Chairperson, Commissioners, distinguished delegates,
We address this Commission at a moment of a disturbing constitutional and human rights crisis in Kenya. Three years into President William Ruto's regime, the country is witnessing systematic state violence, institutional capture, and contempt for the rule of law. The President's state-of-the-nation addresses have erased the blood and pain of victims of state repression.
The regime has dismantled democratic guardrails. Parliament has been reduced to a rubber stamp, the Judiciary battered through contempt and defiance, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions weaponized to persecute dissenters while shielding allies. Court orders are routinely ignored, unconstitutional bodies created, and repressive legislation rammed through a captured legislature. This has enabled attempts to extend presidential term limits and restrict fundamental freedoms.
The human toll is staggering. Between 2023 and 2025, state security forces killed more than 246 people. In July 2023 alone, 51 protesters were killed in five days during demonstrations against punitive taxation. Enforced disappearances, abductions, torture, and arbitrary arrests have become normalized. More than 1,700 protesters, including minors, have been unlawfully arrested, and 75 face trumped-up terrorism charges. Oversight bodies, including the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, the Independent Policing Oversight Authority, the Office of the Controller of Budget, and the Office of the Auditor-General, have been systematically weakened.
We are deeply concerned by credible reports implicating Safaricom PLC, Kenya's largest telecommunications provider, and Vodafone Group PLC, in alleged systematic breaches of customers' data privacy and complicity in grave human rights violations. Investigations have revealed that Safaricom allegedly grants security agencies unfettered access to sensitive customer data, enabling state surveillance and facilitating enforced disappearances, renditions, and extrajudicial killings in Kenya. Such actions have life-and-death consequences.
Civic space is also closing fast. CIVICUS Monitor now ranks Kenya as "repressed." Journalists, human rights defenders, and content creators face arbitrary arrests, abductions, and killings. Some of the most recent alarming cases include those of Martin Mavenjina, Bob Njagi, and Nicholas Oyoo. Mavenjina, a staff member of KHRC, was illegally and extraordinarily renditioned to Uganda in June this year for his role in holding the Kenyan regime accountable for egregious human rights violations. To date, Mavenjina remains trapped in Uganda. Still, this year, Ugandan state agents abducted Njagi and Oyoo for standing in solidarity with Bobi Wine. Their whereabouts remain unknown.
This authoritarian drift is compounded by deep corruption and economic mismanagement. Billions have been lost through procurement scandals in health, agriculture, housing, and infrastructure, while ordinary Kenyans face worsening poverty, mass evictions, and crumbling essential services.
Several multinational corporations have been implicated in serious human rights violations, including assault, killings, and rape, despite Kenya being the first country to adopt a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights. Across Kenya, communities are also being denied their fair share of natural resource revenues, with royalties owed under the Mining Act of 2016 still unpaid eight years after its enactment. Free, prior, and informed consent, as well as community development agreements, are intended to ensure meaningful consultation, participation, and equitable benefit-sharing; however, they remain largely unimplemented.
Kenya also continues to fall short of its constitutional and international obligations to protect women and minority groups, particularly gender and sexual minorities. LGBTQI+ persons remain exposed to hate, discrimination, and violence with little state protection. LGBTQI+ organizations have been unlawfully raided or denied registration, and transgender persons continue to be denied legal gender recognition despite judicial guidance.
As these violations are happening, the Kenyan regime continues to show an unwillingness to cooperate with international and regional human rights mechanisms. It has failed to extend standing invitations to Special Rapporteurs and has ignored or delayed responses to multiple requests for country visits by mandate holders covering critical areas.
We urge this Commission to hold the Kenyan state and its corporate enablers accountable and to press for strong safeguards to ensure that power and technology are not weaponized against citizens. Specifically, we make the following recommendations:
Fellow East Africans,
We stand here as East African Citizens, mandated by the fact that Jumuiya ni yetu. We continue to witness human rights violations and the degradation of democracy across the region, and as citizens of Jumuiya, we stand as one. We stand here, grounded in our East African identity, as members of the East African Community. Boarders will not limit our brotherhood and sisterhood. The tragic occurrences we are witnessing in Tanzania go against the very principles that underpin the East African community. We stand here to state that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
Contrary to rumours circulating, no elections are happening in Tanzania tomorrow. As all international media companies have been barred from entering Tanzania, and many local licenses have been withdrawn, we raise our voices on behalf of Jumuiya, our Tanzanian comrades, and the people of East Africa. Tanzanians have spoken by stating, “On our part, we haven't even described it as an election. As for an election to be free and fair, there must, at least, be a competitive election. This is not an election. Ni maigizo. (drama)” - J.K. Tanzania
There are no free and fair elections happening in Tanzania. Samia Suluhu is preparing for her coronation, as her only opposition is her very own shadow. All of her main opposition candidates have either been detained or barred from participation by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The country has been reeling over a silent epidemic of enforced disappearances of dissenting voices, regular abductions, arbitrary detention, torture, rape, extrajudicial killings, and judicial harassment. These atrocities and crimes against humanity are primarily against perceived opponents of the current regime and many people who rally against electoral malpractice.
