Haki na Sheria Press Statement on the Double Registration Court Judgment
Published: 21/Jan/2025
Source: Haki na Sheria (Garissa)
Today brought a life-changing moment for communities in Northern Kenya: a pivotal court judgement declaring that the denial of nationality documents to double registered people was both unconstitutional and infringed on their rights.
Three years ago, Haki Na Sheria, an NGO based in Garissa County dedicated to protecting the rights of communities in Northern Kenya, sued the Kenyan Government for the systematic discrimination of over 40,000 double registered people.
“Double registration” describes the process by which genuine Kenyans in areas close to refugee camps, such as Dadaab, were incorrectly registered as refugees, rendering them eligible for national IDs. Without these vital documents, they have been unable to do simple things like opening a bank account, get access to business premises, receive health services, education or formal employment.
We are delighted to announce that the government and relevant agencies are ordered to, firstly, deregister the names of victims of double registration who have been screened, vetted, cleared and declared to be Kenyan citizens from the refugees’ database within 60 days and, secondly, to collaborate with relevant agencies to activate or reactivate vetting committees to start, within six months, new vetting processes for other double registered individuals who were not included in previous efforts. They are also required to produce a report on the progress by the end of the six months.
As a human rights organization, we interpret this judgement as recognition of the immense suffering that double registered people have endured over the years – their own country effectively serving as an “open prison”.
We anticipate that the government will diligently work towards implementing the court judgement to ensure every Kenyan affected by the double registration is fully removed from the refugee database and issued with Kenyan identity cards within the timeline.
As always, Haki Na Sheri continues to work with the communities who continue to face discrimination in getting their citizenship rights. Because, despite our successes, the battle is in fact far from over – hundreds of Kenyans continue to bear the brunt of barriers to accessing ID cards that should have been removed long ago.
For more information, contact info@hakinasheria.org or for media inquiries contact 0727472772.
Download PDF: Haki na Sheria press statement on double registration court judgment Jan 2025