A new survey has revealed that more than 40 per cent of Kenyans have suffered abuse at the hands of police officers, while nearly seven in ten say they have witnessed misconduct, underscoring the widespread mistrust of the country’s security forces.
The study, conducted by the Washington-based International Justice Mission (IJM), covered the period between 2022 and 2024, before the eruption of deadly youth-led protests in June this year. Rights groups say those demonstrations were met with brutal crackdowns that left more than 100 people dead.
The survey of 5,700 people suggests that police abuse was already deeply entrenched before the unrest. “The problem is entrenched within the system… it is rotten,” said Ayub Were, one of the report’s authors. Young people, who have been at the forefront of recent protests, were identified as the most common targets of abuse. One respondent remarked: “The police over here view the youth as criminals.”
Corruption was the most frequently reported form of misconduct, cited by 55 per cent of participants, followed by harassment at 54 per cent. Thirteen per cent reported being assaulted, though most said they suffered only minor injuries.
Many victims admitted they did not report incidents because they lacked confidence in the authorities. Patrick, a civil servant falsely accused of possessing a homemade firearm in 2015, told AFP he had been detained and beaten by police before being cleared in court four years later. “I couldn’t fight that system. Nobody has faith in the police,” he said.
The IJM report also pointed to political interference, with Kenya’s elites accused of exerting influence over the police watchdog and the judiciary. Between 2021 and 2024, just seven officers were convicted out of 8,851 complaints recorded, official figures show. “The state is using the police to violate citizens,” said one respondent.
The IJM accused the National Police Service of being “notorious” for abuses, including unlawful arrests and systemic disregard for human rights. However, a police spokesperson rejected the findings, insisting officers carried out a “fantastic” job and that all complaints were thoroughly investigated.
