Victims of the 2007-2008 post-election violence in Kenya have sued high-level security officials for alleged brutality and excessive use of power, Kenya's The Standard reported Thursday (February 14th).

Petitioning groups include Citizens Against Violence, the Kalenjin Youth Alliance, the South Rift Human Rights Advocacy Centre, the Independent Medico-Legal Unit and 15 individual plaintiffs.

They have sued Attorney General Githu Muigai, Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko, the Independent Police Oversight Authority, former Police Commissioner Hussein Ali and former Administration Police Commandant Kinuthia Mbugua.

The victims claim that government offices failed to prevent, properly investigate or prosecute those responsible for post-election violence, and want the court to compel the National Police Service to produce a full report on all incidents of police shooting during the post-election violence.

In addition to seeking a declaration that officials' failure to properly address post-election violence amounts to a crime against humanity, the plaintiffs are suing for unspecified damages at the High Court in Nairobi.

About 1,200 people were killed and about 300,000 were displaced during the 2007-2008 post-election violence, according to the United Nations. At least 405 of those people died as a direct result of police shootings, the claimants said.