ELIMINATION OF OPPOSITION AND HUMAN RIGHTS ATROCITIES
The violations have particularly targeted the CHADEMA, the leading opposition party in Tanzania, as well as extending to religious institutions, leaders, activists, influencers, and vocal citizens of all backgrounds. There have been over 250 reported and documented cases of enforced disappearances, with the majority of victims never to be seen again, or their lifeless bodies found months later. This report is available in both Swahili and English.
Additionally, Tanzania has scaled its police force in what appears to be preparation for a war against its citizens, rather than an election. Over the past three weeks, more than 55 people have been forcibly disappeared, tortured, murdered, and held incommunicado. According to a recent report by Amnesty International, repression in Tanzania has intensified. Amnesty has also referred to Tanzania’s situation under Suluhu and the forthcoming elections as unopposed, unchecked, and unjust. The report, titled “Wave of Terror Sweeps Across Tanzania,” is linked here within.
There has been a violent arrest of CHADEMA’s party leader, Tundu Lissu, and main competitor to Suluhu, and an arraignment over frivolous treason charges for merely demanding reforms before elections. His arrest and trumped-up charges, and the regime's overreach, marked a further escalation of civil liberties. CHADEMA was subsequently banned from participating in the election for demanding changes in the electoral code and was further prohibited from conducting any political activity.
Officials of CHADEMA and civilians alike have been arrested arbitrarily, detained, assaulted, generally harassed, and barred from attending the sham trial of Lissu, which by Tanzanian law is a public trial. Shaban Moyo, Felisuts Festo, Dr Fred Chacha Hatari, among others, share their direct experiences, with photo evidence as to the torture they endured in the hands of Tanzanian authorities, here.
We all remember that a team of six observers from Kenya was prevented from entering Tanzania while on a mission to observe the sham Lissu Trial. They were temporarily detained and deported back to Nairobi without any valid reason, contrary to the provisions of the East African treaty. Two of the observers, Boniface Mwangi of Kenya and Agather Atuhaire of Uganda, were violently abducted, arbitrarily detained, tortured, raped, and subjected to other forms of cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment while in Tanzanian custody.
Still, John Heche, CHADEMA’s national vice-chairperson, was denied entry into Kenya to attend Raila Odinga’s funeral, with his passport confiscated by authorities while still on the Kenyan side of the border—an act carried out with total impunity. Soon after, he was abducted outside the High Court of Tanzania, in blatant disregard of the laws governing arrests. These actions reflect a pattern of lawlessness and political persecution carried out with complete impunity. Unofficial and unlawful travel restrictions have been imposed on almost every CHADEMA leader and any government critic.
TARGETING OF RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS AND LEADERS
Repression has also extended to religious institutions and leaders speaking out against human rights abuses. On June 2 of this year, the Suluhu regime deregistered the Ufufuo na Uzima (the Glory of Christ) Church in Tanzania, led by outspoken Bishop Dr. Josephat Gwajima, who is well-known for his outspoken criticism of bad governance and human rights abuses in Tanzania, as well as his calls for accountability. The regime falsely and maliciously accused the church of violating the Societies Act.
The church was deregistered a few days after calling for an end to abductions and enforced disappearances in Tanzania. The deregistration has restricted the freedom of worship of thousands of Ufufuo na Uzima congregants. Bishop Dr. Benson Bagonza of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT), Karagwe Diocese, has also publicly stated that he fears for his life after receiving credible threats from individuals known as “wasiojulikana” (a term meaning “unknown assailants” or “people who are unknown”, used to refer to unknown political abductors and enforcers, mainly working for, and at the behest of the regime).
On March 16, 2025, a televangelist, Stephen Gumbo, was violently abducted from his home in Muriet, Arusha, by two gunmen who introduced themselves as police officers. He was later picked up at the Kilimanjaro West forest, some 200 kilometers away, having been badly injured, tortured, and brutalized by the gunmen who accused him of “defaming” national leaders in his sermons. In a similar vein, Bishop Machumu Kadatu, alias Mwanamapinduzi, also of the Ufufuo na Uzima Church, had to flee the country after being targeted for disappearance and torture. Bishop Dickson Kabigumila is the latest to flee the country, fearing for his life, after receiving numerous threats.
