Human Rights Watch boss claims his life is in danger

Human Rights Watch East African Director, Otsieno Namwaya addressing the media in Nairobi on 31st May 2023 regarding Kenya's continuous abusive policing of protestors. [Denis Kibuchi, Standard] Human Rights Watch (HRW) Associate Africa Director Otsieno Namwaya has accused officers allegedly from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) of persistent surveillance and harassment, claiming that his life and those of his family are in danger. According to Namwaya, plainclothes officers from the DCI's Operations Support Unit (OSU) have been monitoring his residence for the past two weeks. "They are not acting like police officers. They are behaving like people who want to commit a crime. Their language is worrying. They are saying they will deal with me, not even arrest me," Namwaya told The Standard. Namwaya linked the situation to the HRW's publications on alleged police abuses during the June 25, 2024 anti-Finance Bill protests and a March 2025 report that demanded Kenyan authorities conclude and publicly announce the outcome of their investigation into the discovery of mutilated bodies at Mukuru Kwa Njenga quarry. According to Namwaya, six officers first appeared near his residence on August 23, 2025, using three unmarked cars that were parked at a nearby police station. He claimed they surveyed the neighbourhood during the day and returned at night. "They came again on August 25 at six in the morning, led by officers I identified as Kiprono Langat and Maurice Nyaga. They took photos of the house, stayed around until midday, and later came back at night with gadgets that looked like tablets, which I believe were used to track phone locations," he said. He said that neighbours, alarmed by their presence, sought clarification from the local police station. Namwaya said that the officers claimed they were looking for a money launderer in the area, an explanation he stated was false. "The local police were misled. These men were looking for me," he said. HRW released reports after the deadly anti-finance bill protests on June 25, 2024, alleging a cover-up by security agencies. Namwaya said investigations revealed that the bodies of people killed during the June 25 protests were misrecorded in mortuary books as mob justice cases, despite evidence of gunshot wounds. "At City Mortuary, we found three separate record books. Eight bodies from Kamukunji were booked as mob justice yet all had gunshot injuries," said Namwaya. Namwaya claimed surveillance against him intensified after HRW published its findings. "After the publications, I became a target. It escalated this year in March after the Mukuru Kwa Njenga quarry report," he said. He further alleged that the state has used colleagues in the human rights sector to try and lure him. "They are told to convince me to meet them, then alert the officers so that they get me. I have no problem honouring police summons. Why don't they summon me if they want to arrest me?" said Namwaya. Namwaya also cited an incident on July 10, 2025, along City Hall Way in Nairobi, which he described as an attempted abduction. "We were in a car when a white van with tinted windows blocked us. As traffic piled up and people hooted, the van sped off against traffic," he said. In a letter dated August 27, 2025 and addressed to Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja, HRW raised concern over what it termed as ongoing surveillance and harassment of Namwaya. The watchdog demanded to know if there was a court-approved warrant for his arrest, and if so, the nature of the allegations. "While Mr Namwaya would submit to a legal warrant for his arrest, we request that your office commits to safeguarding his safety and that of his family from unlawful arrests and immediately end all forms of harassment against him," the letter noted. HRW linked the surveillance to its documentation of police abuses. "We have for many years documented excessive use of force and abuses by the police in the context of protests and ongoing repression against human rights actors in the country," HRW noted. By the time of going to press, neither Inspector General Kanja nor DCI Director Amin Mohamed Ibrahim had responded to HRW's letter. DCI Director of Corporate Communications John Marete told The Standard he would respond once he had "all the relevant facts." Namwaya said his family has since left their residence over safety concerns. "We are not in the house at the moment because we fear for our lives. We are not going back until we get assurance that we are safe," said Namwaya.

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Human Rights Watch boss claims his life is in danger

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