Amnesty International has called on the government to allow the media to cover the exhumation of Shakahola cult victims once the phase five exhumation process begins.
Amnesty International Executive Director Houghton Irungu on Tuesday said the public should also get frequent updates on the progress of the exhumation.
"Amnesty International Kenya calls on the government to quash all suspicions of a cover-up by providing reasonable access to the media and human rights organisations and regular public briefings on the progress of the exhumations and pathological examinations," Irungu said in Malindi, Kilifi.
He noted that the government has today released some bodies at the Malindi Mortuary, Kilifi, where they have been lying.
“The release today is less than ten per cent of the bodies that have been lying at the Malindi Mortuary for over a year," he said.
Irungu termed the Shakahola massacre as one of Kenya’s most heinous mass crimes since the State of Emergency in the 1950s.
Irungu said it is tragic that over 400 bodies have not been fully identified and released to their respective families for a dignified burial.
"The public deserves a statement that explains why the other 400 bodies are yet to be released,” he said.
Further, the lobby called for the investigation and prosecution of several people named in the October 2023 ad hoc Senate Committee report.
"The Senate Taskforce identified several people of having knowledge and being complicit or taking no action to stop the illegal activities of Pastor Paul Mackenzie and his Good News International Ministries associates," he said.
According to Irungu, it is widely suspected that the total number of deaths may be many more than 438 bodies recovered so far.
