Human rights defenders, Mr Samson Owimba Ojiayo and Mr Godwin Kamau Wangoe, who were abducted by Kenyan security forces and subjected to ill-treatment have received threats and harassment from plain clothes security forces since their release.

On 18 September 2009, Godwin Kamau Wangoe was released on bail. It is reported that on 19 and 20 September 2009, police officers in plain clothes visited Godwin Kamau Wangoe's home asking where they could find him, despite the fact he has already been charged and that a case against him is pending.

Following his release on 16 September 2009, Samson Owimba Ojiayo and his family have been subjected to threats and harassment from the security forces. It is reported that a senior police officer called Samson Owimba Ojiayo and demanded to know what he had disclosed to colleagues about his abduction. Police officers in plain clothes also visited his home twice asking about his whereabouts. On the day of his release, unidentified men approached his 12-year-old daughter, and asked her about her fathers' whereabouts. Police have also visited his mother's home asking about him.

In a separate incident, an unidentified individual, impersonating a member of Bunge La Mwananchi, called a colleague of Samson Owimba Ojiayo, asking him to organise a meeting between him and Samson Owimba Ojiayo so that Samson could be evacuated from Kenya. When members of Bunge La Mwananchi called the person who had been impersonated, they found that he had not made any such call.

Front Line believes that the ongoing harassment and threats against Godwin Kamau Wangoe and Samson Owimba Ojiayo and their families are directly related to their work in defence of human rights as witnesses during the investigations on extrajudicial killings by the police squads which took place following the disputed December 2007 elections. The abduction of the two human rights defenders came weeks after the replacement of controversial police chief, Mohamed Hussein Ali, who had been widely criticised for his role in the post-election violence. He came under further pressure in January this year when UN Special Rapporteur on Extra-Judicial Killings Philip Alston published a damning report on police brutality in Kenya.

Front Line reiterates its call for the Kenyan authorities to drop all charges against Godwin Kamau Wangoe, to investigate the abduction of Godwin Kamau Wangoe and Samson Owimba Ojiayo, and to ensure the security and protection of both defenders.

see the original Front Line appeal on behalf of Mr Samson Owimba Ojiayo and Mr Godwin Kamau Wangoe Original Front Line appeal