Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 423322,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/423322/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 112,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Hassan",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 431,
        "legal_name": "Hassan Omar Hassan Sarai",
        "slug": "hassan-omar-hassan-sarai"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, I also want to congratulate Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale for this extra-ordinary Motion. Some people in this Senate do embody the struggle of this nation. I remember meeting Sen. (Dr.) Khalwale, way back in 2001 in Kakamega when I was the national coordinator for Muungano wa Mageuzi and he was one of our executive members. Today many Kenyans look up to this men and women who are in this Senate and National Assembly to articulate the cause of those who paid quite a heavy prize in the struggle for the liberation of Kenya. I also remember meeting Sen. Murungi. He met me when I had just been chased out of school when he was a lawyer practicing in the firm of Gibson Kuria and Kiraitu Advocates. I do believe that he filed a case for me for my return to school. When I told him that I did not have court fees, Sen. Murungi, took care of that fee and also instructed one of his lawyers, Kathurima, to do my case pro bono . Those symbolized some of the many sacrifices that Kenyans have made in this journey. Today the Chief Justice who sits at the helm of the Kenya’s Judiciary was also a victim of the excesses of the past regimes. I think it would be very unethical for us, as a country, not to recognise these men and women who were so gallant in the struggle for this nation. Mr. Speaker, Sir, just to reflect on the case of Wallace Gichere; I do recall in 2003 we were shortlisted to be commissioners in the Kenya National Human Rights Commission (KNHRC), unfortunately Wallace Gichere was not appointed commissioner and he declined to reapply in the subsequent appointments, but I re-applied one more time and, at that time, I was appointed commissioner. For many of those who were in the democratic struggle, the expectations were that we would use that framework of the commission to argue, highlight and articulate some of these rights and pursue the necessary compensation to those who were victims of the rules of that time, both the Kenyatta and Moi Rule. That said, I think there are two forms of justice in this type of work. I was the head of the transitional justice; a programme in the KNHRC. There is restorative justice, where you give people a bit of money and redistributive justice where we punish those who committed these crimes. Just the fact that we award a few of these gallant Kenyans a bit of money does not take away the pain. We must subvert the possibility of those excesses ever happening in this country again. That can only come if those perpetrators of this constitutional crimes - I believe some no longer fall within the purview of statutory limitation because these are heinous crimes - are taken to book. I do believe that The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}