Activists sue State for plan to close refugee camp
Refugees at the Dadaab camp on December 4, 2013. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights and Kituo cha Sheria has said there was no public participation in the disbandment of the Department of Refugee Affairs as well as Dadaab’s closure. PHOTO | EVANS HABIL | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The two protested against directives issued on May 6 and 10 requiring that the Refugee Department be disbanded and the two camps closed by November.
Two lobby groups on Monday sued the government over its plan to close the world’s largest refugee camp, Dadaab, and send the refugees back to their countries.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights and Kituo cha Sheria said there was no public participation in the disbandment of the Department of Refugee Affairs as well as Dadaab’s closure.
Through lawyer Solomon Masitsa, the two sued Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery, his Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho and the Attorney-General Githu Muigai in a case in which Amnesty International is listed as an interested party.
The two protested against directives issued on May 6 and 10 requiring that the Refugee Department be disbanded and the camp closed by November.
They said the directive was a blanket one, was discriminatory, and violated international laws.
They also said the move would negatively impact on refugees and asylum seekers in Kenya as it denied them access to vital services.
While seeking that the directive be suspended, they argued in their case documents that some of the refugees were likely to face prosecution.
“The purported disbandment of an entire government’s refugee department by way of a statement is arbitrary and has exposed refugees as well as asylum seekers to various protection concerns, leading to uncertainties and hardships,” said the human rights commission’s Chief Executive Patricia Nyaundi, who also termed the move illegal.
