The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) has faulted the police for violently disrupting anti-femicide protestors in the streets of Nairobi.

In a statement on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, KHRC accused the police of using unwarranted force against the protestors, leading to several injuries.

“Police in Nairobi violently disrupted a march advocating for an end to femicide, an incident that occurred on International Human Rights Day – a day commemorating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which asserts the inalienable rights of all people,” the statement read in part.

“During the disruption, several protesters were subjected to unwarranted force, injured, and others arrested, with police deploying plainclothed officers, live ammunition, and teargas despite a court order prohibiting such actions.”

“This brazen disregard for the law contrasts with William Ruto’s recent pledge of Sh100 million to combat femicide. Ironically, his regime has failed to protect a fundamental, costless mechanism for advancing women’s rights-peaceful protest.”

According to a recent report by the Directorate of Criminal Investigation, 97 women were killed in femicides between August and October 2024, a number which KHRC says could be higher.

“This latest incident adds to countless reasons for the Ruto regime’s inability to uphold human rights and democratic freedoms,” KHRC stated.

KHRC has also demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all arrested protesters and legal action against the officers responsible for these violations.

Earlier in the day, the Law Society of Kenya and Amnesty Kenya condemned police for their treatment of anti-femicide protestors.

The police and the protestors clashed in Nairobi on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, and this has drawn attention, including that of LSK and other international organisations.

LSK President, Faith Odhiambo, in a statement on X, said instead of attacking harmless Kenyans, they should focus on ending atrocities that include femicide.

“The habit of violent response by police to Kenyans expressing their constitutional right to demonstrate and picket is increasingly becoming incorrigible.

“There is absolutely no justification for attacking, arresting, and interfering with harmless Kenyans agitating for the protection of women, especially when the threat of violence against women is, ostensibly, a national crisis. The police must refocus their energy on ending and fighting atrocities, not perpetuating them.

“We support ending femicide, and we support all the brave Kenyans who came out today to call for the overdue change,” Odhiambo’s statement read.

In a joint statement, LSK and Amnesty Kenya condemned their police for their acts against the protestors.

“On this International Human Rights Day, a day dedicated to celebrating and upholding the dignity, freedom, and rights of all people, we witnessed a grave violation of these very principles. Peaceful protestors in Nairobi—predominantly women and allies—marching against the epidemic of femicide were teargassed, violently dispersed, and unlawfully arrested by police.