Rights watchdog set to reissue report

A government human rights watchdog plans to reissue its report on the post-election violence.

The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights will release the report, On the Brink of Precipice: A Human Rights Account of Kenya’s Post-2007 Election Violence, which was first issued last year, on Tuesday to complement current efforts to try the suspects.

“We want to relaunch a new print as part of building momentum to ensure justice is done,” said KNCHR vice-chairman Hassan Omar.

The report is said to contain 219 names of suspects ranging from senior politicians and government officials to little known people in the villages suspected to have been involved in the planning and perpetration of the violence.

The report was first launched last year and caused jitters across the country, with some leaders vehemently condemning it.

The report says the post-election violence was organised and carried out with military precision. Some leaders and communities are said to have provided food, transport and allowances for the militias.In some areas, the raiders are said to have been organised to fight in six-hour shifts before coming together to wrap up the attacks at night.

It says the raiders were paid Sh100-3,000 each, money sourced from businessmen, politicians and fundraisers.According to the report, the attackers operated in groups of about 100.

But, before reaching their target, they would split into groups of 20, each with a specific role – chasing away property owners, looting, burning houses and even killing.MPs, both sitting and former, are among the 219 people adversely mentioned in the report.

But KNCHR chairperson Florence Jaoko said the mention of people in the report does not necessarily amount to an accusation of involvement, but rather a pointer to the police and the Attorney-General on where to focus their investigations.

The relaunch of the report coincides with heightened efforts by the International Criminal Court to prosecute the suspects.

On Thursday, former UN chief Kofi Annan sparked a flurry of activity in government when he presented a secret envelope containing names of suspected perpetrators of the violence to the ICC.

The KNCHR has also presented its list of suspects to the ICC for further investigations.

On Saturday, Mr Omar said their report is quite clear and that it has “overwhelming evidence”.

Some 1,333 people were killed and more than 600,000 displaced in the violence following the announcement of the results of the hotly contested presidency in 2007.

Although the ICC is expected to only deal with top leaders and business people whose names are contained in the envelope, KNCHR hopes a local tribunal will be established to deal with the “small fish”.

“What we usually see on the role of ICC is that it deals with high level perpetrators who could get away with their crimes because of their privileged position in society,” Mr Omar said.