Human Rights Watch said that Kenya's Anti Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) has been involved in summary executions and enforced disappearances, calling on international donors to suspend their support to the security forces behind the human rights violations.
In a statement released on Monday, the non-governmental organisation stated that their research had documented at least 10 cases of extra-judicial murders, 10 cases of disappearances and 11 cases of mistreatment of suspects since 2011, all with evidence of involvement from the country's counter-terrorism unit.
Leslie Lefkow, HRW's deputy Africa director, said,
The organisation cited a US law, known as the “Leahy Law,” which prohibits support towards a foreign security force unit if the US Secretary of State has “credible information” that it was involved in a “gross violation of human rights.”
HRW went on to add, that in the case of the ATPU, “the evidence is overwhelming that the unit’s officers are involved in serious abuses.” The statement said donor's risk complicity by supporting Kenya's security forces, with Lefkow stating,
In a statement released on Monday, the non-governmental organisation stated that their research had documented at least 10 cases of extra-judicial murders, 10 cases of disappearances and 11 cases of mistreatment of suspects since 2011, all with evidence of involvement from the country's counter-terrorism unit.
Leslie Lefkow, HRW's deputy Africa director, said,
“Kenyan counterterrorism forces appear to be killing and disappearing people right under the noses of top government officials, major embassies, and the United Nations.. This horrendous conduct does not protect Kenyans from terrorism – it simply undermines the rule of law.”
The organisation cited a US law, known as the “Leahy Law,” which prohibits support towards a foreign security force unit if the US Secretary of State has “credible information” that it was involved in a “gross violation of human rights.”
HRW went on to add, that in the case of the ATPU, “the evidence is overwhelming that the unit’s officers are involved in serious abuses.” The statement said donor's risk complicity by supporting Kenya's security forces, with Lefkow stating,
“The ATPU has been conducting abusive operations for years, sometimes very openly, yet the Kenyan authorities have done nothing to investigate, much less stop these crimes.. Donors need to carry out their own investigations of these abuses and suspend their assistance to abusive forces, or risk being complicit in Kenya’s culture of impunity.”See the full statement here.