By MAXIMILLA WAFULA
The Kenyan section of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has expressed concern with the current state of political affairs in the country.
ICJ in a statement said the protests are becoming the basis of continued clawing back against constitutional and legal imperatives as well as violation of the fundamental rights entrenched in the Kenyan constitution.
“ICJ Kenya is further concerned the events of March 20 and March 27 can potentially take the country on a dangerous path with glaring ramifications to human rights, democracy, and the rule of law,” the statement read in part.
“The protests closely mirror the events of the Post-Election violence in 2007, where political incitement led to atrocity crimes that resulted in mass killing, sexual and gender-based violence, grave injuries, and internal displacement of the masses.”
The commission said it was alarmed by the statements of Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki that he would present to Parliament a raft of proposals to amend provisions within the Public Order Management Act.
“Any changes to legal and policy frameworks that react to the protests in public order management must not overreach the letter and spirit of the Constitution, which legitimizes peaceful assembly and does not create barriers to the realization of the right,” the statement read.
ICJ called out the attacks, threats, arrests and coercion of members of the media who were exercising their media freedoms by covering sections of the mass demonstrations.
“We wish to reiterate that the media must inform the public about the current situation in the country in a balanced, fair, and objective manner. Any attempt to gag the role of the media should be condemned and considered a gross violation of media freedoms,” the statement read.
The commission further called upon the politicians to steer the country away from a potential brink and adopt a unified path and desist from any more public incitement that further polarizes the country.
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