By Spy Uganda Correspondent
The US government has tasked President William Ruto to take action against police officers who have used excessive force on peaceful protesters resulting to deaths and injuries.
Speaking after the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made similar demands, US Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy and Human Rights Uzra Zeya said Kenya police should protect and not terrorize the citizens adding where they violate this principle as has been witnessed during the protests, they should be answerable to the people for their actions.
She explained that the government to strengthen the rule of law, investigate accused police officers and ensure they face the law for their actions.
“I encourage President Ruto to take concrete action on his recent public pledges to strengthen the rule of law, strengthen anti-corruption initiatives and advance accountability within his own government,” she said.
“I think the key question is the implementation of these commitments, into action. And one specific area is the importance of investigating reports of security forces abuses, prosecuting those responsible and ensuring that accountability is achieved.”
As for whether there will be consequences should the US government’s call for the respect of human rights go unheeded, Zeya said; “It’s well known that US security assistance and partnership cooperation programmes are also subject to US law that requires that we are vigilant with respect to our partners upholding human rights and where there are allegations of gross violations of human rights, we have to be attentive and call for accountability.”
Additionally, the Under Secretary denied reports that the US government has ignored the happenings during the protests after President Ruto’s State visit two and half months ago.
“Throughout the protests led by our embassy but supported by my boss US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, we’ve urged the government of Kenya to conduct prompt, transparent investigations into allegations of violence and hold those responsible accountable,” she said.
Zeya made these remarks after meeting with various security sector players among them the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo and Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Mohamed Amin.
She also met with others in the justice system players including Chief Justice Martha Koome and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).
Zeya explained that anti-corruption is an area of interest for the US government and urged President Ruto to ensure stolen public resources are recovered.
“We see anti-corruption as a major area of focus. This is a very important priority policy for the United States. So, this is an area where we are going to concentrate our efforts. The recovery of assets stolen by the kleptocracy,” she noted.
This comes as the Gen Z had another round of protest against the government under the hashtag #nanenanemarch on Thursday, August 8, 2024.
