Police ‘dispersed youths baying for Kikuyu blood’
Deputy President William Ruto ( R) at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague in September 10, 2013. A witness Wednesday told the International Criminal Court how she and others escaped death by a whisker while on their way to Kapsabet police station to seek refuge at the height of the 2007/08 post-election violence. Photo/FILE
What you need to know:
- At the station, she said, she found several people, majority of whom were from the Kikuyu, Kamba and Kisii communities. Others, she noted, had serious injuries.
- The third victim fell into a hole. While in there, the person heard footsteps and thought that he was being rescued. It was not to be. It turned out that they were the Kalenjin youths, who slashed him with their weapons leaving him for dead.
A witness Wednesday told the International Criminal Court how she and others escaped death by a whisker while on their way to Kapsabet police station to seek refuge at the height of the 2007/08 post-election violence.
Witness P442 said police officers, who were taking them to the station, were forced to fire several shots in the air to disperse rowdy Kalenjin youths who had erected three roadblocks. The youths, she said, were baying for their blood.
“They had stopped the vehicle we were in and demanded that we disembark. The police officers tried to reason with them but they refused, calling us snakes who deserved to be killed…they even spat on us,” she told the trial of Deputy President William Ruto and Mr Joshua arap Sang who are charged with crimes against humanity.
“An argument ensued and the officers fired into the air and the youths ran away. We managed to pass the roadblocks and got to the police station safely,” the witness said.
At the station, she said, she found several people, majority of whom were from the Kikuyu, Kamba and Kisii communities. Others, she noted, had serious injuries.
Asked by trial lawyer Lara Renton how the injuries were sustained, the witness gave an example of how a group of Kikuyus, who had hidden in a tea plantation, were tracked by dogs owned by the Kalenjin youths.
Sensing that they would be caught, the Kikuyu took to their heels. Unfortunately, one was hit by an arrow in his back; another was hacked with a panga, sustaining serious injuries on his head.
The third victim fell into a hole. While in there, the person heard footsteps and thought that he was being rescued. It was not to be. It turned out that they were the Kalenjin youths, who slashed him with their weapons leaving him for dead.
“We stayed at the police station for a while and later we were asked to write down which areas we wanted to be taken. It later turned out that we were to be taken to Nairobi, but this also did not materialise,” she said.
Earlier on, a Kalenjin man who supported the PNU Alliance during the 2007 General Election gave five cows to seek the forgiveness of his tribesmen, the witness said Wednesday.
