June 25: No more lives should be lost tomorrow
By Editorial, June 24, 2025For months, there has been a national outcry about increasing police brutality that has led to deaths and pain to families.
The killing of an influencer in police custody was a grim reminder that our law enforcers were still stuck in a rut, seriously requiring reforms to transform into a disciplined service as envisaged in the Constitution.
No single institution – probably second to the presidency – has inflicted such terror on citizens that it is supposed to protect. The national police operation remains a brutal criminal enterprise and a major threat to the country’s peace, security and the well-being of citizens.
A report from a human rights lobby released yesterday painted a dark picture of unethical and dangerous police behaviour.
As Kenya gears up to commemorate a year since Gen Z protests led to a crackdown that resulted in the killings of brave Kenyans demanding good governance, the survey shows that men were increasingly likely to face police brutality.
According to the Independent Medico-Legal Unit, the rights violations that the police are likely to commit on protesters include arbitrary arrest and abduction, which may end up as forced disappearances.
An analysis conducted on both violations committed by police during the 2023 opposition protests on the cost of living and the 2024 Gen Z-led anti-2024 Finance Bill showed that out of 10 documented cases, nine victims were men.
The study revealed that because men attend protests in their numbers compared with women, they tend to suffer more when police commit violations in their efforts to maintain public order.
Abductions are aimed at instilling fear and discouraging protesters from exercising their right to assemble. Many of those abducted reported being subjected to torture.
IMLU cited the cases of the “Kitengela Three” – activist Robert Njagi, Asmil Longton and Jamil Longton – who were forced to spend a month in illegal custody.
In autopsies conducted on 48 bodies believed to be of victims of extrajudicial killings, the IMLU recorded 47 male bodies.
That is why Kenyans have reason to worry about the likely police action during tomorrow’s planned protests. Though Kenyan police seem impervious to any learning, we urge restraint and professionalism in managing any demos.
No more lives should be lost at the hands of police.