Kenyan Authorities Must Respect The Constitution And Stop Cracking Down On Human Rights — Online And Offline

Access Now and over 20 organisations have written to the Kenyan government calling for an end to gross violations of human rights — online and offline — and demanding accountability amidst the protests in the country and dissent over government conduct.

The Finance Bill 2024, tabled in the Kenyan Parliament on 9 May 2024, faced strong opposition from members of the public and other stakeholders during the public participation stage. Despite this, legislators passed the bill, leading to nationwide online and offline protests from 18 June. The bill was withdrawn on 26 June, yet authorities have continued to crack down on protesters through arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearance, attempts to silence dissent online and offline, and violence. As of 1 July, the Kenya National Commission of Human Rights has recorded 39 deaths, 361 injured, and the arrest of 627 protestors.

“Kenyan authorities must uphold the rule of law at all times in line with the constitution that guarantees the right to peaceful protest and freedom of expression — on the streets and in the digital sphere,” said Bridget Andere, Senior Policy Analyst at Access Now. “President Ruto must remember his commitment to respecting people’s right to privacy, upholding the rule of law, and putting an end to extrajudicial killings. Human rights do not come with an opt-out clause during times of crisis and unrest; human rights must be protected at all times.”

The open letter also addresses an alarming trend of internet disruptions during the height of the #RejectFinanceBill2024 protests, heavily impacting social media access, especially X, which was inaccessible for people in Kenya for an extended time. Although telecommunication companies Safaricom and Airtel attributed the outages to undersea cable cuts, notably the disruptions were concentrated during the height of the protests on 25 June. In addition, media houses reported having been threatened with shutdown actions due to their live broadcast of the protests.

“During times of unrest, people need to be able to freely express themselves both online and offline without fear of intimidation, violence or censorship, to access information and communicate with their loved ones,” said Jaimee Kokonya, Africa Campaigner at Access Now. “Kenyan authorities and telcos must ensure open, secure, and reliable access to mobile networks and online communications platforms to avoid trampling on people’s rights and putting people at risk of harm — online and off.”

The open letter demands Kenyan authorities protect people’s right to organise online and offline by ceasing the abduction and detention of online organisers and political dissidents and immediately releasing those in arbitrary detention, guarantee access to all forms of communications including access to social media and messaging platforms, and ensure a credible and transparent investigation into human rights violations during the protests

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