Mt Elgon widows whose husbands were tortured, killed and some disappeared during Operation Okoa Maisha to flush out the dreaded Sabaot Land Defense Force in 2008 by the military are now seeking justice.
Eighteen widows have sued at the High Court seeking compensation from the government.
They also want justice served so that "the truth about their loved ones who were killed, maimed and some disappeared during the operation can be known".
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights has been enjoined in the case as an interested party.
KNCHR representative Victor Kamau said the widows should be compensated after their breadwinners were allegedly killed by KDF officers.
“Some of these widows are suffering. Their husbands were killed, some tortured and some disappeared up to date following the government-sanctioned military operation ... We need the accountability for the violation meted on their breadwinners,” Kamau said.
He said they are seeking to enforce the constitutional position that the national security and human rights should go together and that security issues should be conducted in compliance with human rights.
The petitioner’s lawyer Andrew Kituyi said their main aim is to seek compensation for the destitute women, who cannot now fend for themselves.
“During the operation, many people were killed, others disappeared and the widows are seeking to be compensated for they lost their homes and children. The government was involved in flushing out the militia group but they did not take the keen interest of the civilians,” he said.
Kituyi claimed there are over 1,000 women whose husbands were killed, tortured or disappeared and they have sued the state through the Attorney General’s office. They expect a favourable ruling.
One of the victims, Phylis Tamnai, said her husband Patrick Kipteiyo, who was Chebwek sublocation chief, was picked by the KDF officers and taken to Chepkube coffee base, where she alleged he was tortured and killed. His body has never been found.
Lilian Temko said her husband, Stephen Chesori from Kabero village in Cheptais subcounty, was picked by military officers on April 16, last year and taken to Kapkoto military camp and is yet to be found.
“We are in court to seek for justice for our missing husbands. We want to be compensated for the difficult lives we are living in with my young family,” she stated.
Efforts by the defense lawyer a Miss Mate who wanted the petitioners to submit written submissions in court were futile as the petitioners' lawyer Andrew Kituyi argued that witnesses were in court and they needed oral submissions.
Judge Stephen Riechi ordered the case to proceed as the witnesses were in court.
SLDF was led by its ring leader Wycliffe Matakwei, who was gunned down by the military in 2008. The militia group was supposedly fighting for the land rights at the expansive Chepyuk Settlement Scheme in Kopsiro subcounty.