A while back, on September 6, 2024, Ali Mohammed Kibao, a 69-year-old senior CHADEMA party official, was abducted from a bus in Dar es Salaam. He was reported missing for several hours before his body was discovered near the shores of the Indian Ocean the next morning. Kibao had been brutally murdered, with his face disfigured with acid, indicating apparent torture. There has been no visible progress on the investigation into Kibao’s death to date.
Following Ali Kibao’s gruesome murder, there have been multiple abductions, arrests, and torture, including through rape and other forms of sexual violence, of CHADEMA officials, their supporters, and other Tanzanians who express different views or challenge Suluhu’s repressive regime. In May 2025, Mdude Nyangali, a journalist and author, was abducted by armed men believed to be security operatives. His abduction was reportedly brutal, with scenes awash with trails of blood along the path where he was dragged. Since his abduction and despite calls, protests, and legal efforts, Nyangali is still missing. Similarly, a former Tanzanian ambassador and outspoken critic of the Suluhu regime, Humphrey Polepole, was abducted in a bloody scene. He is still missing.
These attacks are part of a broader trend of violence and intimidation against outspoken critics of the Tanzanian regime, including church leaders, and constitute violations of freedom of religion (protected in Article 18 of the ICCPR) and freedom of expression of religious leaders (protected in Article 19 of the ICCPR).
RESTRICTION OF MEDIA AND ONLINE FREEDOMS
A series of laws and non-legal mechanisms have been employed to criminalize dissent, censor the media, and control digital spaces. Media and digital censorship remained pervasive during the period as journalists and online content creators continued to face arrests, bans, and surveillance. All international media bodies have been denied entry into Tanzania. There are many more examples of the suppressive regulations being passed in Tanzania available through this complimentary report.
LACK OF CREDIBLE ELECTION OBSERVATIONS
No credible observation mission is currently in Tanzania. Belgium, Sweden, Germany, and Ireland have all withdrawn from the elections. The US is monitoring the situation, although it is not providing any official observers. The EU Delegation has no proper observation and only maintains the diplomatic tradition of ‘DiploWatch’. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is not participating at this time.
The African Union Commission has officially announced the arrival of the African Union Election Observation Mission (AUEOM) for the sham poll, despite the ongoing human rights crisis and concerns about the fairness of the elections. On October 24, Dr. Speciosa Kazibwe stated, “As a community founded on the principles of good governance, the rule of law, and respect for human rights, the EAC regards credible elections as the cornerstone of democracy and regional integration.” It is clear that those who choose to recognize the Tanzanian elections are turning a blind eye to the realities of human rights violations, which bar the opposition from participation. Tanzanians have called for a protest, exercising their constitutional rights, in light of the unfair elections that Suluhu plans to proceed with.
NO REFORMS, THEREFORE, NO ELECTIONS
The so-called “election” in Tanzania is a sham. The outcome was fixed the moment Suluhu strangled all opposition, silenced the media, and shut down political space. Most credible international observers have pulled out because, what, exactly, is there to observe in a coronation?
Africans are rightfully outraged that the African Union, an institution meant to defend human rights, democracy, and the rule of law, has chosen silence over principle. It increasingly resembles a club of presidents shielding each other rather than protecting the people they claim to serve. The same betrayal is evident in SADC and the EAC. We are coming to the defense of Tanzanians and hereby give notice to Tanzania and all authoritarian regimes in the rest of East Africa and Africa. As despots regroup to oppress citizens, we, as the citizens, are similarly regrouping to reclaim our countries and our inherent freedoms. Aluta continua!
Signed
Editor's note: Read the petition here.
Reuben Kigame and the Kenya Human Rights Commission have filed a petition seeking to overturn the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act, 2024, warning that it grants the state unfettered power to surveil, silence, and even endanger citizens who criticize the regime.
Mr. William Ruto signed the contentious law on October 15, 2025, despite growing concerns that it could exacerbate state-sponsored repression.
At the heart of the challenge is a sweeping clause criminalizing the publication of what the law vaguely calls “false, misleading, or mischievous information.” The petitioners argue that this vague and overbroad definition effectively grants the regime the discretion to determine what constitutes truth and to punish those who speak out against it.
The law compels all social-media users to verify their accounts using their government-issued legal names, a move the petitioners say opens the door to state surveillance, profiling, and intimidation of regime critics. The petition notes that this is especially dangerous in a country where human rights defenders, journalists, and activists have historically been abducted, tortured, or killed after speaking out.
“The mandatory verification requirement constitutes a blanket infringement of the right to privacy under Article 31 of the Constitution,” the petition reads. “It forces the unnecessary revelation of private affairs and directly infringes upon the privacy of communications.”
Kigame and KHRC warn that the law would make anonymity, long a shield for whistleblowers and victims of state violence, illegal. It also forces digital platforms to rapidly remove posts flagged as offensive, and this will create a culture of pre-emptive censorship that silences online debate before it even begins.
