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Amnesty International Says Kenya
Must Investigate Post-Election Violence and Hold Perpetrators
Responsible to Prevent Future Unrest
Kenya Crisis Under Discussion at African Commission Meeting in
Gambia
15. Feb. 2008
NEW YORK - February 15 - Amnesty International today called on the
African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights, meeting in Gambia,
and the Kenyan government to thoroughly investigate the
post-election human rights violations in Kenya that have caused
1,000 deaths, to ensure that those responsible are brought to
justice.
The African Commission will be meeting in an extraordinary session
in Banjul, Gambia to discuss developments in Kenya, among other
concerns, today through February 24. "A human rights agenda must
be central to any resolution of the political crisis – which means
that those responsible for the violence must be brought to justice
and the victims receive reparations. Impunity for human rights
violations will only store up problems for Kenya's future. We hope
that the African Commission will play its role in ensuring that
this does not happen," said Erwin van der Borght, director of
Amnesty International's Africa Program, who has just returned from
a fact-finding mission to Kenya. Former U.N. Secretary General
Kofi Annan has been working as the chief mediator to try to end
the violence and political turmoil that has driven tens of
thousands of Kenyans from their homes. And President Bush will
send U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Kenya during his
upcoming trip to Africa, to urge a return to democracy. "Any
reforms to government structures or functions in Kenya must also
strengthen human rights protections," said Ann Corbett, Kenya
country specialist for Amnesty International USA. "Amnesty
International urges Secretary Rice to help move the Kenyan
government and the Orange Democratic Movement toward greater
respect for human rights." Amnesty International calls on the
African Commission to: * Call on the Kenyan government and the
Orange Democratic Movement to ensure full respect for human rights
by their supporters. Urge the Kenyan government to investigate all
allegations of human rights violations and ensure that suspected
perpetrators are held responsible through trials that comply with
international standards. * Undertake an investigative mission to
Kenya to assess the human rights situation. The Commission's
Special Rapporteur on Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Internally
Displaced Persons and Migrants in Africa and the Special
Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders in Africa should be an
integral part of the mission. A report of the mission with
specific recommendations should be submitted to the African
Union's Heads of States Assembly soon after the visit and
subsequently made public. Background information Since December
30, more than 1,000 people have been killed in politically
motivated or ethnic attacks in Kenya following a disputed
presidential election. This number includes numerous people shot
dead by the police, who were deployed to quell the violence or
break up mass rallies called by political opposition leaders to
protest the presidential election results. According to estimates,
more than 300,000 people have become internally displaced as a
result of the violence and more than 10,000 others have fled to
Uganda as refugees.
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