Mombasa police fail to charge four activists, drawing criticism over unlawful detention
They appeared before Senior Resident Magistrate Gladys Olimo on Wednesday, but the court was informed that no charge sheet had been filed.
Police in Mombasa have failed to bring any charges against four activists arrested during Tuesday's peaceful demonstrations, prompting criticism from rights groups and legal representatives over what they describe as an unlawful detention.
The activists, Francis Auma, a Rapid Response Officer at Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI), Walid Sketty, Batuli Swaleh, and Mugambi Gichunge, were among individuals taken into custody during the protest.
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They appeared before Senior Resident Magistrate Gladys Olimo on Wednesday, but the court was informed that no charge sheet had been filed.
According to their lawyer, Yusuf Abubakar the prosecution noted that police had not submitted the case file, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) had not received any documents related to the arrests.
"We stayed in court up to 11:30 am, and no charge sheet was presented before the court. The ODPP has not received any documents pertaining to this case. It is our view that the police are not taking this case seriously because the procedure was for them to send the file to ODPP for them to make a decision whether they are charging my clients or not,” said Yusuf.
He mentioned, “This is a continuation of what happened last year during protests against the Finance Bill. The government appears keen to muzzle dissent and silence citizens who raise concerns about injustices committed by public officials."
Veteran rights defender Khelef Khalifa condemned the arrests as a violation of constitutional freedoms and said his organisation would pursue legal action.
"We shall be filing a complaint with the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) and will move to court to compel the police to explain their actions," said Khalifa, adding, "This demonstrates a lack of seriousness and a disregard for the rule of law."
The four had earlier been released on a cash bail of Sh5,000 each and were directed to appear in court again on July 2, 2025.
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