In Summary
- Ojijo wants the court to certify the application as urgent
- The Members are Seeking Referendum Amid Discrimination Claims
Approximately 10,000 members of the Luo community have taken their grievances to court seeking a Referendum that would allow them to establish their own country separate from Kenya.
Citing long-standing allegations of discrimination by the government, the petitioners, led by Ojijo Ogillo have lodged a case at the Milimani Courts.
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“That the court orders the respondent (the Attorney General) to cause a referendum to be held for Luos to leave the state of Kenya and become their own state, “
one of the orders reads.
The petitioners are requesting the court to issue orders compelling the government, represented by Attorney General Justin Muturi, to initiate a referendum process that would enable the Luo community’s exit from Kenya.
They argue that government regimes; current and the past, have perpetuated a culture of impunity through alleged rigged elections that deny Luos the ability to lead and grow economically.
“We, the Luos of Kenya, guided by Article 20 of the African on Human and People’s Right (as adopted in 1981 in Nairobi, Kenya, and entered into force in 1986), hereby file a complaint with the African Commission on Human and Peoples Right, in Banjul, The Gambia; The United Nations Human Rights office; the East African Court; and the High Court of Kenya; to grant us our human rights of self-determination of forming our own state; as provided for in Article 20 (1) and 20 (2),”
Mombasa Republican Council
While this marks the first time such a massive number of individuals have come together to demand a referendum for secession, it’s not the first instance of separatist sentiments in Kenya’s history.
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Back in 2010, the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC), a separatist political group, actively campaigned for the secession of the coastal strip region.
Similarly, in 1998, opposition leader Mwai Kibaki suggested secession for central Kenya following a turbulent election period
