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{
    "id": 1229448,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1229448/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 192,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Gilgil, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Martha Wangari",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I also join my Chairman and the Committee in supporting this Report. I will not belabour too much in terms of the importance of this Agreement, but I will raise certain issues because I sat in the same Committee in the last Parliament. We did a lot of work on this Agreement, but we did not get to ratify it because that parliamentary session lapsed before we could do so. Some issues have come up. As a House, we must also look at Section 8 of the Treaty Making and Ratification Act, so that we give Parliament some leeway to amend a treaty. I have written to the Speaker on the same. As it is right now, we can only voice reservations on issues that we do not agree with in this Agreement. We are unable to amend it. We raised those issues because Article 6(5) of the Agreement exempts some issues from prosecution. One is expected to take personal responsibility. The host country has the jurisdiction to try sexual assault and slavery, but they have omitted murder. That is why we have been unable to totally resolve the issue of the death of Agnes Wanjiru. In the last Parliament, we had a sitting with the Directorate of DCI, the DPP, and the Cabinet Secretary for Defence. That issue ended up being a ping- pong between the various directorates. We have not yet resolved the issue because the DPP was categorical that the DCI should conduct an in-depth investigation into the death of Agnes Wanjiru. We cannot get to the bottom of that matter until we deal with some of these issues. The good that comes out of the relationship between these two countries outweighs the bad. When we talk about employment, 500 Kenyans have been permanently employed and others have been employed on casual basis. There is more good that comes out of the relationship. This Agreement has also opened up this relationship so that it is not just about training our forces. It also opens up other areas including initial advance and follow-up training, research and development. The issues that we are currently dealing with are dynamic, even in the security sector. Research and development are very critical. Disaster and humanitarian operations, military and civilian personnel and military sports are also important issues. These issues were initially not there. This will be a better agreement than the narrow and shallow view that we had whereby all we could mutually agree on was the issue of training. Every treaty also has an exit clause. In fact, this Agreement can be terminated at any time through a written request and the consent of the two parties. It will last for five years and can be renewed. It can be amended. If we feel that a dynamic or a different issue has come up, this Agreement can be amended by the mutual consent of the two parties. It allows for flexibility so that we can insert any other issue that comes along. The one issue that it brings up that we have a problem with is that of Agnes Wanjiru. Hon. Deputy Speaker, the issue of Agnes Wanjiru cannot be left to die like that. As my Chair has said, we will be calling the Director of DCI again because we would like to know how far that prosecution has gone. We want to know when the DPP will open formal charges"
}