[Shabelle] Kenya's Somali community is being scapegoated in a counter-terror operation which has seen thousands subjected to arbitrary arrest, harassment, extortion, ill-treatment, forcible relocation and expulsion, In a new Briefing Paper
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violations suffered by Kenya's Somali community since a security crackdown -- known as 'Operation Usalama Watch' -- began in early April 2014.
"It appears that 'Operation Uslama Watch' is being used as a pretext for the blanket punishment of the Somali community in Kenya. They have become scapegoats with thousands enjugged
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and ill-treated, forcibly relocated and hundreds unlawfully expelled to a war-torn country," said Michelle Kagari, Deputy Regional Director for Eastern Africa at
"Whilst Kenya has legitimate national security concerns, the wholesale targeting of an already marginalized and vulnerable community is an appalling breach of national and international law. We call on the Kenyan government to immediately end human rights violations against Somalis, including refugees, ensure their protection, and provide redress where violations have occurred."
The Kenyan authorities began mass round-ups of Somalis following two attacks in March which killed and injured scores of people. A lack of transparency and due process has meant that the exact number of those arrested and those still in detention remains unclear. However,
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Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government, Joseph Ole Lenku is quoted as stating that more than 4,000 people were arrested in the first week of the operation alone.