Kenya Law Society files contempt of court application against government

The Katiba Institute (KI), together with the Law Society of Kenya (the Law Society), filed a contempt of court application in the High Court of Kenya in Nairobi on Wednesday against the Kenyan government for “openly, wilfully, deliberately, and contumaciously disobeying and violating” court orders demanding full disclosure of “documents, agreements, and safety protocols” in respect of a US-sponsored ebola quarantine and treatment facility.

Characterizing the violations as tantamount to a “confrontation with the Judiciary,” the contempt application has alleged that construction and development of the secretive US facility have illegally continued despite the explicit court orders prohibiting all plans to “establish, operationalise, or approve the facility.”

Stating that this direct disobedience has undermined the legitimacy and authority of the courts, KI and the Law Society (the applicants) have asked the court to intervene immediately by sending a clear and firm message to the authorities. The applicants have warned that failure to do so imminently endangers the reputation of the courts and the integrity of the judicial process in the public eye.

The KI condemned both the Kenyan and US governments for their continued defiance of court orders, and accused them of “viewing themselves as entirely above the Kenyan judicial system.” KI executive director Nora Mbagathi added:

We are witnessing a profound disrespect for Kenya’s sovereignty and our constitutional rule of law. The fact that construction continues and vital documents remain hidden, in direct violation of a High Court order, shows that the U.S. and Kenyan government see themselves as above our courts. They must be reminded that Kenya is a sovereign republic with a Constitution that protects its people, not an offshore containment zone where foreign entities can operate above the law.

KI further noted that “even urgent diplomatic and public health initiatives must bow to constitutional accountability, transparency, and the rule of law,” and that no foreign government can be permitted to “bypass parliamentary oversight, evade public participation, and ignore court orders under the guise of an international health emergency.”

KI is a nonprofit is a nongovernmental organization dedicated to social justice, public interest litigation, and civic engagement. Justice Nyaundi of the Kenya High Court in Nairobi issued an urgent conservatory order last month suspending any move to establish the planned US-backed Ebola quarantine center. The conservatory order was granted following a petition by the KI, barring officials from opening or approving the facility until the case is fully heard before the Court. There has been growing backlash against the facility and the related plan, and medical professionals in Kenya have condemned the plan as treating Kenya as a containment colony for a lethal pathogen that Kenyans did not generate reminding that “Kenya is a sovereign republic, not a geopolitical isolation ward,” echoing widespread concern that Kenya should not become an offshore quarantine hub for foreign patients.