The High Court has summoned IG Douglas Kanja over Twaha Mwaipaya’s disappearance.
Justice Alexander Muteti orders Kanja to explain alleged removal to Tanzania after the State fails to produce the activist.
The High Court has summoned Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja over the Twaha Mwaipaya disappearance. The State failed to comply with an earlier order to produce the missing Tanzanian activist, dead or alive.
Justice Alexander Muteti directed Kanja to appear on November 3 and update the court on investigations. He must also address allegations that State agents arrested Mwaipaya and returned him to Tanzania without due process.
Muteti said the State had not adequately accounted for the activist’s whereabouts. Although Kanja and the Director of Criminal Investigations sent senior officers to court, they did not address possible repatriation.
Twaha Mwaipaya disappearance raises detention concerns
The judge criticised the government for failing to file an affidavit addressing the allegations. He said Kanja, as police chief, must explain whether State agents could have abducted and removed Mwaipaya.
However, Muteti saw no need to summon both Kanja and the DCI. He noted that the Inspector General retained overall authority over police matters.
The judge cited Article 49 of the Constitution on arrested persons’ rights. He said authorities must bring an arrested person before a court or explain continued detention.
Muteti also referred to the European Court of Human Rights decision in Öcalan v Turkey. He said it highlighted prompt judicial oversight as protection against arbitrary detention and ill-treatment. The case concerned a person arrested at an airport in Kenya and removed from the country.
Rights groups sought activist’s production
Vocal Africa filed the application on October 27 after Mwaipaya reportedly disappeared in Kamulu, Machakos County, on October 25. Amnesty International Kenya and the Defenders Coalition said assailants seized him around 2pm during a taxi journey to visit friends.
The organisations called on authorities to locate him and guarantee his safety. Subsequently, on October 30, the court ordered security agencies to produce Mwaipaya on November 2, alongside his original detention warrant. It also required them to explain why he should not regain his freedom.
Separately, Tanzanian activist Maria Sarungi expressed fears that authorities could forcibly return him to Tanzania. She alleged that police there had previously abducted and tortured him.
Muteti also criticised the Attorney General for failing to adequately assist the court in a foreign national’s liberty case. He cited Article 156 on the office’s advisory and public-interest duties. The judge further referenced DPP v Chris Okemo on the Attorney General’s role in international cooperation.
