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Win for protesters as court awards Sh2.2m over police violations
Protesters confront police officers along Kenyatta Avenue in Nairobi during the anti-Finance Bill protests on July 2, 2024.
The High Court has awarded eleven protesters Sh2.2 million (Sh200,000 each) as compensation for violation of their rights by police during the 2024 anti-Finance Bill demonstrations.
This is after the court ruled that police officers deployed to maintain order during assemblies, demonstrations or picketing must be in uniform and should not conceal their faces.
“Any officer deployed to ensure law and order...shall not in any way hide or conceal their face so as to render them identifiable,” declared Justice Bahati Mwamuye.
The court directed Inspector-General of Police Douglas Kanja to ensure officers deployed to protests or to provide security for picketers are not in plain clothes or wearing masks.
Masked police officers arrest peaceful protesters along Kimathi Street in Nairobi on August 8th 2024 during the Nane nane nationwide protests.
Anti-government protesters march along Moi Avenue in Nairobi on July 23, 2024.
The ruling comes from a petition filed by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) against two police officers, Martin Mbae Kithinji and Isaiah Ndumba Murangiri, who were among the security officers deployed to quell the June 2024 protests.
LSK argued that Mr Murangiri was behind the death of Rex Masai, who is one of the protestors shot dead by police on June 18, 2024, in the Nairobi CBD during the anti-Finance Bill protests.
According to LSK, all instances of murder, police brutality and harassment of demonstrators are linked to officers who have no identification tags or uniforms.
It was stated that the incognito appearance enabled police officers to blend in with the peaceful protesters exercising their rights under Article 37 of the Constitution and execute unlawful arrests.
The court declared that police must comply with Section 49 of the National Police Service Act, which obligates every police officer to act lawfully in the performance of their official duties and in exercising police powers. The court held that any person whose rights are violated by a police officer is entitled to legal redress.
Banning CBD protests is 'unconstitutional'
In a separate case, Justice Mwamuye had declared IG Kanja's decision to ban anti-government protests in Nairobi's Central Business District as unconstitutional. At the time, the police boss had also demanded that demonstrations have a designated leader.
“A declaration is issued that the Press Release issued on June 18, 2024 by the Inspector General of Police and Adamson Bungei (former Nairobi police commander) banning any assembly, protest or demonstration in Nairobi CBD is unconstitutional, invalid, null and void,” said the judge.
The court ruled that the IG does not have powers to arbitrarily outlaw the right to assemble, picket, demonstrate and present petitions to public authorities under Article 37 of the Constitution.
The court ordered the State to pay the protesters Joy Awich, Muthoni Matu, Kipngetich Eman, Carolyne Mwikali, Stephen Obunde, Raymond Burgei, Felix Gatobu, Chatherine Njoki Njanja, Tim Kut, Wesley Tome and Imran Kasumba a total of Sh2.2 million.
In their petition, the protestors wanted the financial compensation to be borne by IG Kanja and Senior Assistant Inspector-General of Police (SAIG) Adamson Bungei, individually. Mr Bungei was the Nairobi police commander at the time of the alleged infringements.
The protesters said they were beaten, clobbered, maimed by police while participating in a peaceful march on June 18, 2024 in Nairobi. They also argued that the State used live bullets on unarmed and peaceful persons, disproportionate force, tear gas and other harmful gaseous substances and spraying water cannons on the protesters.
The court ruled that police acted beyond their powers and underscored that peaceful protest is a protected right in the Constitution.