A group of human rights organisations has condemned Kenya’s move to hand over four Turkish nationals to their home country.
The group under Police Reforms Working Group said it was shocked by Kenya's admission that Kenyan law enforcement and foreign affairs agencies played a role in the return of Mustafa Genç, Oztürk Uzun, Alparslan Tasçi, and Hüseyin Yesilsu, four Turkish nationals from Kenya to Turkey.
“The principle of non-refoulement is a cornerstone of refugee protection. It has been recognised in international humanitarian law for more than seventy years,” the group said in a statement.
They said the law prohibits the return
of refugees to a place where they are likely to face the very danger from which
they fled.
“The so obligations cannot be traded
for commercial, diplomatic or trade interests without violating both national
and international law,” the group added.
“International refugee law recognizes that refugees may only be returned if they pose a danger to national security or, after due process, are found guilty of a crime that threatens the safety of others. While the law recognizes there are exceptions to the principle of non-refoulment, the law also provides procedural safeguards. Rather than” returning asylum seekers to governments that they had fled from, a third country for safe resettlement could have been found.”
They argued Kenya has placed four human
beings at grave risk as well as Kenya's standing as a sanctuary nation for
those fleeing persecution and war.
“It undermines Kenya's credibility as
the newest member of the United Nations Human Rights Council and torpedoes the
United Nations Universal Periodic Review process planned for next year.”
“This
breach punctures Kenya's legal commitments and its international moral standing
and threatens three decades of confidence in Kenya's humanitarian protection
for the 780,000 refugees on Kenyan soil who need it today,” the statement
added.
Kenya confirmed four Turkish nationals captured on
Friday were repatriated to their home country.
State Department of Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei said Monday, October 21 that this was done at the request of their country.
He said the rights of the four will be upheld
after assurances from Turkish authorities.
“The Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs has received assurances from the Turkish authorities that the four will be treated with dignity in keeping with national and international law," he said.
Kenya is committed to the privacy and confidentiality of the repatriated individuals and will refrain from responding to media inquiries on the subject until the ongoing inter-agency review of the case is complete.” Kenya acceded to this request on the strength of the robust historical and strategic relations anchored on bilateral instruments between our respective countries."
He also expressed the government’s commitment to the international community to protect and promote refugee rights as prescribed under national and international law.
“Kenya is committed to the privacy and
confidentiality of the repatriated individuals and will refrain from responding
to media inquiries on the subject until the ongoing inter-agency inquiry review
of the case is complete,” he said.
“As such, the rights welfare and well-being of the more than 780,000 refugees residing in the country will remain the government’s singular priority.”
A total of seven Turkish citizens
were Friday abducted by unknown people in Kileleshwa, Nairobi.
Three of them were however later released by the said abductors.
The incident happened in the Kileleshwa area while the foreigners were driving to their office in the morning hours.
They are teachers in Nairobi.
Mustafa Genç, his son Abdullah Genç, Hüseyin
Yeşilsu, Necdet Seyitoğlu, Öztürk Uzun, Alparslan Taşçı and his wife Saadet
Taşçı were the individuals that were kidnapped.
Abdullah Genç, Necdet Seyitoğlu and Saadet Taşçı
were later released by the kidnappers.
Necdet Seyitoglu who is an education consultant
in Nairobi said after being abducted, they were taken around for at least eight
hours.
He said the car that blocked them was a white
Jeep while they were in an office van.
Their vehicle was intercepted by men in
balaclavas and were bundled into vehicles to unknown destinations.
"After the ordeal, I was dumped in an unknown location and one of the gunmen gave me Sh1,000 and ordered me to board a matatu as they proceeded with my colleagues," Seyitoglu added.
The four were asylum-seekers registered
with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).