The Government is yet to pay the family Sh1.5 billion despite a court order issued by Justice Isaac Lenaola last year/FILE
NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 26- Rights group, Amnesty International has asked the Government to compensate the family of the late Kenneth Matiba, an icon of multi-party democracy, for illegal detention.
The Government is yet to pay the family Sh1.5 billion despite a court order issued by Justice Isaac Lenaola last year.
Justice Lenaola had also stated that the multiparty democracy hero was the founder, leader, and power behind his flourishing business empire and that his detention led to the collapse of the business chain and deterioration of his health.
The human right organisation has also called on the Government to issue a public apology and reparation for all political prisoners.
Amnesty International Kenya Executive Director Houghton Irungu says this will enhance democracy and reconciliation.
In March 2015, President Uhuru Kenyatta announced a 10 Billion Shillings fund to be used for restorative justice, but three years after, it is yet to be implemented.
“The 2015 Presidential State of the Nation address called for the swift adoption of the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Report by Parliament as required by law and the establishment of a Sh10 billion Restorative Justice Fund. As we bid farewell to Kenneth Matiba, neither promise has been kept. We call for the Kenyan government to move quickly to reparations,” he said.
Further, he has asked the Government to ensure that all former Prisoners of Conscience and their families have effective access to compensation, rehabilitation and other forms of support to enable them to resume a normal life.
He says: “The Kenyan Government, civic organisations, and citizens can best honor the memory of the late Matiba by publicly rededicating themselves to never again allowing Kenya to return to the darkness of the 1980s and 1990s.”
A second funeral service in honour of Matiba will be held on Thursday in Muranga.
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