We aren’t doing well on human rights

Pope Francis (right) waves to faithful as he arrives for his audience with participants at the Conference for people with disabilities, promoted by CEI (Italian Episcopal Conference), in Aula Paolo VI at the Vatican, on June 11, 2016. PHOTO | AFP

What you need to know:

  • The reputation of any particular regime/country is a function of quality of governance, respect for the rule of law, individual liberties, and democratic principles.
  • A government’s record of practices is derived from media reports and stories, individual accounts and recorded accounts of non-governmental organisations.

In 2015, Kenyans welcomed the high profile visits of a number of world leaders and notable persons, the most significant of whom were the Pope and US President Barack Obama.

In addition, a handful of conferences of international significance, among them the WTO Ministerial Conference, took place in Nairobi.

For many Kenyans, these visits and events signify a validation of Kenya and its government’s image and reputation abroad. But do they? First, the reputation of any particular regime/country is a function of quality of governance, respect for the rule of law, individual liberties, and democratic principles.

Other components include ability to steer the country towards economic prosperity, egalitarian principles, and promotion of social justice. In any event, the high-profile visits may be simply happenstance and enabled by the present lacklustre consideration for human rights around the world.

A government’s record of practices is derived from media reports and stories, individual accounts, recorded accounts of non-governmental organisations, and sometimes of governmental entities. The most notable and comprehensive report of adverse activities and practices of governments in other countries are the US State Department’s annual human rights reports.

The reports contain comprehensive documentation of human rights violations in all countries that receive US assistance. They also cover democracy, rule of law, and other governance issues and report on wide-ranging topics — from administration of justice to societal abuses such as female genital mutilation and domestic violence.

They draw conclusions, capture a portrayal of the practices of regimes, and indict them for dictatorial practices, violation of human rights, and contravention of rule of law principles. They cumulatively shape the image and reputation of a country and its leadership.

The reports are presented to the US Congress and are considered the official documentation of state conduct abroad. All US government agencies, institutions, and departments, including courts, reference the reports on matters human rights, peace, and just governance in any of the countries covered. In fact, the US government and courts use the reports to determine if persons deserve asylum protection in the US.

The UK’s equivalent of the US human rights report is the Human Rights and Democracy Report. It is also an annual document prepared by Britain’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) that sets out the analysis on country situations and thematic issues that affect FCO’s work of defending human rights and promoting democracy around the world.

DEPICTION OF ATROCITIES

The UK report is aspirational and rudimentary and is a single one for all the countries covered. It contains useful information from time to time. The US reports are recognised and accepted by its allies around the world. Leading human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch also produce periodic reports and publications that document instances of human rights abuses around the world.

In addition to the above, broadcasts and news media reports and stories provide powerful visual and graphic depiction of atrocities in real time. For example, an April 2016 broadcast in the US of a segment on corruption in Kenya by PBS sparked an uproar by highlighting the extent of economic emasculation of the poor in Kenya. It also lent credence to an existing narrative on the alarming levels of corruption in Kenya.

Another damning publication is the April 15, 2016, report by the Daily Mail that “Kenya Named Among ‘The Corrupt and Brutal Tyrannies’ Propped Up by Britain Foreign Aid Budget”. Another highlight appeared in the widely circulated New York Times in an article titled, “An Anti-Corruption Plea: Just Steal A Little”.

Yet another report in the equally widely circulating publication, Forbes, whose title read: “Corruption And ‘Tenderpreneurs’ Bring Kenya’s Economy To Its Knees”.

The 2015 Kenya Country Report is not yet out. It will be interesting to see its contents. However, there is no doubt that even against the backdrop of the visits by world luminaries and goodwill from other nations, there is an emerging narrative of a growing record of rights violations and abuse of democracy and democratic principles.

Irrespective of who wins the presidential election in 2017, it is safe to conclude that the incumbent’s legacy is tainted. The question is: to what degree?

Ms Njogu is an attorney and counsellor at law in Maryland, USA. [email protected]