Kenya ‘not willing to punish poll violence architects'

A human rights watchdog has accused the government of allegedly showing little political will to punish the perpetrators of the 2007 post-election violence.

State security officials who killed and tortured citizens have not been punished, Amnesty International says in its annual report.

“Violence against women and girls remained widespread.”

It said the President commuted to life, the sentences of more than 4,000 prisoners who had been on death row for a long time.

The courts continue to impose death sentences but there are no executions.

Although the government formed the National Cohesion and Integration Commission, little progress has been made in implementing the proposed fundamental reforms.

Regular disputes in government and between PNU and ODM delayed legal, constitutional, land, electoral and other reforms.

The report noted dozens of people were killed in violence involving vigilante groups and the outlawed Mungiki sect with the police accused of failing to enforce order.

It said: “No measures were implemented to ensure accountability for rights violations, including possible crimes against humanity, committed in the post-election violence in 2007/8, when more than 1,000 people were killed.”