Urgent Action: Worrying Crackdown On Kenyan Defenders (Kenya: UA 198.17)

Kenya’s NGO Coordination Board threatened to arrest George Kegoro, Executive Director of Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), Gladwell Otieno, Executive Director of African Center for Open Governance (AfriCOG) and Maina Kiai (pictured), former UN Special Rapporteur and a member of AfriCOG’s Board of Directors on 16 August.

1) TAKE ACTION
Write a letter, send an email, call, fax or tweet:

• Urging the Kenyan authorities to rein in the NGO Coordination Board to stop all forms of harassment, intimidation and attacks on civil society organizations and human rights defenders;
• Urging the Kenyan authorities to effectively implement the Public Benefits Organization Act of 2013 to ensure a safe and enabling environment for civil society to be able to work without fear of reprisals;
• Calling on them to refrain from bringing criminal charges or any other proceeding against human rights defenders that stem solely from the peaceful exercise of their rights.

Contact these two officials by 3 October, 2017:

(Acting) Cabinet Secretary
Dr Fred Matiang’i
Ministry of Interior & Coordination
of National Government
Harambee House, Harambee Avenue
P.O Box 30510 – 00100
Nairobi, Kenya
Email: [email protected]
Salutation: Dr Fred Matiang’i

Ambassador Robinson Njeru Githae, Embassy of the Republic of Kenya
2249 R St. NW, Washington DC 20008
Phone: 1 202 387 6101 I Fax: 1 202 462 3829
Email: [email protected] OR [email protected]
Salutation: Dear Ambassador

2) LET US KNOW YOU TOOK ACTION
Click here to let us know if you took action on this case! This is Urgent Action 198.17
Here’s why it is so important to report your actions: we record the actions taken on each case—letters, emails, calls and tweets—and use that information in our advocacy.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• READ THE FULL URGENT ACTION: Word or PDF
• GET INSPIRED: Read about the people you have helped
• READ TIPS for writing effective letters and emails
• CONTACT US: [email protected]