The High Court has barred the Inspector General of Police from deploying officers in civilian clothes or with concealed identities to manage public protests in the country.
In a landmark judgment delivered on Wednesday, Justice Bahati Mwamuye ruled that all police officers assigned to handle public assemblies, demonstrations, or picketing must be in official uniform and remain identifiable at all times. "A declaration is hereby issued that any law enforcement officer deployed to maintain law and order during an assembly, demonstration, or picketing must be in uniform and shall not, in any way, conceal their identity, including by obscuring their face, so as to remain unidentifiable," he ordered. The court emphasized that visible identification is essential to uphold accountability and public trust in law enforcement.
The decision follows a case filed by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), challenging the legality of police conduct during the Finance Bill 2024 protests held on June 18 in Nairobi's Central Business District, during which activist Rex Masai was fatally shot. "The conduct of police officers unmasked and in uniform who carried out unlawful arrests of individuals exercising their right to picket under Article 37 of the Constitution amounted to a violation of those individuals' rights," Justice Mwamuye ruled.
The court found that officers deployed on that day acted unlawfully and violated constitutional protections.
