on this year’s event.

We commend and celebrate the courage and patriotism of Kenya’s students in the face of an oppressive and insecure state and commit our solidarity with them. They have been fearless in taking this important play and continuing it even after threats from the State House.

This violent assault on the freedoms of thought, conscience, information, expression and opinion—guaranteed by no less than the Constitution[1]-- violates the state’s obligation to provide education to children.

Over the 66 years that the Kenya Schools and Colleges Drama Festival has been held each year, it has evolved into a site for speaking truth to power. Still, none of the regimes that have ruled over Kenya in that time has exposed its vulnerability through crude repression as in the present case.

Regimes that ban, circumscribe or stifle artistic expression, such as the Butere Girls' High School play “Echoes of War”, only confirm the truth in the art. The William Ruto regime fears the truth that 50 students speaking from a high school auditorium can infect the public.

The muscular tactics of muzzling artistic expression and dialogic learning, including the attack and injury of six journalists during the arrest of Cleophas Malala, the play’s director, tell the youth of this country that those who run the government are enemies of the people. The message being unwittingly sent out is that youth are not allowed to imagine a future shaped by young people who confront oppressors, call out injustice, and create change. That message is a monumental falsehood that must be demolished.

After months of rehearsals and nationwide acclaim, the girls who performed this play at the sub-county, county, and regional levels did what artists are expected to do in times of uncertainty. They held up a mirror to society and spoke for a generation often misrepresented, dismissed, or silenced.

The High Court has already affirmed that the girls have the right to perform the school play. The Ministry of Education, the Drama Festival Committee, and state agencies must respect the law as it stands. This violation chips away at the foundation of our republic.

The parallels between this play and Kenya’s Gen-Z revolution of 2024, in which young people took to the streets to challenge power and demand good governance, might bring back uncomfortable memories for Ruto, who was forced to veto the punitive Finance Bill but had police kill scores to silence them. Gen-Z’s courage reminded the world that people’s power can unseat even the most stubborn autocrats.

Education is meant to prepare the young to lead. The scenes at the drama festival are another awakening of our collective conscience. Consequently, due to the gross violation of the constitution and contempt of the court order, we demand the following:

1. The Butere Girls students should be allowed to perform “Echoes of War” at the National Drama Festival without any conditions, delays, or reprisals, and they should be provided with psychosocial support for the trauma and intimidation they have endured.
2. No student, teacher, or school administrator is subjected to intimidation, disciplinary action, or retaliation for participating in the production or standing in its defense.
3. The Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries for Interior and Education, the Inspector-General of Police, the Director of Criminal Investigations, and all regional and local education and security officials involved in this unconstitutional interference immediately resign and face prosecution for abuse of office, violation of human rights, and contempt of the court order.
4. Cleophas Malala, the director of the play, should be released immediately and unconditionally, and any charges or investigations against him should be dropped.
5. The government immediately ceases its growing culture of censorship and repression and ensures that all Kenyans remain vigilant, resilient, and unyielding in the face of deepening authoritarianism.
6. Police officers who attacked the six journalists must be held to account, and immediate measures must be taken to protect media freedom and ensure the safety of journalists while they work.

KHRC is closely monitoring the situation and exploring appropriate legal remedies to ensure the culprits are held accountable.

Historical background

The experience of Butere Girls' High School students reminds us of the legacy of the Kamirithu Community Educational and Cultural Centre and its moving theatre. This was a revolutionary initiative in the late 1970s led by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. Born from a grassroots effort in Kamirithu village, the theatre used storytelling and performance in Gĩkũyũ to address issues like land struggles and political betrayal in post-independence Kenya. When the play Ngaahika Ndeenda became popular for challenging the ruling elite, the government responded with brutal repression, razing the cultural centre and banning the theatre.

[1] See Constitution of Kenya, Articles 32, 33, 34, 35 and 36 on freedom of thought, conscience, belief and opinion; freedom of expression; freedom of information and association.