Nubian Rights Forum & 2 others v Attorney General & 6 others; Child Welfare Society & 9 others (Interested Parties) [2020] eKLR
109. In her view, the security vetting results in many Nubians experiencing extreme delays in their applications for
documentation, or going without documentation. Further, that the delays result in missed educational, employment
and other opportunities. According to Ms. Abdulrahman, this profiling has been detrimental to the community, and
has also caused clashes and tension between its members and neighbouring communities, and she gave the example
of the ethnic clashed in Kibra in 2001.
110. Ms. Abdulrahman testified that due to the challenges the community faced, it had tried to seek legal redress in
the High Court of Kenya but was unsuccessful. It had then moved to the regional level to get a remedy, and she
cited the two decisions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Committee of
Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) referred to in the 1st Petitioner’s Petition. The two
cases had been resolved in favour of the community.
111. Ms. Abdulrahman’s deposition was that despite the decisions and the fact that international law is part of
Kenyan law, the government is yet to implement the recommendations in the two decisions. It was her evidence
that some discriminatory practices had in fact become more severe, and included increased requests for supporting
documents, as well as the introduction of a requirement of an applicant’s parent’s thumb print on an identity card
application form.
112. Ms. Abdulrahman also narrated in detail the steps taken by the 1st Petitioner to improve access to government
documentation by her community. It was her testimony that over 3,200 people had been assisted to apply for birth
certificates, identity cards, passports, and death certificates. She stated that Nubians in Kibra are only able to apply
for identity cards on Tuesdays or Thursdays, as these are the days that the vetting committees sit. Further, that a
Nubian applicant must first provide their documentation to Nubian elders for review and for signing of an affidavit
that confirms that the elders know the applicant as a member of the Nubian community. She went on to explain the
vetting process at length, and presented what she termed empirical findings and observations on the time taken and
delays in applications for documentation by members of the Nubian community.
113. In cross-examination by Mr. Nyamodi for the 4th and 7th Respondents, Ms. Abdulrahman clarified that she is
an official of the 1st Petitioner working on citizenship rights issues for the Nubians. It was her testimony that the 1st
Petitioner was in court because the Nubian community experiences difficulties in getting documents such as
identity cards, passports and birth certificates, which are used in the Huduma Namba registration.
114. In re-examination by Mr. Bashir, she expounded on the decisions they obtained from the regional bodies and
stressed the challenges that a Nubian child undergoes before getting an identity card. In her view, the difficulty in
obtaining documents would make it difficult to register for the Huduma Namba.
115. The 1st Petitioner also filed an affidavit sworn on 11th April 2019 by Dr. Thomas Fisher, a Research Officer
with Privacy International since February 2016. Dr. Fisher averred that he swore the affidavit on behalf of Privacy
International, a non-profit, non-governmental organisation based in London and established in 1990, which has
been working on issues relating to identification systems. His affidavit was intended to provide expert evidence in
support of the 1st Petitioner’s case.
116. It was his deposition, on the basis of various articles in international instruments, that the right to privacy is a
fundamental right enshrined in many constitutions around the world, as well as in international human rights law.
He noted that as early as 1988, the UN Human Rights Committee had recognised the need for data protection laws
to safeguard the fundamental right to privacy.
117. Dr. Fisher averred that his organisation had noted concerns with identity systems around the world. In his
view, some of the concerns can be partially mitigated by legal, procedural and technological safeguards, as
explained by the World Bank ID4D initiative in its publication titled Principles on Identification for Sustainable
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