“This law criminalizes speech on the basis of speculation,” the petition says. “It targets communication that the state claims could hypothetically cause harm, without any demonstrable link between expression and outcome.”
Kigame and KHRC also say the manner in which the bill was passed was itself unconstitutional, as it was not referred to or debated by the Senate, despite affecting functions that fall under county governments.
The Board of Directors and staff of the Kenya Human Rights Commission mourn with deep grief the passing of Comrade Raila Amolo Odinga on October 15, 2025, in India.
Baba, as he was fondly known in Kenya and beyond, was a renowned statesman and Pan-Africanist who will be remembered for his fearless fight for human rights, democracy, and justice. Despite what some may consider missteps in the latter years of his political life, his courage, sacrifices, and consistency in pushing for constitutionalism and democratic governance remain unmatched in modern-day Kenyan politics.
Throughout Kenya’s modern history, Baba played a key role in advancing human rights and democratic governance. His detention without trial in the 1980s for opposing one-party rule symbolized a broader struggle for political freedoms. He was at the forefront of the push for multiparty democracy in the early 1990s. He later became one of the key political figures supporting the reform movement that led to the adoption of the Constitution of Kenya 2010.
Over the years, Baba consistently spoke out against state repression, championed electoral justice, and supported grassroots movements demanding accountability. His leadership during the constitutional referendum campaigns and post-election reform processes reflected a deep commitment to expanding civic space and strengthening democratic institutions.
Baba’s towering contributions to the struggle for a just society, as a compatriot and a general of the struggle, are woven with commitment and sacrifice for justice and the greater good of all people. He fought in the courts, in Parliament, in government boardrooms, and on the streets, always driven by the conviction that personal sacrifice was part of the arc of history. Whether confronting authoritarianism, demanding accountability, or defending civic freedoms, his voice was never silenced by injustice.
Since KHRC’s formation in 1992 as a non-governmental organization, Baba, through various political formations, has stood among our closest collaborators as we pursued our vision of a democratic, pro-people, rights-respecting state and society. This bond is anchored in our shared history and DNA. KHRC is a political advocacy organization founded by political activists and human rights defenders committed to transformative change through a robust and free civil society.
Our engagement with Baba was particularly significant during the constitutional and political reform struggles of the 1990s. He stood in solidarity with human rights defenders at critical moments, including joining protests in Nairobi during the campaigns against extrajudicial killings that we led. He was among the most accessible political leaders during the grand coalition government, listening to civil society ideas and often moving them forward through political channels.
We have sustained this strategic engagement and partnership over the years. A notable example was on November 8, 2023, when Baba was the chief guest at a joint launch by KHRC and the Mau Mau War Veterans Association of the veterans’ foundation, website, and book.
We honour his sacrifices and celebrate Baba’s revolutionary achievements in the struggle for a just Kenya. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Mama Ida Odinga, their children, the wider Jaramogi family, and the people of Kenya, and renew our commitment to stay the course in delivering a democratic state and society.
Baba, may you rest in Power. Your political spirit lives on.
Co-signed
Maina Kiai, Board Chairperson | Betty Okero, Board Vice-Chairperson | Nerima Wako, Board Member | Kwamchetsi Makokha, Board Member | Lorna Dias, Board Member | Gabriel Dollan, Board Member | Wanjiru Gikonyo, Board Member | Davis Malombe, Executive Director and Secretary to the Board
Editor's note: Read the petition here.
The mandatory housing levy by the Kenya Kwanza regime is driving Kenyans deeper into poverty while being repurposed as a political tool to woo voters, civil society groups have told the High Court.
In their petition, the Kenya Human Rights Commission, Transparency International Kenya, The Institute for Social Accountability, Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi! and Siasa Place describe the levy as illegal, unconstitutional, and socially retrogressive. They argue it unfairly targets salaried workers already weighed down by statutory deductions, while sparing the political elite and other powerful groups.
Citing data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), the petition notes that more than a third of Kenyans live below the poverty line, with food inflation and stagnant wages eroding household incomes. The levy, they argue, further strips workers of scarce disposable income needed for essentials such as food, healthcare, and education.
Evidence from the KNBS 2024 economic performance report shows the levy’s regressive impact on socio-economic rights. The construction sector, central to housing delivery, contracted by 0.7 percent in 2024, reversing a 3 percent growth in 2023. KNBS attributes the downturn to higher costs of input, reduced private investment, and the levy’s drain on household spending.
Cement consumption fell 7.2 percent to 8.5 million tonnes, the steepest drop in two decades, while steel imports dipped 12 percent. Employment in construction shrank 4.2 percent, contrary to claims by the regime that the levy is creating jobs.
