Is Kenya Enabling Foreign Governments to Carry Out Forcible Extradition?

"I feel very, very lucky," Tsehai said duringa press conference today alongside Amnesty International Kenya and the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).

She recounted the ordeal in detail, describing how her abductors, who identified themselves as police, were aggressive and seemed intent on accessing her phone. During the abduction, she was handcuffed and her head covered as the vehicle drove around. She was eventually released in an isolated area.

"This is an election year in Tanzania," Tsehai speculated as to why she was taken, linking her abduction to a broader pattern of repression in Tanzania. She expressed her belief that the Tanzanian government was involved in the incident while also highlighting a surge in abductions in Tanzania over the past year and predicting that such threats would escalate both within the country and beyond its borders.

Tanzanians are set to take to the polls in October.

A Troubling Pattern

Tsehai's abduction is not an isolated case. It follows a similar incident involving Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who was seized in Nairobi last November by Ugandan security agents and forcibly transported across the border. He is facing multiple charges in Uganda's military court,including a charge of "treachery" that carries the death penalty.

While the Kenyan government initiallydenied involvement, Ugandan officials later admitted to Kenya's cooperation in the operation. "We are seeing a rise in transnational repression," an Amnesty International Kenya representativesaid during the press conference with Tsehai, citing multiple cases of abductions and extraditions of foreigners in 2024 to countries such as Uganda and Turkey. "This is a dangerous precedent for Kenya."

Domestic Human Rights Concerns

Kenya's reputation on human rights issues is already under strain, with President William Ruto's government facing mounting criticism over a rise in domestic extrajudicial abductions of government critics.

Since last year'santi-government protests, rights groups estimate that at least 80 people have been abducted. Outraged Kenyans havetaken to the streets, demanding an end to the disappearances and a thorough investigation into the incidents.

Initially, the government dismissed the allegations, claiming there were no abductions and labeling the reports as "fake news." However, Ruto laterpledged to address the issue, stating, "What has been said about abductions, we will stop them so Kenyan youth can live in peace. But they should have discipline and be polite so that we can build Kenya together."