Human Rights Organisations have called on the Judiciary to expedite the case against four police officers linked to the death of Baby Pendo.
This comes after the four police officers took a plea before the High Court on Monday.
According to them, the consistent attempts to defer or stall proceedings in the case so far have betrayed the interests of victims and the public.
“We, therefore, urge the judiciary to ensure that the cases against the four police officers who took plea today are expedited,” they said in a statement on Monday.
“The victims and families of Baby Pendo and the many others who suffered at the hands of police officers urgently deserve justice and reparation to have closure and move on with their lives.”
The victims' families, Amnesty International Kenya, Utu Wetu Trust, the International Justice Mission and the Police Reforms Working Group condemned the DPP's dropping of charges against eight of the twelve police commanders and officers who were initially included in the original charge case.
“Today, four police officers took plea before the High Court of Kenya for charges of crimes against humanity, including murder, rape and torture committed against civilians during the 2017 elections, under the International Crimes Act,” they said.
The charges include the brutal murder of Baby Samantha Pendo.
The plea-taking occurred more than two years after the case was lodged by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) in 2022, following repeated adjournments and delays.
They called on all parties to adhere to the court's order to mitigate harms to the victims in accordance with the Victims Protection Act.
“In this regard, we call on all parties and the media to redact the names of the victims and witnesses in further proceedings and reporting. All measures must be taken by both state and non-state actors to ensure that the victims and witnesses in this case are not subjected to the same risks experienced by those involved in the cases before the International Criminal Court concerning the 2007-08 post-election violence.”
