The Biden administration has stepped up pressure on Kenya to step up its fight against corruption and protect civil liberties as talks continue on a bilateral trade agreement between the two countries.
Washington has sent a senior democracy and human rights official to Nairobi amid widespread reports of violations of constitutional rights to assembly and sit-in during anti-government protests and the co-optation of opposition politicians into the government.
Uzra Zeya, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, began a five-day visit to Kenya and Ethiopia on Sunday for talks on human rights, democratic governance, and humanitarian cooperation.
Ms Zia’s visit comes as President William Ruto appointed five officials from the main opposition party, the Orange Democratic Movement, to his “broad-based” cabinet, after weeks of deadly youth-led social unrest over a plan to impose new higher prices, mismanagement and rampant corruption.
In Kenya, Under Secretary Zia will meet with senior government officials, civil society representatives, and alumni of U.S. exchange programs to build on the strong 60-year U.S.-Kenya partnership, including joint efforts to strengthen the rule of law, combat corruption, and promote government accountability, according to a report on her visit.
In addition to addressing common solutions to regional and global challenges, it will emphasize the importance of freedoms of peaceful assembly and expression, as well as U.S. support for democratic reforms and refugee integration.
Ruto’s government has come under increasing scrutiny from human rights groups, including the government-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, over the use of live ammunition against unarmed protesters amid increasing cases of abductions and torture of young people seen as having led the month-long protests.
The successful anti-tax protests, led by Gen Z and millennials – who insisted they had no political, ethnic or religious affiliations – prompted Dr Ruto to sack almost his entire cabinet and reshuffle the country’s top internal security officials. The changes saw the resignation of the under-fire Inspector-General of Police, Japhet Kumi.
But the Kenyan leader has angered a section of protesters after he nominated 11 of the sacked ministers for fresh scrutiny by lawmakers and five others from the Orange Democratic Movement party led by veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga.
The government has also attacked civil society organizations, including the US-based Ford Foundation, accusing them of sponsoring violence in Kenya. The Ford Foundation has denied the accusations.
Ms. Zia’s visit coincides with the seventh round of negotiations on the proposed U.S.-Kenya Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership, which is taking place in Nairobi between Monday and Friday this week.
The round of talks between Nairobi and Washington will focus mainly on agriculture, customs, trade facilitation and enforcement, environment, regulatory best practices, inclusion, and workers’ rights and protection.
In June, the office of US Trade Representative Katherine Tai raised concerns about gaps in Kenya’s implementation of laws and policies aimed at protecting freedom of expression and respecting human rights, including the rights of LGBT people.
In the 2024 biennial report on the implementation of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), Ms. Tai’s office wrote: “Enforcement of labour laws, including with regard to occupational safety and health, remains a significant challenge, particularly in the informal economy.”
“Other concerns include restrictions on freedom of expression and the media, interference with freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association, lack of accountability for gender-based violence, and laws criminalizing consensual sexual conduct between same-sex adults, although there are no reports of law enforcement.”
In July last year, Ms Tai snubbed then-commerce minister Moses Kuria, in what sources at the time said was linked to his vitriolic attacks on the media over its reporting on alleged corruption in cooking oil import deals and his attacks on the opposition over anti-government protests.
This prompted Dr Ruto to replace Mr Kuria with Rebecca Miano, who at the time was heading the East African Affairs and Regional Development portfolio.
“We have made clear that trade policy should benefit everyone. That has been part of the multilateral trading system for the past several decades,” Ms Tai told reporters at the time.
“In terms of how we engage with our trading partners in the trade dialogues that we have with our various institutions, we hold on to this strong vision of creating inclusive prosperity through trade and economic policies. This is something that we hold on to and will not hesitate to take forward in all our trade dealings.”
Last year, Uganda became a victim of the US hardline stance on human rights after being removed from the list of beneficiaries of the quota-free and duty-free African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) due to anti-LGBTQ laws.