3. HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATION IN KENYA
The following summary of the human rights situation in Kenya is based on KNCHRs
4th State of Human Rights Report entitled Human Rights, the Elusive Mirage1 and the
12th Annual Report2. The 4th State of Human Rights Report focuses on the situation of
human rights in Kenya from 2011 to 2014 and the 12th Annual Report is for the year
2015/2016.
CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS
Access to Justice
There was improvement in access to justice in the period leading to 2014. There was
construction of more courts and recruitment of more judicial officers to offer services
to the public. However, there are capacity gaps that still prevail in the judiciary
especially on providing access to persons with disability. Provision of Sign Language
Interpretation services, court documents accessible in braille and physical access of
courts remain big challenges that need to be resolved.
On a positive note, the courts have played a big role in adjudicating matters that touch
on human rights. This has advanced the human rights discourse in a great way.
Transitional Justice
The government had set up the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission to come
up with recommendations on how to resolve past injustices and violations of human
rights. The TJRC faced political interference during the course of its operations. Once
TJRC released its report, an amendment to the TJRC Act was done to allow Parliament
to review its recommendations. The recommendations of the TJRC are yet to be
implemented to date. However, the Attorney General has initiated the process of
operationalizing a restorative justice fund through setting up of a governance structure
in which the KNCHR is a member. The Attorney General has further mandated the
1
KNCHR, 4th State of Human Rights Report available at
http://www.knchr.org/Portals/0/StateOfHumanRightsReports/4th%20SHR%20Report.pdf (last accessed
3/10/2016)
2
KNCHR, 12th Annual Report, available at
http://www.knchr.org/Portals/0/AnnualReports/Annual%20English%20FINALE%20COPY.compressed.pdf?ver
=2016-05-31-172234-997 (last accessed 3/10/2016)
2