The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) is compiling a database of unresolved cases involving the persecution of advocates, which it plans to hand over to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) for action.
In a statement issued to mark the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, LSK said the database will focus on cases of abductions and kidnappings.
LSK President Faith Odhiambo called on families, colleagues, and clients of advocates who have suffered such incidents to support the society’s efforts.
“The role of advocates has proven essential to the stability of our nation, and there can no longer be silent indifference to their safety and their right to undertake their duty without the risk or threat of persecution,” she said.
Odhiambo urged that all pending and unreported cases be investigated promptly, cold cases reopened, and those awaiting prosecution handled decisively.
She said the LSK condemns all acts of reprisal and victimisation against advocates of the High Court of Kenya in the discharge of their duties.
Odhiambo added that enforced disappearances of advocates, in some instances historically ending in death, must be treated as a matter of grave national concern.
From Oscar Kingara to Willie Kimani, Kenya’s history reflects the sacrifices of advocates who dedicated their lives to defending human rights and lost their lives in the process.
Odhiambo noted that while some cases eventually led to prosecutions and convictions, many others remain unreported, uninvestigated, unprosecuted, and unresolved.
“This is a betrayal not only of the families of the victims, but worse still, a betrayal of the entire legal fraternity which continues to face threats of persecution in defence of the rule of law,” she said.
