The Police Reforms Working Group of Kenya (PRWG-K) has called for action against police officer Ahmed Rashid for the killing of Jamal Mohammed and Mohammed Kheri in 2017.
This follows an application filed by Rashid to stop the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP) from arraigning him on December 8 to take plea on murder charges.
Through a statement, the group said that the killing of Jamal Mohamed and Mohamed Dahir Kheri is not only a matter for the residents of Eastleigh but a matter of national interest.
“We the Police Reforms Working Group Kenya (PRWG-K) believe that citizens and communities have constitutional rights to assemble and express their views under Art 37 and 33. However, summary executions by police officers to members of the public violate Article 26 which protects the right to life and Article 50 which ensures our right to a fair trial.
“There is a long history of profiling, intimidation and murder of suspects, especially from the Somali community. They among others must be aware that opening the door for unlawful police action opens the door also for enforced disappearances, unlawful renditions and violence along the lines of the so-called operation sanitisation of 2014,” the group added.
According to the group, Rashid’s application blocks the constitutional principle that officers can behave above the law.
“Are the ODPP, IPOA, and CSOs protecting criminals? Our record is clear, we have stood up and demanded victims of criminality in Yala, Garissa, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nyeri, and Eastleigh for many years. While the Government and National Police Service (NPS), must address concerns with violent crimes in the country, we must do this within the rule of law or perish.
“The higher standard of proof is to ensure that no person is condemned based on rumours, vendetta, or mistaken identity. Community and intelligence-based policing are what stop crime not handing the power of criminal justice to a single officer or a unit,” the group stated.
IPOA concluded investigations into the shooting of Jamal Mohammed and Mohammed Kheri and established that the fatalities were occasioned by police action.
