Lamu residents decry roadblocks despite curfew suspension
Residents expressed frustrations that security agencies were still enforcing travel restrictions between 6 p.m. and 7 a.m.
Even after the suspension of the ban on night travel to Lamu, residents have complained that security agencies continue to enforce roadblocks restricting the movement of transport between Lamu and neighbouring towns.
While residents expressed relief that the curfew, which has been in place for more than 12 years, was finally coming to an end, they expressed frustrations that security agencies were still enforcing travel restrictions between 6 p.m. and 7 a.m.
Following the suspension of the curfew on May 21, private vehicles and passenger buses belonging to Tawakal, Buscar and other transport companies travelling to and from Lamu were stopped at roadblocks at Gamba Police Station and the Manjila junction in Tana River County, which links Lamu with Garissa and Tana River counties.
In protest, frustrated passengers and residents lit bonfires on the road, creating a standoff that paralysed transport for several hours leading to a major traffic snarl-up.
At Manjila, Tana River County Commissioner Joseph Wamuti called for calm, saying that due to sensitive security considerations, the government required time to implement the court order. He said that although there were plans to comply with the ruling, security concerns necessitated a gradual approach rather than the immediate lifting of the restrictions.
According to the Lamu Police Commander Shadrack Ruto, officers are yet to receive formal communication regarding the suspension of the curfew, stating that such directives must come from Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja.
In Mombasa, civil society organisations, including Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI), VOCAL Africa, Haki Africa, She Rises and community groups from Lamu, criticised the continued enforcement of the curfew despite the court ruling.
The groups said the continued restrictions amount to contempt of court and a violation of residents’ constitutional rights, including freedom of movement.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, May 26, VOCAL Africa Executive Director Hussein Khalid accused state agencies of disregarding court orders, warning that such actions undermine the rule of law and set a dangerous precedent.
The curfew was imposed on July 9, 2017, under Legal Notice No. 107 of 2017 — the Public Order (Curfew) (Lamu, Garissa and Tana River Counties) Order, 2017.
The court order, issued by Garsen High Court Judge Jesse Nyaga, temporarily suspended enforcement of the curfew across several areas in Lamu as well as in Holugho, Masalani, Bodehei, Milimani, Baure, Basuba, Kiunga, the Ishakani/Dar es Salaam border point, Hola, Garsen and Kipini, among others.
The Judge cautioned that any disobedience of the order would attract legal consequences.