A coalition of Pan-African civil society groups, legal experts, and human rights defenders has issued a scathing statement condemning the Kenyan government’s escalating repression of civil liberties, arbitrary arrests, and weaponization of the justice system.
This follows the arrest of renowned activist Boniface Mwangi and a wave of detentions targeting protesters, students, and political dissidents across the country.
The group, representing over 60 organisations and individuals from across Africa, convened at Pangani Police Station in Nairobi to denounce what they described as a “full-scale assault on democracy.”
They warned that recent developments not only violate the Kenyan Constitution–particularly Article 37, which protects the right to peaceful assembly–but also represent a grave threat to democratic stability across the continent.
Activist Boniface Mwangi was arrested on July 19, a day after filing a landmark case at the East African Court of Justice.
His petition sought accountability from Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania over previous instances of enforced disappearance, torture, and inhumane treatment.
His arrest, reportedly conducted without a court warrant, was followed by a raid on his office at Mageuzi Hub under alleged terrorism accusations.
Efforts to verify the legality of the raid through Kenya’s judicial case-tracking system revealed no supporting court order had been issued.
Mwangi’s arrest is part of a broader trend, including the detention of fellow activists John Mulingwa Nzau, Mark Amiani, and Francis Mwangi, all associated with the Kongamano La Mapinduzi movement.
Reports from across Kenya indicate that children as young as 14 have been arrested and held with injuries sustained from police shootings.
Students have been detained while commuting from school, and young people taken into custody for simply visiting jailed friends.
In Naivasha alone, at least 20 youth remain in detention without access to legal representation. Nationwide, more than 150 young people face bail terms ranging from KSh 30,000 to KSh 300,000, raising concerns over the criminal justice system being used to suppress dissent.
In their joint statement, the coalition accused state officials of spreading propaganda and stoking ethnic tensions by mischaracterizing youth protests as criminal.
They further condemned President William Ruto’s administration for issuing extrajudicial orders–such as “shoot-to-kill” and “shoot-to-maim”–and turning a blind eye to armed gangs allegedly affiliated with the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) that have attacked protesters with impunity.
“This intimidation and crackdown on the youth, civil society actors, institutions and defiant elected representatives is being paired with dangerous state-driven propaganda and disinformation campaigns mischaracterizing peaceful assembly and youth protest as hooliganism and inflammatory rhetoric targeted at specific communities,” the civil society organisations said.
They also exposed what the coalition called “systematic cross-border repression” involving Uganda and Tanzania.
It referenced incidents such as the November 2024 abduction of Ugandan opposition figure Dr. Kizza Besigye in Nairobi, the July 2025 deportation of 36 Ugandan opposition members from Kisumu, and the kidnapping of Tanzanian activist Maria Sarungi-Tsehai in January.
Further examples included the May 2025 deportation of East African leaders and observers–among them Dr. Willy Mutunga, HMartha Karua, Lynn Ngugi, and Hussein Khalid–during their attempted visit to Tanzania for Tundu Lissu’s treason trial. In July, Kenya was again implicated in the illegal rendition of KHRC Senior Legal Advisor Martin Mavenjina to Uganda, despite his valid residency and work permits.
The coalition warned that these coordinated violations represent a regional authoritarian shift that threatens the very foundations of African democracy.
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They called on the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to immediately halt politically motivated terrorism charges against activists and peaceful demonstrators.
“The ODPP must uphold its constitutional duty under Article 157 to make prosecutorial decisions independently and in the interest of justice, not as a tool for political persecution,” the civil society organisations say.
The group urged the Judicial Service Commission to defend judicial independence by refusing to rubber-stamp illegal detentions and politicized prosecutions.
“Judges and magistrates must not be complicit in the criminalization of activism through unreasonable arrest and search warrants, bail terms, prolonged detention or biased rulings. The JSC must investigate and hold to account any judicial officers enabling executive overreach.”