The petitioners also accuse the Kenya Kwanza regime of turning the fund into a vehicle for political patronage. Mr. William Ruto announced that 20 percent of houses, about 34,000 units from 170,000 ongoing projects, would be allocated to teachers after a meeting at State House. The deal was formalized through an MoU without Board approval, needs assessment, or public tendering. Ruto further promised houses to Harambee Stars players during the CHAN football tournament.
“These acts suggest misuse for patronage ahead of the 2027 elections,” the petition says.
The petitioners want the High Court to suspend all deductions and declare the levy unconstitutional.
Editor's note: Read the petition here.
Families of 21 boys who died in the Endarasha fire, backed by the Kenya Human Rights Commission and Elimu Bora Working Group, have sued the state and school for failing to protect their children’s lives.
The constitutional petition, filed at the High Court in Nyeri, names Hillside Endarasha Academy, its proprietors, the Ministry of Education, the Attorney-General, and education authorities as respondents.
It accuses them of negligence and dereliction of duty, arguing that the tragedy was preventable and stemmed from the state’s failure to enforce safety standards in schools.
According to the petition, the dormitory where the boys aged 10 to 14 perished was built of wood and lacked basic fire safety measures.
Despite earlier government audits warning of widespread fire risks in boarding schools, the institution was allowed to operate unchecked, petitioners say.
The families further recount being subjected to psychological torment in the aftermath, receiving little to no information from authorities, being denied the choice of mortuaries, and forced into mass burials on state-determined dates.
The petitioners are seeking a declaration that the state failed in its duty of care, accountability from education officials and the school’s proprietors, and a court order compelling the public release of investigations into the fire and a mandatory audit of the school’s safety compliance.
“The heaviest caskets are the smallest,” the petition painfully states.
This people’s state of the nation report is issued as an assertion of the sovereignty of Kenyans, which the Constitution affirms belongs to them.
By law, the president must deliver an annual state of the nation address, accounting for the government’s commitment to national values, principles of good governance, and international obligations. But for the past three years, those addresses have largely whitewashed failure, glorified corruption, and erased the blood and pain of victims of state violence.
This report pushes back. It is the people’s counter-account, a parallel record that strips away spin and tells the truth about the Kenya Kwanza regime. And three years in, the verdict is out, as Kenyans stare at a regime that has consistently violated the Constitution, trampled on the rule of law, and presided over unprecedented economic and social decline.
President William Ruto's promise of a people-centred “hustler” government has instead hardened into authoritarianism marked by state violence, systemic corruption, and captured institutions. What began with a symbolic break from his predecessor, appointing 46 judges and boosting the Judiciary’s budget, quickly turned into a sustained assault on the very institutions that anchor democracy.
Independent bodies created under the Constitution to safeguard rights and check executive power have been manipulated, silenced, starved, or co-opted. Parliament has been reduced to an appendage of the State House. The Judiciary has been battered by open contempt and deliberate defiance. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has been converted into a blunt weapon for persecuting dissenters while shielding the president’s allies. Other oversight institutions have either been neutered or hijacked.
The result is a captured state.
Rule of law undermined
The three years of Kenya Kwanza regime has been marked by deliberate disobedience of court orders and unconstitutional creations of offices and bodies. After assuming office in September 2022, Ruto appeared progressive by appointing judges long blocked by former president Uhuru Kenyatta and raising the Judiciary’s budget to Sh22 billion from Sh17 billion. But the honeymoon ended almost immediately.
The regime branded judicial officers as “cartels” for daring to stop its unconstitutional policies. It trashed a High Court conservatory order barring the gazettement of seven IEBC commissioners and bullied 34 state agencies into migrating to the e-Citizen platform despite an order halting the move for lack of public participation.
When courts restrained police from using excessive force on protesters, the regime defied the orders, with Ruto telling police to “shoot them in the leg.” Security forces unleashed unprecedented terror, killing and maiming protesters. In July 2023 alone, 51 people were gunned down within five days during demonstrations against tax hikes, marking one of the darkest moments since the 2010 Constitution.
The regime doubled down and Ruto openly declared that “no courts of law will stand in my way.” He ordered the continuation of road construction in Ndonyo-Njeru-Ithe despite a court injunction, for instance. His creation of the Panel of Experts on Protest Victim Compensation and a multi-agency anti-corruption team have been stopped by courts, and the formation of the National Taskforce on Police Reforms has seen some of its mandates struck down as unconstitutional.
Equally alarming is the regime's capture of Parliament. By buying off opposition MPs, Ruto secured a supermajority in both Houses and rammed through punitive legislation. The Affordable Housing Levy and the 2023 and 2024 Finance Bills, all deeply unpopular, passed despite public uproar. The Assembly and Demonstration Bill (2024) by Geoffery Ruku, a Ruto ally who was later brought to the cabinet, sought to curtail freedom of expression, assembly, and protest.
