Frequency of deaths in custody is raising a great deal of fear, creating a perception of a somewhat angry State that is intensifying war with civilians. Equally painful is the fact that the concerned families find themselves in complex dilemmas and confusion, of how to gather information on when, where, why, how, and in whose specific hands their kin died. It illustrates how invasive, aggressive and dismissive police are, such that for an ordinary and timid family to access information, which the police hold knowing they could easily be implicated in murder, is no mean task.
If the family ever gets answers, they are bound to be incomplete, inconsistent and will more often than not be insufficient to support their claim for justice.
Instead their case will most likely fall apart before it begins, setting free those responsible, and emboldening impunity in Kenya. The pomposity of CSs, MPs and other pro-government politicians in telling off human rights defenders and swearing to brook no restraint in silencing critics, betray the warrior-mindset the political class has cascaded to the police.
This politician-police affinity leaves little doubt as to who is giving orders.
