Twenty-two women who say they lost sons or husbands in alleged extrajudicial killings in Nairobi have sued the Attorney-General and the Inspector-General of Police over what they describe as a failure by the State to investigate police use of force.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, the Independent Policing Oversight Authority and the Director of Public Prosecutions are named as interested parties in the case.
According to court papers filed at the High Court, the International Justice Mission says the disputed deaths involved males aged between 15 and 35, and in some cases younger, who were allegedly killed by police between 2014 and 2017.
The women say they have not been told the outcome of any investigations and have not received findings from any probe into the deaths of their relatives.
Their lawyer, Ruth Kihuria, told the court that the State had not taken enough steps to prevent further killings during police or law enforcement operations.
“It is our contention that the State has not taken adequate steps to adopt adequate positive measures to prevent further killings of individuals during police or law enforcement operations,” their lawyer, Ms Ruth Kihuria, told the court.
She also argued that truth is central to justice and that cases involving police use of force can only be established through prompt, thorough and impartial investigations.
“By failing to inform them or their family members of the existence of the inquest proceedings in regard to their deceased kin and requiring their participation in the proceedings, the IG has violated their right to access justice, information and truth,” added Ms Kihuria.
The women say they have set out the circumstances under which each relative died, and some of them also reported the incidents to IPOA.
They want the High Court to declare that the Inspector-General’s failure to investigate deaths linked to police use of force amounts to a breach of the right to equal protection.
They are also asking the court to compel Mr Boinnet to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
In addition, they want the Attorney-General ordered to advise the President to establish a judicial commission of inquiry into extrajudicial killings and the use of excessive force by police.
The matter is scheduled to be mentioned on January 23, 2019.
The deaths cited in the petition are part of a wider record of unresolved killings allegedly carried out by police in Nairobi.