The proposed Public Order (Amendment) Bill, 2025, by another ally, Nairobi Women representative Esther Passaris, aimed to ban gatherings near parliament, courts, and State House. Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei, elected on a UDA party, went further, seeking to amend Article 136 to extend the presidential term, including of other elective offices, from five to seven years, in a move that will entrench authoritarian rule.
Lawfare, compromised ODPP
Perhaps no institution illustrates the perversion of constitutional safeguards more deeply than the ODPP. Established under Article 157 of the Constitution to ensure impartial justice, the ODPP has instead been weaponized into an arm of the executive.
Under this regime, the ODPP has dropped corruption charges against Ruto allies while zealously prosecuting critics of the state. Friends of Ruto such as the Senior Advisor on Fiscal Affairs and Budget Policy, Henry Rotich, Cooperatives and MSMEs CS, Wycliffe Oparanya, and former CS Aisha Jumwa have all benefited from selective withdrawals of graft cases.
Meanwhile, ordinary Kenyans exercising their right to protest have faced trumped-up charges. At least 75 demonstrators have been charged with terrorism, while over 450 face serious criminal counts, among them minors as young as 15, according to the 50+ Million Kenyans Campaign.
This double standard has gutted public faith in the ODPP, which, instead of defending the Constitution, the office has become an enforcer of executive power, criminalizing dissent while sanitizing the corrupt.
Oversight institutions attacked or coopted
The Kenya Kwanza regime has systemically weakened independent commissions and offices. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights has been muted through deliberate underfunding and political interference.
The Independent Policing Oversight Authority, tasked with ensuring police accountability, has recorded cases of killings and torture but has failed to secure justice for victims of state-led violence that happened under Ruto’s watch. At least 246 people have been killed by police since the regime took office, but accountability remains elusive.
Among the independent offices, the Controller of Budget has been systematically undermined. Though mandated to oversee public expenditure, the CoB’s reports flagging unconstitutional withdrawals and mismanagement of funds have been ignored or met with executive hostility. The Office of the Auditor-General continues to produce damning audit reports that expose theft of public resources across ministries and parastatals. But parliament has consistently shelved these findings, as the executive weaponized them.
These watchdogs have been defanged.
Kenya is repressed
While the Kenya Kwanza regime operationalized the long-delayed Public Benefits Organizations Act in 2024, the move was overshadowed by aggressive attacks on civic freedoms. CIVICUS Monitor now rates Kenya “repressed”, the second worst rating a country can receive, indicating severe restrictions to the freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, and association
Arbitrary arrests, abductions, and killings of activists, lawyers, journalists, and content creators have become common. Between 2023 and 2025, over 246 people were killed by police. However, we caution that the actual numbers are far higher, as the regime has deliberately concealed and tampered with evidence to mask the true scale of its abuses.
The years 2023 and 2024 marked one of the darkest chapters. There were over 118 police killings in 2023, and the majority occurred during protests over the high cost of living. Shockingly, 51 of these killings occurred within just five days in July 2023, when Kenyans took to the streets against tax hikes and economic hardship. These deaths were the most extreme outcomes of 296 torture and torture-related violations.
The violence persisted into 2024, as Gen Z-led protests demanding accountability and better governance were met with brutal state repression. At least 63 people were killed, more than 601 injured, 1,765 arbitrarily arrested, and 82 forcibly disappeared. Police also issued 20 unlawful summonses in connection to the demonstrations.
By September 2025, the crisis showed no signs of abating. Sixty-five more deaths, over 500 injuries, 355 unlawful arrests, three enforced disappearances, and 19 unlawful summonses had already been documented.
The ODPP emerged as a willing enforcer of the regime’s authoritarian playbook. Instead of prosecuting perpetrators of state violence, the ODPP turned its fire on the victims, filing anti-terrorism charges against 75 protesters and slapping serious criminal counts on 450 others. Among those targeted were at least 10 minors, some as young as 15, alongside older citizens, including a 61-year-old.
Civil society organizations have also been targeted. In 2024, the regime accused Ford Foundation and 16 NGOs—including the Kenya Human Rights Commission, Transparency International Kenya, and The Institute for Social Accountability—of attempting to destabilize the country for supporting the right to protest. Regulators and security agencies were unleashed on them until the courts intervened.
The Communications Authority of Kenya aided censorship. In June 2025, it raided broadcast stations and disrupted signals of NTV, KTN, and Citizen TV to suppress live coverage of protests, in open violation of Article 34 of the Constitution.
Evictions surged
The regime has presided over mass evictions without due process or alternative housing plans. Between March and April 2024, at least 6,000 households in Mathare and Mukuru were demolished amid heavy rains and flooding. Over 100,000 people in Trans Nzoia were also evicted in February that year. By mid-2025, another 127,000 people in Nairobi faced imminent displacement from riparian zones after a cabinet directive of April 30, 2024, ordered “voluntary evacuation” or “forcible relocation.”
