Amnesty: Police speak

Amnesty: Police speak
Published on June 24, 2008, 12:00 am
By Standard Team
Following the unending row over amnesty for suspects of post election violence, police now say the youths are not in their hands but in the jurisdiction of the courts and prisons.
Police also admitted for the first time that many of the youths thought to have been arrested were missing.
This emerged on Monday as police said they are taking charge to establish the exact status of the problem that is now developing into a security threat and political crisis. Police Spokesman Eric Kiraithe said no youths were in police custody and those in question were either in remand, jailed or missing.
Kiraithe said a special police team will be set up to sift through the maze of post-election crimes and report back to headquarters with exact figures and status of suspects from the affected regions.
But Kiraithe added that police were not concerned with the debate on amnesty, but just wanted to establish the facts.
When contacted last night, ODM leaders said the onus was on the police to tell Kenyans how many youths were arrested. They said they would continue calling for their release.
Its weird
Agriculture minister William Ruto said: "The issue about the number is weird. They are refusing to tell us the number."
He went on: "We don’t know the number yet. In some cases, they talk about 300 and when they say one case has exactly 17 people and another one 30 people, we cannot have a stand on the exact number of youths held by police."
Ruto said the worst affected area was Eldama Ravine where many youths were arrested.
Water minister Charity Ngilu said the amnesty issue could only be discussed between the two principals in the Coalition Government — President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
At the weekend, Ngilu said "generals" had asked the youths to go to the streets and those who stole the election should be answerable for the violence.
Chepalungu MP Isaac Ruto said the police should wait for instructions from their political bosses.
"This is a civilian Government ruled by decisions made by the political leadership," he said. "We will mount more pressure to have the youths released sooner than later."
ODM’s parliamentary Whip Jakoyo Midiwo said the police killed more people than the youths behind bars. He said the party would sue police officers who shed innocent blood.
He said he was surprised that Police Commissioner Hussein Ali was still in office even after the conduct of the police during the post-election violence.
Resettlement has stalled
Kiraithe’s announcement on the thorny issue comes after the embarrassing weekend incident where Justice minister Martha Karua was booed in Sotik during the funeral of former Assistant minister Lorna Laboso.
It was also a weekend when it was reported that the resettlement of IDPs had stalled in some regions with returnees being told to keep off until post-election violence suspects were freed.
Police now concede for the first time that an unknown number of youths are missing while at least 500 have been taken to courts and are in remand, jailed or freed, while a bunch are facing charges for capital offences.
Kiraithe said they have started investigation to ascertain the exact status and numbers of youths who ODM has persistently claimed are in the hands of the police.
Kiraithe said police wants to establish the status of youths suspected to be missing.
"Police have no youths in custody, but we have reports many are missing from villages in Rift Valley. We are trying to establish where they went," said Kiraithe.
He was speaking exclusively to The Standard yesterday shortly after Internal Security minister George Saitoti met the Police Commissioner and the AP Commandant, Mr Kinuthia Mbugua, to discuss the issue and the safety of IDPs returning to their homes.
Details of the meeting, which took place at Harambee House, were scanty but sources said it was agreed that security in the areas where resettlement was taking place be beefed up.
Saitoti is understood to have met President Kibaki later on.
Even though the President has ruled out amnesty, ODM leaders have insisted that the youths in custody be released unconditionally.
Last month, the Cabinet resolved that Ali sorts out whom among those in custody were petty offenders and how many were in for serious crimes.
Despite the Cabinet directive, the issue has continued to be a thorn in the flesh for the fragile coalition Government as ministers, mainly in ODM, calling for amnesty while those in PNU insist on justice.
The Cabinet directive was seen then as a softening of the Government position that could have led to the pardon of petty offenders.
According to police records, about 500 suspects are facing serious charges committed in the post-election period.
Police indicate that 103 case files, involving 137 suspects, are being handled in various Rift Valley towns, mainly Nakuru and Eldoret, 77 suspects have been charged in Nyanza, 98 in Nairobi, 50 in Western Province and 63 in Mombasa.
ODM politicians have claimed that the number could be as high as 4,000 youths held or missing.
Seven councillors are among 50 people who have been charged in a Kapsabet court with post-election violence in Nandi North District.
Kiraithe said it has been claimed many youths never returned home after they took part in demonstrations and have not been found in police cells.
Said he: "We are also concerned about this because it is emerging that the youths cannot be traced. We want the local people to help us in our efforts to know the truth."
Charges preferred against most of those arrested range from robbery with violence to rape, arson and murder.
Scores of other youths and leaders were rounded up in the regions and charged with petty offences, which included taking part in illegal demonstrations and carrying offensive weapons.
Kiraithe said some of the cases are in different stages of prosecution and police have setbacks in some because witnesses fear to testify. Some witnesses are afraid of testifying against the accused because they are their neighbours, said Kiraithe.
Some of the victims were bailed out after paying fines, while those unable to pay are in remand.
But the police spokesman was quick to add that police were not party to the amnesty debate.
Among those arrested for serious crimes were 19 murder suspects who were charged with killing a Catholic priest, Fr Michael Kamau, at Muserechi on the Nakuru-Eldama Ravine road.
The suspects were, however, released before they could be arraigned in court to plead to the murder charges.
Their freedom was short-lived and they were re-arrested and charged with minor offences.
An incitement case involving a prominent Eldoret businessman, Mr Jackson Kibor, has been going on in a Nakuru Court.
Kibor is alleged to have made inflammatory statements via an international radio station targeting a community.
Four suspects are also being held at Nakuru Prison in connection with the burning a church in Eldoret where 30 people are believed to have died.
In the case, that is pending in the Nakuru High Court, the suspects were airlifted from Eldoret and brought to Nakuru to face the charges.
Police sources indicate that more suspects who have been mentioned in the proceedings are likely to be arraigned in court.
Former Nakuru town MP David Manyara was also arrested in April in connection with the chaos that rocked Nakuru town. He was arrested alongside Nakuru businessman Zakayo Waweru and the police wanted to bond them to keep peace for a year.
The two, however, declined and the case is pending before the Nakuru Chief Magistrate’s Court.
In Nyanza, PPO Anthony Kibuchi said most suspects arrested at the peak of the violence were released unconditionally.
In Mombasa, the OCPD, Mr Patrick Wafula, said 63 suspects were charged with various offences and the cases are going on.
Reported by Cyrus Ombati, Titus Too, Jane Akinyi, Willis Oketch, Karanja Njoroge and Anderson Ojwang’


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