21 Ethiopians Go On Hunger Strike Over Long Detention

KIAMBU, Kenya, Feb 7 – 21 Ethiopians who were arrested for being in the country illegally have gone on hunger strike causing panic.
The group alleges that the Kenyan government is taking too long to repatriate them to their country.
The Ethiopians were arrested on February 17, 2023, in Juja, Kiambu and taken to court where a court ordered their repatriation, and since then, officials say they have been processing the planned repatriation.
The group started their hunger strike on March 2, 2023, after they refused to take their meals saying they wanted to be taken back to their country, saying the repatriation process had taken too long.
Police at the Juja police station were the group is being held were taken there by officers from DCI’s Transnational Organized Crime Unit pending further arraignment and repatriation.
Police at the station said the group looked too weak and vulnerable following the hunger strike and feared for the worst.
Dozens of Ethiopians are arrested in the country as they try to use this route to other places like Tanzania, the Middle East and South Africa.
Last month, Forty-one Ethiopians were arrested from a house in Baraka estate, Mihango while being smuggled to South Africa.
The men had been brought to a house in the area waiting to be shipped out when police arrived.
Police who had been tipped off said they arrested two prime human smugglers behind the incident.
Head of Transnational Organized Crime Unit George Mutonya said the two, a Kenyan and an Ethiopian, have been linked to many other smuggling scandals in the country.
Tens of Ethiopians are annually arrested in Kenya while on transit and later deported.
Most of those arrested come to Kenya to seek jobs or are on transit.
They usually have a language barrier as they cannot communicate in English or Swahili.
Officials cite corruption as one of the reasons the business thrives on the route.