The flagship promise of 250,000 housing units annually has collapsed. Only 103,000 units have been completed in three years, against a target of 750,000.
Healthcare has also suffered. The transition from National Health Insurance Fund to the Social Health Insurance Fund was marred by a Sh104.8 billion digital system procurement scandal, where the regime does not even own the technology. Meanwhile, doctors and nurses have staged repeated strikes over unpaid salaries and poor working conditions.
Education funding has stagnated. Government capitation for secondary school students has remained unchanged since 2018, despite inflation. The Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association estimates a Sh117 billion shortfall in four years.
Corruption, integrity in tatters
The Kenya Kwanza regime is drenched in corruption. Kenya scored 32 out of 100 in Transparency International’s 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index, ranking 121st globally.
Scandals under Ruto’s watch include the reported loss of Sh6.6 billion through the importation of edible oil via the Kenya National Trading Corporation, Sh3.7 billion through mosquito net procurement irregularities at KEMSA, Sh3.5 billion through the fake fertilizer programme, Sh24 billion through fraudulent claims at the Social Health Authority, 791.4 million siphoned from the National Youth Service, as well as Sh550 million from the Kenya Pipeline Company, among others.
Our demands
To reverse this decline and place the country back on a constitutional path, members of the civil society organizations make the following demands:
Signed
ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa | Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU) | Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi! | Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) | Haki Yetu Organization | PEN Kenya | Defenders Coalition | CRECO | Initiative for Inclusive Empowerment (IIE) | Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI) | Center for Enhancing Democracy and Good Governance (CEDGG) | Kituo cha Sheria | The Institute for Social Accountability (TISA) | Midrift Hurinet | InformAction | Transparency International Kenya (TI Kenya)
Three years into Kenya Kwanza's regime, the country faces a constitutional and human rights crisis marked by state violence, corruption, and institutional capture. The promise of a people-centred “hustler” government has collapsed into authoritarian rule that undermines democracy and endangers citizens.
Despite initial gestures of reform, the regime has consistently defied court orders and created unconstitutional offices and bodies. The President branded judicial officers as “cartels” and openly declared that no courts of law would stand on his way. Courts halted unconstitutional actions like the gazettement of seven IEBC commissioners, and demanded the disclosure of debt contracts, but the regime blatantly ignored these orders.
Parliament has been reduced to a clearing house of the State House, passing punitive laws such as the Affordable Housing Levy and retrogressive Finance Bills, despite public opposition. Attempts to extend presidential terms and restrict freedom of assembly further entrench authoritarianism.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has been converted into a political weapon. Corruption cases against William Ruto’s allies, including Henry Rotich, Wycliffe Oparanya, and Aisha Jumwa, have been dropped, while ordinary Kenyans have faced trumped-up charges for exercising their right to protest. At least 75 protesters face trumped-up terrorism charges and over 450 others, including minors, face serious criminal charges, which are false.
Since 2022, state security forces have unleashed deadly violence on citizens. At least 246 people have been killed by police under the Kenya Kwanza regime’s watch. However, we caution that the actual numbers are far higher, as the regime has deliberately concealed and tampered with evidence to mask the true scale of its abuses. In July 2023, 51 protesters were gunned down within five days during demonstrations against tax hikes, bringing the total fatalities caused by police force that year to 118.
In 2024, Gen Z-led protests left at least 63 people dead, 601 injured, 1,765 arbitrarily arrested, and 82 forcibly disappeared. By September 2025, 65 more deaths, 355 unlawful arrests, and three disappearances had already been documented.
Human rights defenders and organizations continue to face reprisals designed to intimidate and curtail their agency, despite repeated commitments by the regime to uphold the rule of law and protect civic space for citizen participation in governance.
The Communications Authority of Kenya further aided censorship by disrupting live TV coverage of protests, while civil society and international donors were harassed for supporting the right to protest.
All these violations have made CIVICUS Monitor rate Kenya “repressed”, the second worst rating a country can receive, indicating severe restrictions to the freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, and association.
The Kenya Kwanza regime has also ballooned public debt by Sh2.9 trillion — from Sh8.6 trillion in June 2022 to Sh11.8 trillion by June 2025. According to reports from the Controller of Budget, part of these funds has been squandered on lavish domestic and foreign travel. Without such wasteful borrowing, Kenya could comfortably finance education and health. Still, the development budget in all the three years has consistently been less than 10 percent, despite the constitutional provisions for at least 30 percent.
