Witnesses: Kenya witness protection program unsafe
by Tom Odula
NAIROBI, Kenya – Kenya's gov- ernment is trying to launch a wit- ness protection program, yet those who were threatened after the coun- try's post-election violence left more than 1,000 dead say they're so afraid that they want no part of it. The International Criminal Court is investigating whether to open a formal case into the 2007-2008 fighting and is now gathering testi- mony in Kenya.
But some witnesses fear the coun- try's power players could hunt them down for retribution even if they were protected by a government witness protection program. "We will die if we go there," said Samuel Kimeli Kosgei, who testi- fied during a government inquiry after watching a church filled with women and children set on fire. Dozens died in that attack. Kosgei is one of two witnesses who told The Associated Press about living in hiding after their names were leaked out of a govern- ment commission, even though they were assured they would remain anonymous.
Government spokesman Alfred Mutua declined to comment. The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno Ocampo, has asked the court's judges for permission to start investigations into Kenya's vio- lence. Ocampo has said he believes top officials from Kenya's major political parties were responsible for crimes against humanity. More than 1,000 people were killed and 600,000 forced from their homes after Kenya's electoral com- mission declared that President Mwai Kibaki had won a second term in the December 2007 poll. Raila Odinga's opposition party claimed the vote was rigged, lead- ing to two months of upheavals. Many protesters who clashed with police were killed, but the violence also erupted along tribal lines. Odinga later became prime minister under a power-sharing deal that was later reached.
The ICC also has a witness pro- tection program that Kenyan wit- nesses could take part in even at this early stage of the investigation, but they must be referred by the prose- cution or defense, according to an ICC official who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with official policy.
Kenya launched a witness protec- tion program in 2008 following international pressure to protect those willing to testify, but the pro- gram came under heavy criticism. The government strengthened the program's independence from the Attorney General's office earlier this year, but parliament still must approve the changes.
Hassan Omar Hassan, the vice chairman of the government-funded Kenya National Commission of Human Rights, said once parliament approves the changes witnesses may be well protected by the pro- gram. But others are not convinced. "You cannot trust this govern-
ment. They protect each other," Kosgei said. A political cartoon in Tuesday's edition of the Daily Nation newspa- per depicts a policeman offering a shirt to a high value witness as "pro- tective wear." The shirt has a bulls- eye painted on it.
Kosgei said he does not know who exposed his identity following his testimony to the commission in August 2008. He said he has received death threats and was forced into hiding with his wife and infant child.
For about a year a non-govern- mental organization gave him money for his upkeep but funding has run out and he is scrounging in the streets of Nairobi. Still, he said he prefers a life of misery to the government protection program. "If you have sensitive information in Kenya be prepared to die when you give it out," Kosgei said. "My life is hell now." AP
Associated Press Writer Mike
Corder in The Hague, Netherlands contributed to this report.
Chicago Defender • ChicagoDefender.com • March 24-30, 2010
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