@ICPCAfrica Press Release on #SecurityBill via @NdunguWainaina Tuesday December 16, 2014 HORRIFIC SECURITY LAWS (AMENDMENT) BILL 2014 Security Laws (Amendment) Bill 2014 is the first unequivocal bold open step by President Uhuru Kenyatta and Jubilee government to kick start the destruction of the foundations of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 and return Kenya back to the Presidential autocracy. If the Security Laws Bill is passed in the National Assembly and Senate, the next casualty, in addition to human rights and fundamental freedoms, will be devolution. The gravity of security concerns is fully acknowledged by everyone. Unfortunately, President Kenyatta is catastrophically failing to address the main problem: failed security sector reforms! The reasons behind its (Security Bill) drafting and uncompromising determination to force its enactment by Jubilee executive arm of government are reminiscence to 1982 Constitutional amendment that criminalized political pluralism, freedom of expression and free press with grave consequences on human rights and governance system of the country. The Bill borrows heavily from Uganda and Rwanda. President Uhuru Kenyatta increasingly intolerance to strong opposition, robust civil society and independent media is hallmark of despotism. The Executive has succeeded in capturing National Assembly and reducing it into a rubber-stamping institution. This is consistent with the tragic political events of period spanning 1965-82. Apart from its abhorrent content affront to progressive Constitution, the Security Laws (Amendment) Bill 2014 drafting and tabling in National Assembly is complete disregard of the constitutionally laid down procedure of legislation on Bills touching on the Constitution. There has been mockery of public participation enshrined in the Constitution. There have been many security and law enforcement reforms’ recommendations but little progress on their implementation. For more than two decades, successive Kenya governments promised to taken steps to create more professional, modern, and well equipped policing system and police service. While basic reforms have included some positive elements, they have failed to establish capable, effective and credible national police service with clear policies, guidelines and procedures to address the old and increasing new security challenges. President Uhuru Kenyatta government is yet to offer and take concrete steps necessary to establish democratic policing foundations of a stable democratic state, notwithstanding the passage of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 with whole chapter on national security and previous taskforces/commissions reports’ recommendations. The President promised in the first Annual Executive Report last year to the National Parliament, major security sector reforms as a priority in efforts to strengthen the rule of law and effectively combat crime in the country. This has never happened. Instead, the same President has significantly expanded the role of the military in public security. This has begun a problematic trend of militarizing public security. This military strategy has failed to increase security. Experience has shown that deploying the military cannot be a substitute for building credible, impartial and accountable national police service that fight crime with the human rights- respect professionalism, trust and cooperation of ordinary people. Military training and tactics are often at odds with what is needed for effective policing; soldiers are trained to use the maximum force necessary to combat enemies, not to deter or investigate crimes and interact with the population. Rather than bringing totalitarian Security Laws (Amendment) Bill 2014, President Kenyatta should have put in place solid mechanisms of fully implementing the Kenyans’ sanctioned constitutional roadmap of restructuring and reforming national police service. The constitutionally guided effective police reforms should be able to equip all police officers with the appropriate mechanics and procedures that will enable them to cope and respond efficiently and effectively to crimes everyone has become familiar with and the new wave of dramatic crisis situations related to terrorism, cyber crimes and economic downturns. Further, the Constitution inspired effective institutional, policy, structural and organizational police reforms should be able to clearly lay down all fundamental duties, functions and basic procedures to guide police officers. In this manner, clear command and individual police officer’s responsibilities will be set and the public will be assured of accountability in delivery of security and public safety services. The Security Laws (Amendment) Bill 2014 is an attempt at usurping and finally overthrowing the Constitution. It is an abuse of the constitutionally agreed legislation process. The Bill should be withdrawn. People of Kenya clearly provided a detailed Constitution roadmap of transforming the national police service, which President Kenyatta administrations has frustrated and failed to implement. Kenya will never manage to achieve its considerable potential without an honest, efficient accountable policing and criminal justice system. The problem is not the deficit of laws. It is lack of political will to implement constitutionally sanctioned police and other security sector reforms. The National Assembly, by accepting to allow the Security Laws (Amendment) Bill 2014, is undermining Constitution, attacking nascent constitutional democracy and weakening already fragile institutions by continuing to tolerate and shield corrosive graft in institutions of governance rather than tackling this cancerous corruption malaise that is blocking security sector reforms. ENDS//.
Posted on: Tue, 16 Dec 2014 12:26:41 +0000
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