Kenya: Arrest of women human rights defenders in Huruma

28 February 2011 began just like any other ordinary day. That is, until I received a distress call from my colleague Carolyn, a fellow community organiser, with the sad information about the preventable death of expectant mother due to birth-related complications.

Elizabeth Ajwang, A 28-year old pregnant mother of one and loving wife to Moses Oduor, died on Monday morning in her husband's arms while waiting to be attended to at Huruma Nursing Home. They had gone to the facility at 9:00 pm on the previous night with Elizabeth at the early stages of her labour pains and a slowly rising blood pressure due to her hypertension.

Though there were varying accounts of exactly what happened at the facility in regards to why she had not been attended to; with some saying that the nurses attempted to administer the wrong treatment, some, that the doctor was away on another case, others, that they had refused to pay extra for the ‘emergency’ nature of the situation, the fact of the matter is that by 5:00 am on the 28th of February 2011, Elizabeth Ajwang lay dead on a stretcher without having received sufficient medical attention at the nursing home that purports to offer medical services to the people of Huruma and Kiamaiko slums ,the nursing home has been established by the community to have had a trend of an unacceptably high maternal mortality rate for a single health centre.

As I and my equally shocked colleagues in the human rights movement, Vicky and Yvonne made our way to the Huruma Nursing Home, we were met with a crowd of aggrieved community members lamenting about the spate of pregnancy related deaths in Huruma Nursing Home at the hands of seemingly incompetent medical staff.

As community organisers and human rights activists, I contacted the media (K24), and mobilised the community for the purposes of recording statements from members of the Huruma and Kiamaiko who have previously fallen victims to Huruma Nursing Home.

The purpose of the statements was to document the community’s complaints to the Ministry of Health and to the Kenya Anti Corruption Commission –KACC for further investigations and action. The desired outcome of the expected action from the public was to prevent maternal deaths in Huruma Nursing Home due to the indignity accorded to the lives of the poor mothers of the Huruma and Kiamaiko communities who are unable to access quality maternal care.

After addressing the media, the local Huruma police boss Mr. Wanyama, accompanied by the OCS, and about five other Police officers ordered the women to disperse, while hurling insults at them. I did not take this kindly and politely asked him to apologise to the women. Women who had presently felt threatened and were about to disperse were emboldened by this action, and accordingly reminded Wanyama of the people’s rights that he, as a public servant was shamelessly violating.

In response, Wanjala ordered me Vicky, Duli and Mato to accompany him to the police station to record a statement.

We contacted lawyers through FIDA, who took quite a while to come. we continued to mobilise the communities of Kiamaiko and Huruma for the purposes of recording a statement concerning the deaths of our beloved colleagues, sisters, mothers, kith and kin, in the hands of Huruma Nursing Home.

The process was peaceful, until Wanjala who is the the deputy OCS Huruma police post called for reinforcement from Kasarani police post who surrounded the harmless women, and with a threat of state violence and force, dispersed the aggrieved victims of Huruma Nursing Home before proceeding to roughly bundle myself Vicky and two male colleagues Ali and irungu to the police vehicle enroute to the police station.

At the police station, my colleagues and I refused to record a statement and invoked our right to remain silent. We received great support from our comrades and friends from Bunge La Mwananchi, RPP and of course kiamaiko community who visited us at the police post.

At 4.30 A.M the next morning the four of us were taken to Muthaiga police station for onward transportation to Makadara Law Courts, where we arrived at 6A.M (March 1st 2011).

The Prosecutor read an incitement to violence charge against the four of us, and we all entered a plea of not guilty,in the dock we were filled with great inspiration of love that was accorded to us by our comrades and friends who filled the court which made me humbled by presence of comrade Kelly Gacheke ojiayo mulialia Onyango oloo, Beatrice, lilian rahma wako Adigo Ann Naomi wanjiru and of course my younger sister nduta.

The judge released us that I (Mumbi, Vicky, Ali and Irungu) on Cash Bail of Ksh 30,000 each.

The mention of our case was put at 15th March, while the hearing will be on the 10th of May2011.

