NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 1- As the government in Kenya maintains a deafening silence over the brutal killing of a woman 9 years ago allegedly by a British soldier in Nanyuki- who was later said to have bragged about it on Facebook, an initiative to support the family of the deceased has started in the United Kingdom.
The crowdfunding initiative has been started by Labour Member of Parliament for Birmingham Yardley Jessie Phillips.
So far, more than Sh1 million has been contributed to support the late Agnes Wanjiru daughter Stacy, who is now aged 9 years.
Her mother Wanjiru was killed in 2012 and her body was dumped into a septic tank in Lions Court Hotel in Nanyuki.
“We want to raise funds to help Stacy and her family following the horrific death of her mother, allowing them to provide the best environment for her to grow up in and make sure she has the brightest possible future. Please donate what you can to help them,” reads a brief statement about the initiative.
A Kenyan inquiry has been too sluggish to deliver justice to the family with the UK Defence Ministry saying it has been ‘co-operating’ with investigators.
This was after the Sunday times exposed an alleged cover-up, that would ensure Wanjiru’s family does not get justice.
At the point of her death, Wanjiru left behind a five-month-old daughter, now under the care of her sister Rose Wanyua.
“Agnes’ daughter Stacy is now almost ten years old and being raised by her aunt in difficult conditions, with little resources and limited support,” the UK MP’s crowdfunding appeal reads.
“If it was Ciru who had killed that white person, by now I wouldn’t even know where she is jailed,” Wanyua said during a recent interview with the BBC.
“But whoever killed her went free and is living his life. I am raising her child alone, no one has asked about their well-being, not even the government.”
An inquest led by Judge Njeri Thuku and ended in 2019 concluded that Wanjiru was killed by one or two British soldiers.
She was last seen alive in the company of two soldiers.
When her body was retrieved from the hotel’s septic tank, it had some parts missing and a stabbing wound.
The Judge had ordered two further criminal inquiries. No action was taken.
“The murder of Agnes Wanjiru is a tragedy that should not be tolerated. The British Army is committed to upholding the highest standards of discipline, lawful behaviour, and respect for others; we do not tolerate or condone the behaviour that has been alleged,” Colonel Duncan Mann, Commander British Army Training Unit Kenya, said after the Sunday Times expose.
British High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Marriott said the UK “if fully cooperating with the investigation and will help in any way we can.”
“I share the outrage and concern about the tragic death of Agnes Wanjiru in 2012 – my thoughts are with her family and the community,” she said in a statement on October 24.
Marriott pointed out that in 2012, the UK’s Special Investigation Branch carried out initial inquiries in Kenya, including providing information about British personnel to Kenyan police.
“No further requests were received at that time. Following the conclusion of a Kenyan inquest in 2019, we understand that the Kenyan authorities are looking into the murder. We will support that Kenyan police investigation,” she said.
“The conduct of the UK military here is incredibly important to us. They do a lot of good in Nanyuki, for the economy and the community. But where there are issues, we have and will address them.
A senior UK government official is expected in the country this month and will among other things discuss with the Kenyan counterparts Wanjiru’s murder, “and UK support to the Kenyan investigation.”
The family told the BBC it could not afford a lawyer, as getting other basic necessities remains a challenge.
“You know, we are poor. I’m a casual labourer. We’d have loved to retain a lawyer to follow up. We can’t,” Wanyua’s husband John Muchiri said.
But what remains a major concern among Kenyans is the silence by the government.
Kenyans on Twitter have started a social media campaign under the hashtags #JusticeforAgnesWanjiru and #StopCoverUp, to call for justice.
Others say Kenya should reconsider its military cooperation with the United Kingdom.
Father Gabriel Dolan who is also a fierce human rights defender has called on lobby groups to take up the matter and pursue justice.
The Sunday Times, in an exclusive piece, has discovered that the British soldier accused of killing Wanjiru, later joked about the murder on Facebook with friends from his regiment.
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