Nairobi — The survivors and victims tortured at Nyayo House during the regime of late President Daniel Moi have filed a petition against the government for denying public access to torture chambers.
Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) said Thursday the petitioners want the torture chambers converted into a national monument and made accessible to the public for remembrance and education about Kenya's history.
The survivors and victims challenged Legal Notice Number 11 of 1991, which declared the Nyayo House torture chambers a protected area, thereby restricting public access.
"This declaration contradicts the recommendation of the Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC), which, thirteen years ago, said that the chambers should be open to the public," the survivors stated.
"The recommendation had a one-year implementation timeframe, which has not been met," KHRCsated.
In the joint suit with the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), four survivors of Nyayo House torture -- Wachira Waheire, Florence Murage, Joseph Manje, and Ngotho Kariuki -- listed Attorney-General and the Cabinet Secretaries for Interior and Tourism as defendants.
The petitioners said despite the opening of the chambers to the public for the first time on February 18, 2003, after the end of Moi's regime, subsequent efforts to make them continuously accessible have not been successful.
Denied access
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They told the court that access to the chambers requires permission from the Nairobi County Commissioner and the National Intelligence Service (NIS).
The petitioners argue there were attempts to destroy the torture chambers to cover up the atrocities committed there.
Petitioners of said Floors 24, 25, and 26 of Nyayo House served as interrogation rooms, while the basement contained dark, dingy, and often waterlogged cells where regime enforcers subjected detainees to severe physical, mental, and psychological torture to extract forced confessions.
"Without an expedited process, Waheire, Murage, Manje, Kariuki, and other victims or survivors of the Nyayo Torture Chambers will continue to be deprived of their rights to reparation and restorative justice," the suit paper read in part.
Petitioners added that turning the torture rooms into a national monument and granting access to the public would signify an act of honor and respect for the victims both survivors and those who died inside the dreaded chambers.
Judge Lawrence Mugambi has scheduled a hearing for September 23, to give further directions on the case.
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