This archive report was first published on 25 August 2020.
August 24, 2000, marks a somber day in the history of Kenya, as Catholic Priest John Anthony Kaiser was found brutally murdered in Naivasha. The case remains unsolved, with the Catholic Justice and Peace Commission (CJPC) still seeking justice for the deceased.
According to Father Francis Mwangi, who served with Father Kaiser, the church will continue to remember the efforts of the dead priest. Mwangi, who was once arrested with Kaiser in 1994, attributed the death to Kaiser's move to identify those involved in sexually abusing girls and backing ethnic violence.
“We have written to the government seeking information over the killing and it’s like we are speaking to a wall,” Mwangi said in an interview. The government had previously tried to deport Kaiser in November 1999, claiming his work permit had expired, but was granted a new permit after intervention by the US Ambassador Johnnie Carson.
Then Attorney-General Amos Wako conceded to the wishes of the family and church in 2003, granting a public inquest into the priest’s death. However, the case remains a mystery, with the CJPC admitting to reaching a dead end in their quest for justice.
