Muslim for Human Rights now want intersex persons to be considered and recruited into the police service.
The lobby group said the intersex persons are being discriminated against yet they were recognised in the 2019 census, which showed they are more than a thousand in Kenya.
“Muhuri recommends that the National Police Service Commission considers intersex persons in their subsequent recruitment exercises,” Muhuri said in a statement on Friday.
The lobby group was among observers of the exercise in Matuga, Kwale County during the countrywide recruitment of police constables on March 24.
According to Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai, the NPS wanted 5,000 recruits aged between 18 and 28 years.
However, Muhuri said the recruitment forms categorised male and females only.
In Matuga, Muhuri said, some 110 people turned up, including a paltry 20 females.
The low turnout of females, the lobby group said, was mainly due to lack of requisite academic qualifications.
“This underscores the deep-rooted social divide. The recruiters used physical examination and endurance to cut down the numbers,” Muhuri said.
Men were required to run six kilometres while women had three kilometres to run.
“At this point, 35 male and 12 female candidates respectively proceeded for medical check-up,” Muhuri observed.
Urine and blood samples were then taken for tests, although the candidates were not informed what exact tests were being done, Muhuri said.
The activists said in the end, only 12 candidates were picked, among them 10 males and two females.
The organisation also identified low levels of education in Kwale as the major hindrance to females in getting recruited into the National Police Service.
In its recommendations, Muhuri urged the NPSC to make the medical tests transparent to each of the candidates.
“Inform unsuccessful candidates reasons for their failure,” they urged.
Muhuri also wants the final number of recruits targeted for each centre known from the start.
Edited by B. Oruta
