RED TAPE DELAYS ARRESTS OF ACTIVIST'S ATTACKERS

By Sserwadda Waguma Muzamil (BTM Correspondent)

KENYA – 13 October 2009: Kenyan police are yet to arrest suspects alleged to have assaulted a gay rights activist in Nairobi, attacked at his house in a Nairobi estate on 3 October, allegedly for declaring his support for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex rights.

The activist, Peter Wanyama has told the Gay Activists Alliance –Team Africa in Nairobi that it has been complicated to quickly apprehend his neighbours who attacked him, because only one doctor in Nairobi is authorised to write an AP3 form to the police so that they can issue a warrant of arrest.

Wanyama said he went to see a government doctor and was booked for next week to present the treatment documents so that the government can start processing the arrest warrant.

“This is subjecting me to another painful experience; I still have got pain of being assaulted. Why cant the government have several doctors to do this one?, he questioned  adding that he went to the doctor and found more that five thousand people on queue to be given arrest warrants for their assault cases.

Police in Nairobi say they use the government appointed doctors’ reports to effect arrests for all assault cases.

Dennis Hambridge, Global Coordinator of the Gay Activist Alliance –GAA-Team Africa Premise, who incidentally was in Nairobi during Wanyama’s attack has condemned the incident and called on the Kenyan police to conduct a credible investigation into the attack.

“No one should be attacked because he is a heterosexual or homosexual. Sexual orientation is a matter of human rights. We want LGBTI organisations to step up their campaigns on advocacy and awareness to the society on LGBTI rights”, Hambridge advised.