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Ruto frees dozens of jailbirds
Inmates and correctional officers at Kamiti Maximum Security Prison.
What you need to know:
- President William Ruto also granted general amnesty to all petty offenders sentenced to six months or less.
- The president granted the clemency in exercise of his constitutional power of mercy and pardon under Article 133 of the constitution.
President William Ruto has granted amnesty to 56 Kenyans and a foreigner serving long custodial sentences handing them freedom after years behind bars.
The president also granted general amnesty to all petty offenders sentenced to six months or less and those serving sentences longer than six months whose remaining terms are six months or less.
He made the announcement on Monday through his Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service (HoPS) Felix Koskey in a dispatch.
The president granted the clemency in exercise of his constitutional power of mercy and pardon under Article 133 of the constitution upon the recommendation of the Power of Mercy Advisory Committee (PoMAC).
“In exercising the presidential authority that breathes life into the principles of rehabilitation and restorative justice, the president has extended the hand of clemency to 56 Kenyans and a foreign national all of whom were serving long jail sentences in various prisons in our country,” Mr Koskey’s dispatch reads.
The terms of clemency include conditional release to 31 prisoners serving life sentences, a conditional release and repatriation to one foreign national from the East African Community (EAC) who was serving a life sentence.
It also includes a remission and release of 25 individuals “allowing their discharge upon remission of the unexpired portion of their custodial sentences.”
“To strengthen the arc of justice, the president has urged all stakeholders within the criminal justice system to explore ways in which the principles of reconciliation, restoration, rehabilitation and reintegration into community can be more effectively expressed and implemented,” reads the dispatch.