In an incident that is said to have occurred on February 6, 2019, how street children were picked and dumped in a forest, and one that, if proven, will amount to a case of outright disregard of human rights has come to light.
What is clear, many County Governments’, view street children as delinquents and a threat to public order.
According to a Nakuru based journalist, “this is not the first time it has happened, though the forest is different.”
The journalist told Shahidi News that there is a period when a group of street children were rounded up by the County security enforcement team commonly known as Kanjo, and dumped into Kireita forest in Kiambu County.
“Some even died,” the reporter who did not want to be mentioned for fear of reprisal, said.
And according to a report by the Senate on Labour and Social Welfare, this seems not to be unique to Nakuru County.
Several other Counties, the Senator Johnson Sakaja committee observed, have also adopted a similar repressive approach to deal with street children and families.
They include Uasin Gishu and Baringo County, where Chemasusu forest is situated.
“This is evident by their obsession with forceful removal of the children from the streets, forced detention
The incidents were brought to light by four petitioners on February 27, 2019: James Kamau, Peter Wanzala, Samwel Kabiru and Martin Gichinga.
Despite the existence of a taxpayer’s funded Street Families Rehabilitation Fund, which only became operational in 2019, some 16 years after it was established, there is nothing much to report about it.
The Fund, like many other initiatives to help street children, has failed to address their plight.
“There are minimal deliberate efforts by both county and national governments in addressing the plight of the street children from a humanistic and rights-based approach with focus on rehabilitation and protection of these children alongside prevention of the root causes of their presence on the streets,” reads the report.
The Senate Committee pointed out that despite the existence of a national framework for child protection in Kenya, such children are still exposed to social ills like exploitation and violence from authorities.
The Committee has asked Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai to take up the Nakuru matter and probe it in 2 months.
The matter was reported under OB no.69/7/2/2019.
Further, they want the IG to investigate suspected bribery of the affected street children and potential witnesses by County officials.
Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui denied the claims when he met the Sakaja led committee.
Several people interviewed however said street children were indeed rounded up in February last year and dumped into the forest.
“At that point, they were asked to disembark in groups of four at intervals of what seemed like 500 metres apart,” reads a section of submissions made by Samwel Kamau, one of the affected children, as captured by the Committee.
