Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) has issued a clarification after reports emerged that its soldiers were forcing suspects to swim through sewer as a form of punishment.
The latest incident was reported on the weekend of Saturday, December 4, when truck drivers in Lamu accused the soldiers of the demeaning punishment.
The drivers and their conductors claimed that they were nabbed while transporting their cargo at night despite President Uhuru Kenyatta lifting night curfew.
They noted that they were taken to a nearby bush where they were shown a ditch with muddy water and asked to swim in it.
The harrowing exercise lasted for more than 30 minutes.
“The soldiers commanded us to swim in the mud. They also beat us with clubs and told us to stop travelling during awkward hours. My hand was injured during the incident.
"We swam in the dirty water for about 30 minutes. We were then ordered to smear mud on each other before we were told to enter our vehicles and go back to where we came from,” they recounted.
In a statement, KDF however refuted that its soldiers were meting the harsh punishment on suspects.
KDF further argued that the above-mentioned instance was false since no KDF soldiers were stationed in Nyongoro Corner, Lamu County.
This was, however, not the first time reports of suspects being forced to swim through sewer were emerging.
In mid-October, soldiers were also accused of forcing Mombasa soldiers to swim through the sludge after taking control of the city's island.
Several residents at the time accused the authorities, a combination of naval soldiers and police of manhandling them. Some were allegedly assaulted for refusing to swim in the sewage.
