This archive report was first published on 4 October 2019.
Published on October 4, 2019, a group of Kenyans has petitioned the High Court to stop the government from participating in a maritime case between Mogadishu and Nairobi at the Hague next month.
The petitioners, led by Kinoti and Kibe Co Advocates, argue that the case could lead to the alteration of Kenya's territory without a referendum as required by the Constitution.
They claim that the government's participation in the case offends the Constitution and want the court to issue a permanent injunction restraining the Attorney General, Foreign Affairs CS, and the Kenya International Boundaries Office from participating.
"We are concerned that as Kenya's representatives continue to campaign for the international community to prevail upon Somalia to resolve the dispute amicably, no serious efforts have been made to assert that the International Court of Justice is exercising its jurisdiction unlawfully," the petitioners say in an affidavit signed by Mr Kiriro wa Ngugi.
The maritime case between Somalia and Kenya dates back to 2014, when Somalia sued Kenya over their common maritime boundary. Kenya controls the territory which Somalia also claims, causing diplomatic tension between the two countries.
