ADOPTING A NATIONAL LAW TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS (EHRDs) IN KENYA

The policy brief highlights the increasing violence and criminalization of Environmental Human Rights Defenders (EHRDs) globally and specifically in Kenya. It identifies a lack of specific national legislation for EHRD protection, corruption, and restrictive laws as key enablers of these threats. The document recommends the enactment of a dedicated national protection law, the domestication of international human rights obligations, and the repeal of laws that limit civic space to ensure the safety of activists and the rule of law in environmental governance.

• Environmental Human Rights Defenders (EHRDs) face severe global violence, with 2019 being the deadliest year on record, seeing 212 deaths. Between 2002 and 2013, approximately 1,738 people were killed across 50 countries for defending land and environment.
• Indigenous people are disproportionately targeted; they accounted for approximately 40% of recorded deaths in 2015 and 2016, and about 30% (327 cases) in 2017. In 2020, environmental and indigenous people's rights were the riskiest sector in Africa, causing at least 25% of violations.
• Kenya is considered hostile to land and environmental defenders due to extra-judicial killings and state-led harassment. Examples include the killing of Robert Kirotich by EU-funded guards, the killing of Jomo Nyanguti by police, and the harassment of at least 35 activists campaigning against the LAPSSET project in Lamu county.
• Kenya lacks a specific law for the protection of EHRDs. While some protections are inferred from the Constitution, the Public Order Act, and the Witness Protection Act, there is no express legal obligation on the State to protect EHRDs.
• Several Kenyan laws are identified as restricting civic space and violating the privacy of defenders. These include the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act 2018, which allows for criminal sanctions and government inspection of documents, and the Kenya Information and Communication Act (KICA), which imposes heavy fines on journalists.
• Corruption and widespread impunity enable attacks on EHRDs, particularly in resource-rich countries where governance systems in extractive sectors are unsatisfactory. In 2018, state security forces were linked to 40 global killings of defenders.

APA

Okoth, E. M. A., & Changwony, W. (2023). ADOPTING A NATIONAL LAW TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS (EHRDs) IN KENYA. Natural Justice. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/ADOPTING-A-NATIONAL-LAW-TO-PROTECT-ENVIRONMENTAL-HUMAN-RIGHTS-DEFENDERS-EHRDs-IN-KENYA-V2.pdf

Chicago

Okoth, Eva Maria Anyango, and Winnie Changwony. ADOPTING A NATIONAL LAW TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS (EHRDs) IN KENYA. Natural Justice, 2023. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/ADOPTING-A-NATIONAL-LAW-TO-PROTECT-ENVIRONMENTAL-HUMAN-RIGHTS-DEFENDERS-EHRDs-IN-KENYA-V2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Okoth |first1=Eva Maria Anyango |last2=Changwony |first2=Winnie |title=ADOPTING A NATIONAL LAW TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS (EHRDs) IN KENYA |publisher=Natural Justice |date=May 2023 |url=https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/ADOPTING-A-NATIONAL-LAW-TO-PROTECT-ENVIRONMENTAL-HUMAN-RIGHTS-DEFENDERS-EHRDs-IN-KENYA-V2.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{okoth2023adopting, author = {Okoth, Eva Maria Anyango and Changwony, Winnie}, title = {{ADOPTING A NATIONAL LAW TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS (EHRDs) IN KENYA}}, institution = {Natural Justice}, year = {2023}, month = may, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/ADOPTING-A-NATIONAL-LAW-TO-PROTECT-ENVIRONMENTAL-HUMAN-RIGHTS-DEFENDERS-EHRDs-IN-KENYA-V2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }