More victims of Del Monte farm violence to be enjoined in civil claim

Hundreds of Kenyan families that claim they have suffered violence under the hands of rogue security guards at US multinational Del Monte's farm will be enjoined in an ongoing case where a human rights group and activists sued the company on behalf of those allegedly attacked by the guards and relatives of alleged victims.

This follows Thursday's permission, by a High Court hearing, for lawyers representing the affected families to amend the civil suit, which offers other claimants an opportunity to be included in the list of petitioners.

The civil claim, which has listed Fresh Del Monte and Del Monte Kenya among the respondents, was filed last December on behalf of a group of 10 people over alleged assault, torture, killing, and rape by security guards at the pineapple plantation.

Cases of trespassers allegedly being mauled to death by the company's dogs, injured by the guards, or hit by the processor's cars and their bodies dumped in dams and rivers have been reported in the recent past. A few are said to be rescued, though, with life-threatening injuries.

The African Centre for Corrective and Preventive Action (ACCPA) filed the claim against the company on behalf of the aggrieved families following December's killing of four people, whose bodies were recovered in a river near the pineapple farm on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Among those whose bodies were found in River Chania were Francis Miumi, Bernard Mutua, Mbae Murumbi and an unidentified man, who are said to have been part of a group of 20 men who were allegedly confronted by the guards while trying to steal fruits at the plantation.

Sixteen men survived, some with injuries, after a confrontation with the security guards, whom the local communities have umpteen times accused of using excessive force.

G4S security guards

And while the company has repeatedly insisted that the allegations of misconduct by its guards were a ploy to pressure it to cede the land it occupied, its recent announcement that it would outsource security services from the G4S company has raised more questions than answers.

Del Monte earlier this month sacked 214 in-house guards and announced that 270 officers from G4S who will be deployed to the farm will undergo extensive training on de-escalation techniques and minimum use of force.

"The partnership (with G4S) is a response to recommendations from a recent human rights impact assessment that endorsed outsourcing of security personnel as part of the best practices," the company said in a statement.

"We are committed to addressing the effects of coordinated criminal operations targeting our fields and stealing large volumes of pineapples."

But Mwangi Macharia, a lawyer at ACCPA, said the development was an admission that the security guards were involved in human rights violations, terming the decision irresponsible for having not involved the local community among other key stakeholders.

Multiple voices, including from former security guards and members of the public, cited inadequate training of the guards and the company's frosty relationship with the public among the key contributors to the clashes between residents and the guards.

The company, the largest exporter of Kenyan produce, is embroiled in a land ownership tussle with the local community that maintains the thousands of acres of land that were ancestral.

Fresh Del Monte insists it should not be held liable for the alleged atrocities in Kenya as it is domiciled in the Cayman Islands.

Company's land

President William Ruto's recent declaration that his administration would issue title deeds to beneficiaries of the land owned by the American company could complicate the situation.

"The acres we agreed to cede for Del Monte are now available, and we will give the company the lease to proceed with its investment while we give residents ceded land and title deeds," he said during the Murang'a county tour last month.

This is amid conflicting information on the acreage of land occupied by the company.

In May 2022, then Land CS Farida Karoney indicated the government's intention to renew Del Monte's lease for 32,240 acres of land.

The company at the time said it had occupied 22,500 acres while the Parliamentary Lands Committee indicated that it was 20,000 acres and that only 14,000 acres were in use.

Updated figures shared by the committee in October last year showed that the company occupied 22,644 acres and that it had since ceded 4,843 acres and 2,696 acres in Murang'a and Kiambu counties respectively.