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A group of United Nations human rights experts has written to the Kenyan government over allegations of serious human rights violations.
These violations include the killing of protesters, the arrest and detention of human rights defenders, the deportation of a Ugandan lawyer, and the suppression of media freedom during the June 25 protests across the country.
The letter, referenced AL KEN 3/2025, was sent on August 5, 2025, by four UN Special Rapporteurs, namely Mary Lawlor (Human Rights Defenders), Matthew Gillett (Arbitrary Detention), Irene Khan (Freedom of Expression), and Gina Romero (Freedom of Assembly and Association).
UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Opinion Irene Khan
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Copies of the letter were also shared with the governments of Uganda and Tanzania, given their involvement in the alleged incidents.
The Kenyan government was given 60 days to respond to the communication before being made public on the UN’s human rights website.
However, by October 22, Kenya had not responded to the contents of the letter.
The experts expressed grave concern over what they described as “an emerging pattern of criminalisation and harassment of human rights defenders in Kenya.”
Protestors taking part in a demonstration in Nairobi
Crackdown on protests and media blackout
According to the communication, nationwide protests on June 25, 2025, left 16 people dead and hundreds injured.
The demonstrations, which marked the first anniversary of the 2024 anti-Finance Bill protest, were allegedly met with excessive police force.
During the protests, several major media houses reportedly had their transmission centres raided by police and communication officials who switched off live broadcasts.
The Communications Authority of Kenya allegedly issued a directive barring media outlets from airing live coverage of the protests, a decision later suspended by the High Court in Milimani, which termed it “potentially unconstitutional” pending a hearing scheduled for October 24, 2025.
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Arrests of human rights defenders
The letter cites the arrest of Mark Amiani, John Mulingwa Nzau, and Francis Mutunge Mwangi, all members of the Social Justice Centres Working Group, who were detained by police on June 27 while travelling to work in Mombasa.
They were later charged with incitement of violence, damage to property, and theft, though the experts said no credible evidence was presented in court.
They were held for five days before being released on bail on July 2, with conditions requiring them to report to the police twice weekly. Their next court hearing was scheduled for August 21, 2025.
Prominent activist and photojournalist Boniface Mwangi was also arrested at his Nairobi home on July 19, where police allegedly confiscated electronic equipment and even tear gas canisters.
He was charged with unlawful possession of ammunition and released on bail two days later.
The UN experts noted that Mwangi had previously been arrested several times and was abducted in Tanzania in May 2025, before being found in Kenya’s coastal town of Ukunda days later.
Activists Boniface Mwangi(Kenyan) and Agather Atuhaire(Ugandan)
Deportation of Ugandan human rights lawyer
The letter further highlighted the deportation of Ugandan lawyer Martin Mavenjina, a senior legal advisor at the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), who was expelled from Kenya on July 5 despite having a valid residency and a Kenyan family.
He was allegedly detained at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and forced onto a flight to Kampala without being informed of the reason or given access to legal counsel
Attack on Kenya Human Rights Commission
A day after Mavenjina’s deportation, armed men reportedly stormed a press conference hosted at the KHRC offices in Nairobi, where women and widows were calling for an end to police brutality and enforced disappearances.
The assailants allegedly destroyed journalists’ equipment and accused the women of organising protests.
Despite reports being filed, no investigations have been launched, according to the letter.
UN calls for action and accountability
The UN experts urged the Kenyan government to clarify the legal basis for the arrests, detentions, and deportations, and to end the intimidation of journalists and human rights defenders.
They also demanded investigations into the killings and injuries from the protests.
The experts warned that the events “constitute blatant violations” of international human rights laws, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantees freedoms of expression, assembly, and association.