Police accused of using ‘lethal force’ to combat crime

Police have killed 191 people since January last year, a report released Wednesday has said.

Most of those killed were “summarily executed,” the study by the Independent Medico-Legal Unit indicated.

The report further said that use of lethal force had been adopted as the standard way of fighting crime in Kenya.

It raised concern that of the 191 deaths recorded, only 19 people were shot by police in protection of the life of another person.

The report said 138 people were “summarily executed,” meaning, they were shot dead after being accused of crime without being charged.

The other 34 people were “executed in unclear circumstances,” the report adds.

“We are very concerned that in a situation where use of lethal force to protect life has become the default method of addressing crime, the government has made a proposal to amend the National Police Service Act, 2011, to give authority to the police to shoot to kill to protect property. We fear that this amendment if passed will only escalate an already serious situation,” reads part of the report.

The proposal is at the Second Reading stage in Parliament.

This year alone, 48 people have died in the hands of the police. They include 40 who were summarily executed, four shot to protect life and four others killed in unclear circumstances, according to Imlu, an NGO that specialises in advocating human rights.

Twenty eight people were killed in January, another 14 last month and six more killings had occurred by Monday.

The Nairobi-based lobby explained that the information was gathered from victims and a network of monitors, as well as media reports.

“Over the last one year, we have noted that the incidents of use of lethal force leading to extra-judicial executions for the year 2013 having been rising amidst a clamour for fundamental reforms in the police service,” another part of the report says.

The highest number of killings was reported in Nairobi County where 87 deaths were recorded.

Other deaths occurred in Nakuru (15), Kisumu (eight) Trans Nzoia (six) and Embu (three).

Murang’a, Meru and Uasin Gishu counties had four deaths each while Kiambu, Mombasa, Busia and Bungoma counties had two deaths each.

Kakamega, Marsabit and Kitui had one death reported in each one of the Counties.

Independently, the Nation reported that the most recent killings reported in Nairobi occurred on Saturday night, in which five men were shot dead at Express Kenya Limited godown in Industrial Area while the sixth was gunned down near Fig Tree in Ngara.

Nairobi police chief Benson Kibui said a homemade pistol recovered in the Ngara incident.