Around 4.30pm on 1 March 2011 when our dear comrades family and friends were unable to raise our cash bail, we had to start a new journey, a journey to Langata women prison a journey I had never imagined I would one day find myself, as I entered the prison bus the question that was lingering in my mind was How will my kids take and cope up with situation? They have been socialised in a society that believes prisons are meant for criminals, my family and friends had high hope that I would be released the same day which never happened, I sat at window where I would see everything that was around as the bus was moving I saw my sister she had not yet given up she was still wandering around makadara law courts when she saw me been transported to Langata prison she could not hold her tears she cried with a lot of pain later on I came to realise she was crying because I was taken to Langata not because I was a criminal but because I had stood my grounds for peoples and women’s right to health care.

We arrived at Langata women’s prison at 5.30 pm. Life changed as soon as we entered the prison compound what I saw and experienced made me remember the prison note book by Maina wa Kinyatti that I had been given by comrade GACHEKE, as I was reading the prison note book I tried to imagine how the inmates coped with the harsh conditions in Kenyan prison little did I know that one day I will bear witness whatever Maina was writing. The term dignity does not exist in prison we were ordered to remove all of our clothes for body search and they don’t even care whether you are on your periods or not it’s such a an awful experience, as soon as you remove off your clothes you are supposed to put your legs apart for the body search, I was humiliated but could not help it when I saw a woman enough to be my grandmother removing clothes together with us from that moment I would not be referred as Mumbi anymore I had a new identity my prison number was 306/11 and Vicky’s 306/12.

We were given kungurus to wear a blue and white stripped free dress as I was wearing the kunguru I imagined wearing a graduation gown but this was a different graduation that was supposed to be a mile stone in my struggle to equality, right to health care, food education and housing I paid tribute to women who have been ahead of me, to the likes of mothers of prisoners who bared it all at the freedom corner, women who have been my source of my inspiration women, women who had been the central pillars of our liberation struggle, field marshal muthoni,mekatili wa menza,mary nyanjiru micere mugo wangari maathai name them.

At 6.30pm it was time to eat, mururu was served (mururu is a term used in prison to refer food)we had starved for two days at the police station they had refused our friends to give us food, we lined up like any other inmate but we tried to eat the food half cooked ugali and a piece of boiled sukuma wiki (kales)with its stem. We tried to eat but we could not but the women desperately comforted us by telling us not to mind we will get used to it. After eating it was time to wash the jars and later go for the head counts the head counts are done in such way every one must squat in a line of five by five and its is referred us kukaba.

The inmates are used and they have memorised the time for head counts when the time comes you are supposed to run very first and be conscious how you are lining if you make a stupid mistake you are in for it, we spent a night at the women prison but one night in prison is like a century time moves very slowly in prison,

On 2/3/2011 will always remain to be a memorable day to me, the day that our cash bail was paid by IMLU (Independent Medical Legal Unit) I appreciate and recognise the presence of Sophie Dowllar, Deb from WORLD MARCH OF WOMEN, Lilian Beatrice, Magret Wayona, Gacheke,Nduta Mwangi and Kennedy from imlu who visited us at the prison. Special thanks to all the organisations that worked very hard to see us released – IMLU,RPP,BUNGE LA MWANANCHI,WORLD MARCH OF WOMEN and I would not forget to appreciate URGENT ACTION FUND AFRICA for your great willingness to support in the process of bailing myself RUTH MUMBI and VICTORIA ATIENO, but the question we are still asking ourselves is:

Why is the state still the enemy of the women?

It is evident that despite changes in the Constitution of Kenya, institutions of the state are still conspiring against the people to keep them in ignorance and fear.

Why won't the Ministry of Medical Services act on such facilities, which are operating under their licensing yet are dens of open un-professionalism and clear neglect and are leading to the high cases of maternal deaths, which are well documented in government reports?

Why should the police always act with such bestiality against its own peaceful citizens whenever they ask for accountability and how come they don't focus on the culprits even when it is crystal clear who the violators are? Why are the police defending the criminals? Are they on the take?

Why does our justice system feign blindness when poor and unrepresented people are on the stand and punishes them with its undue processes which can imprison one for several years even when the circumstances of the case do not warrant such punishment? Is this a method of extortion?

And why won’t the government at large protect its own citizens using the very constitution that brings it into being? Is this an unconstitutional government or is it that the state is the enemy of the people?

How many of our sisters and brothers are we going to lose to injustice before we act?

For now, we hold the Government of Kenya responsible for the death of Elizabeth Ajwang!

May justice be served within our borders!

BROUGHT TO YOU BY PAMBAZUKA NEWS

* Ruth Mumbi is a member of the Kiamaiko Young Women Resource Center/Bunge La Mwananchi Women Social Movement.
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