Additionally, the regime has also been plagued by grand corruption scandals, including, Sh6.6 billion, reportedly lost in edible oil imports, Sh3.7 billion in irregular Malaria nets procurement at KEMSA, Sh3.5 billion through the fake fertilizer programme, and hundreds of millions lost through National Youth Service and Kenya Pipeline Company. Consequently, Kenya’s global standing plummeted, with a Transparency International 2024 score of 32 out of 100, ranking 121st worldwide.
Despite this tragic situation, we are greatly encouraged by increased citizen vigilance, the valour of our young people in defence of the Constitution, and the successful court decisions. To restore constitutional order and safeguard Kenyans’ rights, members of the civil society organizations demand:
Signed
ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa | Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU) | Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi! | Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) | Haki Yetu Organization | PEN Kenya | Defenders Coalition | CRECO | Initiative for Inclusive Empowerment (IIE) | Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI) | Center for Enhancing Democracy and Good Governance (CEDGG) | Kituo cha Sheria | The Institute for Social Accountability (TISA) | Midrift Hurinet | InformAction | Transparency International Kenya (TI Kenya)
Editor's note: Read the report here.
Eleven organizations and networks [1] have released a new report, Lives on the Line, documenting more than 2,100 cases of violence, harassment, and discrimination against sexual and gender minorities (SGMs) in Kenya between October 2023 and September 2024.
The report records 682 cases of harassment, 440 physical assaults, 91 sexual assaults, and 102 evictions. Nairobi, Thika, Machakos, and the Coast emerged as the most affected areas, accounting for more than 80 percent of the incidents.
Transgender persons reported the highest number of violations at 708 cases, representing nearly a third of all documented abuses. The report notes that most perpetrators were people known to the survivors, including intimate partners, family members, clients, and service providers.
The findings directly challenge a 2019 High Court ruling that dismissed claims of violence against LGBTIQ+ persons due to a lack of evidence, the report says. “The data shows persistent abuse that cannot be ignored. This calls for urgent action to uphold constitutional guarantees of equality and dignity,” the report adds.
The report further warns of the role of negative media narratives and inflammatory rhetoric in fueling hostility, linking more than 300 violations to media-driven stigma and misinformation.
The organizations and networks are calling on the government to repeal discriminatory provisions in the Penal Code, reject laws that criminalize LGBTIQ+ identities, strengthen safe reporting mechanisms for hate crimes, and provide training for police, health workers, and judicial officers.
“Lives are literally on the line, and society can no longer turn a blind eye,” Adrian Kibe of KHRC said during the launch.
[1] Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), Coast Sex Worker Alliance, Dream Achievers Youth Organization (DAYO), galck+, Hope Rekindled, Kenya Sex Workers Alliance, LEHA, National Trans Advocacy Network, Jinsiangu, Rural to Global, and the Western Situation Room Kenya
Fifteen years after its promulgation, the Constitution’s transformative promise remains largely unfulfilled. Though it envisioned a democratic, accountable, and people-centered state, critical provisions on governance and social justice have been ignored, undermined, or manipulated.
Peaceful protesters, particularly young Kenyans in the recent Gen Z-led demonstrations, have been met with bullets, abductions, and killings. This undermined the right to assemble and petition under Article 37.
The Executive has repeatedly disobeyed court orders, eroded the authority of the Judiciary, and weakened constitutional checks and balances. Independent commissions and oversight institutions, established under Chapter 15 to safeguard accountability, have been starved of resources, undermined, or brought under Executive thumb.
Devolution, one of the Constitution’s most significant gains, has been systematically weakened through delayed and inadequate funding of counties, crippling essential services such as healthcare and education.
Populist directives, such as the victims’ compensation framework, which bypasses lawful processes, and the multi-agency anti-corruption taskforce, which usurps the role of constitutional commissions, continue to prove the regime’s disregard for the rule of law. Meanwhile, corruption and the wastage of public resources remain rampant, robbing Kenyans of opportunities and deepening inequality.
At the same time, the regime has failed to realize the socio-economic rights guaranteed under Article 43. Millions of Kenyans face worsening unemployment, collapsing education standards, and a failing health system.
Against this backdrop, President William Ruto’s declaration of Katiba Day appears less about honoring the Constitution and more about sanitizing a record of consistent violations. For the last 14 years, citizens, civil society, and progressive actors have faithfully marked the anniversary of the Constitution’s promulgation, even under hostility from successive regimes. Katiba Day has always provided a moment for Kenyans to reflect, take stock, and reaffirm their commitment to defending the Constitution. They did not need a presidential proclamation to remember this day, as it has always belonged to the people.
This year’s theme, “Inuka Uilinde” or “arise and defend the Constitution”, is a timely reminder that the Constitution must be rescued from political expediency and defended by the people it was written for. The Gen-Z movement has already shown the power of citizen action in exposing impunity. It must now be sustained and broadened. As civil society organizations, we demand the following actions in defense of the Constitution:
Signed: