Kenya: One year in office for Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto; Human rights record marred by abuses
| Publisher | International Federation for Human Rights |
| Publication Date | 23 April 2014 |
| Cite as | International Federation for Human Rights, Kenya: One year in office for Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto; Human rights record marred by abuses, 23 April 2014, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5391b72712.html [accessed 31 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
As April 9, 2014 marked the first year in office of Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto as President and Deputy President of Kenya, FIDH and KHRC publish a briefing paper which demonstrates that despite the commitments made by the Jubilee Coalition during its electoral campaign, which were echoed by President Uhuru Kenyatta in his inaugural speech when he reaffirmed his willingness to guarantee the protection of "the rights of all citizens [...] through legislation that upholds the spirit of [the] Constitution", and to "glorify rather than undermine democracy", this first year in office has been marked by worrisome cases of infringements of fundamental rights and freedoms and by rampant impunity.
The paper shows that throughout the year, Kenyan authorities have attempted to clamp down on dissenting voices, either through the adoption of restrictive legislation aimed at further regulating the NGO or media sectors; through the violent police crackdown on demonstrators; or through judicial harassment of protesters and human rights defenders. Under the guise of preserving the country's peace and security, authorities have conducted anti-terrorism operations which have, in some cases, been marred by serious human rights abuses. Also, attempts to roll back on fundamental rights of women or to further discriminate against LGBTI persons have been noticed.
This first year in office has also been marked by an ongoing lack of effective measures to ensure that victims of human rights violations, and in particular victims of the 2007/2008 post-election violence, get justice and redress at national and international levels. Instead, the new authorities have embarked on a national, regional and international campaign aimed at undermining the functions of the International Criminal Court (ICC). At the national level, there have been few prosecutions of mid-level perpetrators of the violence and most of them have ended in acquittals. In addition, those advocating for victim's rights to justice have been the constant targets of stigmatisation and intimidation.
Read the report One Year in Office for Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto
Last Update 23 April
