Kenya Secures UN Human Rights Council Seat Despite Strong Opposition from Civil Society

Nairobi, Oct 9 – Kenya has unexpectedly secured a seat on the UN Human Rights Council, despite strong opposition from a coalition of nine civil society groups. These organizations, led by the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), argue that Kenya is “unfit” for the role due to alleged human rights abuses and governance failures under President William Ruto’s administration. In a strongly worded letter to the UNHRC, the civil society groups accused the Kenyan government of “gross human rights violations” and a lack of governance standards since Ruto took office in September 2022.

In a vote held at the UN General Assembly in New York, Kenya joined several nations on the council, which monitors human rights practices in member states and can mandate investigations into abuses. Kenya, alongside several other nations such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Spain, Benin, Bolivia, Colombia, Cyprus, Czechia, Gambia, Iceland, Marshall Islands, Mexico, North Macedonia, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, and Thailand, was elected to the UN Human Rights Council, set to begin its term on January 1, 2025.

However, the candidacies of Ethiopia and Kenya were met with strong opposition from civil society groups due to ongoing human rights abuses. In Ethiopia, civil society groups accused the government of ignoring international humanitarian laws, citing intensified conflicts in the Oromia and Amhara regions. Similarly, Kenya’s civil society criticized its government’s human rights record under President William Ruto, focusing on unlawful killings, abductions, and suppression of protests, as highlighted by the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC).

Saudi Arabia, which narrowly missed out on securing a seat, was also strongly opposed by human rights groups. Human Rights Watch Director Louis Charbonneau criticized Saudi Arabia’s bid, citing the country’s failure to address the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and the border killings of Ethiopian migrants by Saudi border guards. Charbonneau argued that nations responsible for such crimes should not be granted seats on the UN’s top human rights body.

Despite this, Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs submitted its candidacy on September 27, 2024, highlighting its commitment to upholding international human rights treaties. However, civil society groups have continued to question the legitimacy of this pledge, pointing to the government’s track record of undermining human rights at home while seeking a seat on a global platform meant to defend those very rights. The controversy reflects broader concerns about political considerations influencing the election of member states to the Human Rights Council.

“Two years into President William Ruto’s term, Kenyans continue to witness a deeply entrenched culture of impunity,” the letter states. The government’s promises of human rights protection are, in reality, undermined by the persistent and egregious abuses committed by state institutions, particularly the police.

The letter details a disturbing pattern of police brutality and unlawful actions that have intensified under the Ruto administration. Kenya’s policing system, the letter notes, is rooted in its colonial past, designed to protect the interests of the ruling elite at the expense of ordinary citizens. This culture of repression has continued into the present, with the police frequently used as a tool for silencing dissent.

In the first six months of 2024 alone, the police were involved in numerous incidents of excessive force. Protests against the punitive Finance Bill in June and July of this year, referred to as the “Gen Z revolution,” were met with brutal police crackdowns that resulted in the deaths of at least 60 people. The police also detained over 1,400 peaceful protesters and are accused of carrying out the enforced disappearances of 65 individuals, the letter states. These numbers, while shocking, only scratch the surface of the violence that Kenyans have endured at the hands of the National Police Service (NPS).

Despite these atrocities, there has been little accountability. The letter recounts how, on September 24, 2024, police fired tear gas at striking university workers who were marching peacefully to present a petition to Parliament. In another case, a student at Multimedia University, Trever Mathege Mureithi, was critically injured when police fired a tear gas canister at him at close range during a protest. Such incidents illustrate the reckless disregard for human life exhibited by Kenya’s law enforcement agencies, the letter says.

“The police have become the state’s primary agents of repression,” reads the letter, highlighting the systemic nature of the violations. This is in stark contrast to President Ruto’s pre-election promises to reform the police service. In his Kenya Kwanza Manifesto and during his swearing-in ceremony in 2022, Ruto vowed that the police would not kill any Kenyan. Yet, two years into his term, the police continue to operate with impunity, often praised by the President and other top officials for their heavy-handed approach, civil society argues.

The civil society groups stress that the government’s disregard for human rights is not limited to police brutality. There is a wider pattern of defiance of court orders and disregard for the rule of law. The letter cites a January 2024 incident in which President Ruto publicly declared his intention to ignore court rulings that, in his view, hindered his government’s agenda. This open defiance of the judiciary is indicative of a broader culture of impunity that has taken root under Ruto’s leadership.

The letter also points to the case of former acting Inspector General of Police, Gilbert Masengeli, who ignored seven court orders directing him to disclose the whereabouts of three abducted human rights defenders. Such flagrant defiance of the judiciary sends a chilling message about the state of governance in Kenya. “Defiance of court orders has been a major obstacle to good governance and the rule of law,” the letter asserts.

In addition to these direct human rights violations, the Ruto administration is accused of weaponizing regulatory frameworks to silence dissent. Civil society organizations critical of the government have faced harassment from state agencies. On July 22, 2024, the Public Benefits Regulatory Authority instructed the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to investigate 16 civil society organizations. Moreover, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has been used to target grassroots organizations that have been vocal about the government’s governance abuses.

The government has also clamped down on media freedom, with the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) issuing an advisory warning media houses against live coverage of public protests. The restriction of government advertisements to select media houses further cripples’ independent journalism, depriving media outlets of much-needed revenue was also cited in the letter to the UNHRC.

The letter does not stop at highlighting human rights abuses—it also addresses the Ruto administration’s economic and social governance failures. The imposition of the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF), a flawed university funding model, and a punitive tax regime are cited as examples of policies that disproportionately affect the most vulnerable Kenyans. The letter also highlights the high levels of corruption under the current regime, with the country losing an estimated KSh 608 billion to graft annually, according to Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi.

This economic mismanagement, combined with human rights abuses, has led to widespread discontent among the Kenyan population. The arbitrary displacement of informal settlement residents during floods in March and April 2024, which resulted in the loss of lives and property, is another example of the government’s disregard for the welfare of its citizens. While wealthier neighborhoods in Nairobi were also affected by the floods, their residents were not subjected to the same level of state-instigated violence.

Given the scale of human rights abuses outlined in the letter, the civil society groups argue that Kenya’s candidacy for a seat on the UN Human Rights Council is untenable. They warn that granting Kenya this position would “severely undermine the credibility” of the UNHRC. “Kenya’s record of human rights violations disqualifies it from holding such a position,” the letter states.

The letter from Kenya’s civil society organizations is a damning indictment of the Ruto administration’s human rights record. It paints a picture of a government that has failed to uphold the principles enshrined in the country’s Constitution and international human rights treaties.

The coalition calls on the UN to investigate the human rights violations in Kenya and to hold those responsible accountable before the UN Assembly of State Parties. They also urge the African Union (AU) to withdraw its support for Kenya’s bid and to promote justice through the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights.