To All Living Things
Last Week's Column

Amnesty Action:
Arbitrary Arrest of Refugees in Kenya
Kathy Gay

his week’s action from Amnesty International concerns more than 110 refugees who have been arrested by police in Kenya within the last few weeks. Eighty of the refugees are from Rwanda and at least 30 from Burundi. None of those arrested is known to have been charged with a crime.

Many children are reported to be among those arrested. Amnesty International has received the names of seven secondary school children and five primary school pupils who are currently detained. At least six other children, including one who is paralyzed, are reported to be held. One woman was reportedly arrested with her baby.

Arrests of Rwandese nationals began on July 18 after seven other Rwandese in Nairobi were arrested at the request of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) on suspicion of having played a leading role in the genocide which claimed as many as one million lives in that country in 1994. These seven people, who include senior members of the former government of Rwanda, have since been transferred to the ICTR’s detention center in Tanzania. Sources in Nairobi indicate that the subsequent raids and arrests by Kenyan police may have been motivated by a search for several other individuals suspected of having played a leading role in the genocide but who had escaped arrest. However, the 80 refugees who have been arrested are not known to face accusations of involvement in the genocide and appear to have been arrested arbitrarily.

Other Rwandese nationals are reported to have been harassed by Kenyan police officials who have threatened them with arrest and extorted money in exchange for not arresting them.

To date, Amnesty International has not received confirmation that any detainees have been ill-treated. However, the conditions of their detention are described as harsh and some detainees who require medical attention have reportedly only been able to obtain access to a doctor by paying officials in the detention centers.

The most recent reports indicate that arrests appear to be continuing. Refugees from several other countries, including Ethiopia, Somalia, Uganda, Yemen, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo are also reported to have been arrested. Their names, and the total number of arrests, are not yet known to Amnesty International. The organization fears that those arrested may be at risk of deportation back to Rwanda or Burundi where they could face serious human rights violations upon their return.

Background Information

There has been a pattern of arbitrary arrests, detention without charge and ill-treatment of refugees in Kenya over the last few years. Rwandese refugees appear to be especially at risk. Amnesty International has received reports of refugees from various countries, including Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Ethiopia and Somalia, being harassed, ill-treated or tortured by the Kenyan security forces. Some have been deported against their will to their country of origin in apparent disregard of the human rights violations which they may face there.

Torture and ill-treatment in Kenyan detention centers are widespread and usually take place soon after arrest. Criminal suspects as well as political prisoners have been tortured to extract confessions. Some have been held in harsh conditions and without charge beyond the legal limit of 24 hours, or 14 days on suspicion of a capital charge.

Amnesty International welcomes the cooperation of the Kenyan authorities in identifying and arresting individuals suspected of having played a critical role during the genocide in Rwanda. However, the presence of such individuals on Kenyan soil should not serve as a pretext for harassing and arbitrarily arresting other Rwandese refugees who may not have participated in the genocide.

If forcibly returned to Rwanda, these refugees would face the risk of serious human rights violations, including arbitrary arrest, prolonged detention in life-threatening conditions, ill-treatment, unfair trial and possibly the death penalty. There are currently more than 110,000 people detained in Rwanda, most on accusations of participation in the genocide, and at least 60 have been sentenced to death. Thousands of people – many of them returnees from neighboring countries – have been extrajudicially executed or "disappeared."

How you can help

Please send a letter to the Attorney General of Kenya as soon as possible, but no later than September 5, 1997. You may use the sample letter linked below or use it as a model to write your own letter. If you choose to use the sample letter, please cut off or delete all website information at the very top of the letter. If you choose to write your own letter, make sure that it is politely worded, non-partisan (i.e., not used as a vehicle for political expression) and written with respect for the recipient. Be sure to include both your name and address, as well as the date, on your letter.

U.S. airmail postage to Kenya is 60 cents.

Questions?

If you have any questions, just post a message to me (Kathy Gay) on the Activism Board, and I will respond as soon as I can. I greatly appreciate your interest and support.

To see the sample letter for this action, please click here.

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Kathy Gay is a vegan, and has been a member of Amnesty International for nearly 10 years, where she has worked on numerous campaigns. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and is a business analyst for a leading California bank.

Kathy's column, To All Living Things, is a regular feature of VegSource On-Line Magazine.