When law becomes the weapon: Unmasking extra judicial killings and the struggle for justice in Kenya
by admin on | 2026-01-08 09:51:35 Last Updated by admin on 2026-01-09 11:20:23
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Abstract
Extra-judicial killings in Kenya have long represented a grave contradiction between the constitutional promise of justice and the reality of impunity. This article not only examines the legal aspect but also the institutional and moral dimensions of state sanctioned violence despite the government’s commitments to end such practices. The Constitution, together with other enabling authorities such as the Independent Policing and Oversight Authority Act and the National Police Service Act, aims to act as a tool of justice as well as to protect Kenyans from human rights violations. Yet, this article reveals how the misuse of law enforcement power continues to undermine these constitutional guarantees, eroding both the right to life and the rule of law in Kenya. The article further explores Kenya’s statutory and institutional framework and evaluates gaps that allow impunity to persist. It also situates Kenya’s obligation within international law, referencing the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which prohibit arbitrary deprivation of life. Ending extrajudicial killings requires accountability, transparency, and genuine political will. Kenya, through relevant stakeholders, needs to ensure that the law serves as a shield against injustice rather than a weapon of oppression. This echoes the words in the National Anthem, “Haki iwe Ngao na mlinzi,” translated as “Justice be our shield and defender”.
Introduction
In recent years, Kenya has witnessed an alarming pattern of unlawful state killings, especially during the demonstrations of June 25, 2024,1 often disguised as security operations or responses to crime. According to Amnesty Kenya’s 2023 annual report,2 Missing Voices recorded 118 cases of police killings and 10 enforced disappearances. This number keeps increasing,3 day by read more...
