All the Men Have Gone’

War Crimes in Kenya’s Mt. Elgon District

(Nairobi, July 21, 2008) – Human Rights Watch is pleased to invite you to a news conference to be held in Nairobi on July 28, 2008. Researcher Ben Rawlence will present the findings and recommendations of a new Human Rights Watch report on Kenya: “All the Men Have Gone: War Crimes in Kenya’s Mt. Elgon District.”

The Sabaot Land Defence Force (SLDF) emerged in 2006 as a militia group that resisted government attempts to evict squatters in the Chepyuk area of Mt. Elgon district. The SLDF has since grown increasingly violent and political, supporting certain political candidates in the run-up to the December 2007 presidential election while targeting other political opponents and their supporters. The ensuing violence against civilians in Mt. Elgon by the SLDF, including rape, torture, and the seizure of property, has left more than 600 people dead. In response to this violence, a joint force made up of the Kenyan army and police was sent to Mt. Elgon in March 2008. Although initially welcomed by the local population, this government-backed security force proceeded to detain and torture hundreds, if not thousands, of men and boys, killing dozens of others. Many are still missing.

This report, based on research carried out in Mt. Elgon, documents the abusive roles and practices played out by both sides of this conflict. Both the SLDF and the Kenyan security forces have committed serious violations of international humanitarian law and Human Rights Watch urges the Kenyan government to ensure that those responsible for the violence are held accountable for their crimes.

What: Report release on the abuses perpetrated against the civilians in Mt. Elgon by the SLDF and Kenya’s joint military and police force.

Who: Ben Rawlence, Human Rights Watch Africa researcher

When: Monday, July 28, 2008 at 10:00 a.m.

Where: Fiesta Restaurant, 3rd Floor, Chester House, Nairobi

For more of Human Rights Watch’s work on Kenya, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/doc?t=africa&c=kenya

For more information or to schedule interviews, please contact:
In Nairobi, Daniel Ooko: +254-736779657
In London, Urmi Shah: +44-20-7713-2788

Note to journalists: The report is embargoed until after the news conference. Copies of the entire report will be available at the news conference.