There is a need to train actors in the country's judicial system on how to handle people with disabilities (PWDs) to enable them to access justice, while also ensuring that they are held accountable whenever they are in conflict with the law.
The Elgeyo Marakwet County Coordinator of the National Council for People with Disabilities (NCPWD), Lydia Matende, said most police officers are afraid of arresting PWD offenders, fearing they might be cursed, thus letting them go scot-free-sometimes with disastrous consequences.
Ms.
Matende narrated to a Court Users Committee (CUC) meeting, chaired by Iten Senior Principal Magistrate Gladys Adhiambo, a case in which a disabled person kept threatening his family and was repeatedly released by the police until he eventually killed his mother. "This is a death that could have been avoided if action was taken and the offender allowed to face the law," she said.
