An activist affiliated with the Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI), Francis Auma, was reportedly assaulted on Saturday, August 2.
Confirming the incident, Vocal Africa CEO and fellow activist Hussein Khalid claimed that the activist was assaulted in Mombasa by police officers, including an Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD).
Khalid criticised the assault, stating that the recent spate of assaults clearly shows that Mombasa activists are wrongly being targeted by police officers.
"Information coming in just now is that renowned Mombasa human rights defender Francis Auma of MUHURI has this evening survived an assault by police," he stated.
"According to Auma, among his attackers was the Airport OCPD. Auma has sustained serious injuries, among them bleeding from his ears. This attack is clear evidence that human rights defenders from Mombasa are not safe and that they are being targeted by police."
The revelation came just hours after MUHURI and other civil society organisations from the Coast region accompanied Mwabili Mwagodi to Central Police Station in Mombasa to record a statement detailing his abduction ordeal in Tanzania.
However, the venture was unsuccessful as the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) denied the activist an opportunity to record a statement.
Speaking after the ordeal, MUHURI termed the officer's decision as "an act we view as a deliberate obstruction of justice."
"The refusal by Central Police to take his statement is unacceptable and is a blatant violation of his right to be heard and to seek justice," MUHURI said in a statement.
"We are very concerned for Mwabili’s safety. The circumstances of his abduction bear the hallmarks of cross-border collusion, and there are strong indications that Kenyan state agents were involved."
While in Tanzania on Wednesday, July 21, Mwabili, a vocal activist, was abducted by Tanzanian authorities and held incommunicado for four days.
In the wee hours of Sunday, July 27, he was dumped in a bush in Kinondo, Kwale County, and walked to the Diani police station, where he was briefly held again. Recalling his days in captivity, he revealed that Kenyan police officers were involved in his exchange at the Kenya-Tanzania border.
Several of his belongings, including his laptop, three phones, travel documents, and even his belt, are still in the custody of the Kenyan police.
