650 Rapes of Kenyan Women

United Kingdom: Reports of hundreds of rapes of Kenyan women by UK Army Personnel shrouded by impunity

Sabina Ngedu Lesirikali, who was reportedly attacked in 1988, with her son.
© AI
Amnesty International is calling on the UK Prime Minister to establish without delay an independent and impartial commission of inquiry into the conduct of the UK Army in light of hundreds of allegations of rape of Kenyan women by UK Army personnel over the course of more than three decades.

To date about 650 rape allegations have been made by women living in remote areas adjacent to ranges used by the UK Army for training in the vicinity of the villages of Dol Dol, Archers Post, and Wamba. More than half of the rapes reported involve allegations of gang rape. Some of those allegedly sexually assaulted were children at the time.

Although several of these rape claims would appear to have been reported to either or both UK and Kenyan authorities soon after the alleged attacks took place, both countries' authorities failed to take effective measures to investigate them; bring the alleged perpetrators to justice; ensure reparation for the victims; and prevent further attacks. UK Army officials in Kenya may have become aware of some rape allegations as early as 1977.

To date no mechanism has been established to address and investigate the systemic failures of UK Army officials to address the allegations that had been brought to their attention and prevent further rapes. The UK Ministry of Defence claims to have first learnt about the rape allegations in November 2002. Since then, the only action taken has been the opening of a criminal investigation by the Royal Military Police (RMP), that is currently reportedly looking at merely 16 cases. Amnesty International considers that the current RMP investigation has been an inadequate response to address the rape allegations as a pattern, and cannot be seen to be independent and impartial.

The commission of inquiry should probe the failures of the UK authorities to: investigate reported rapes; bring alleged perpetrators to justice; prevent further attacks; and ensure redress and reparation for all those affected by such crimes.


Take action

Please write to the UK Prime Minister asking him to establish without delay an independent and impartial commission of inquiry.

Rt Hon Tony Blair MP
Prime Minister
Prime Minister's Office
10 Downing Street
London SW1A 2AA
Fax: 0044 (0)20 7925 0918
E-mail: http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page821.asp

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