Nairobi, 3 June 2025: Amnesty International Kenya is shocked to learn that Rose Njeri was transferred from Pangani Police Station to an unknown destination by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations without any communication to her family or her lawyers yesterday.
Rose Njeri, a software engineer and coder, was arrested on Friday 30 May ahead of the long Madaraka weekend. Without legal representation, she was coerced to hand over her electronic gadgets and give out her passwords. Despite legal representation from her advocates and the law Society of Kenya, she was denied bail without giving reasons to her advocates, an entitlement as an arrested person. Attempts to understand the charges being preferred against her were unsuccessful. Further attempts to reach the responsible officers and their seniors by their lawyers proved fruitless. As of Tuesday morning, she has been held for over eighty-eight hours.
The rights of an arrested person under Article 49 of the Constitution of Kenya are clear. All persons have the right to be informed promptly of the reasons of their arrest and to communicate with an advocate and other persons whose assistance is necessary, including a medical doctor (Rose Njeri has a medical condition). She also has the right to be released on bond or bail on reasonable conditions and prompt court appearance as soon as reasonably possible, but not later than 24 hours after arrest. Her right to a fair trial is further protected under Article 50 which presumes her to be innocent until proven guilty to a public trial with counsel of her choice.
These rights are designed to ensure fairness, prevent abuse of power, and uphold human dignity. It is clear to us that Rose Njeri’s rights have been severally violated, and any contemplated fair trial is in jeopardy.
Signed
Irungu Houghton
Amnesty International Section Director
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