When Tanzanian activist Maria Sarungi Tsehai was abducted in Kenya on 12 January, it was the latest in a disturbing string of disappearances allegedly carried out by the country’s security services.
In November 2024, security forces were also thought to be behind the kidnapping of prominent Ugandan activist and four-time presidential contender, Kizza Besigye, while he was in Kenya attending the launch of a book written by a critic of the Kenyan president.
Security forces also allegedly arrested 36 members of Besigye’s Forum for Democratic Change party in Kisumu in July. The authorities transported the group back to Uganda, where they reportedly tortured them and indicted the party members on charges related to terrorism.
In October 2024, the government also repatriated 4 Turkish refugees.
It is shocking that Kenyan authorities appear willing to collude with other governments in the region to crack down on critical voices, ultimately taking part in operations of transnational repression. The targeting of exiled activists from neighbouring countries must never be tolerated.
