The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) has voiced deep concern over the safety of more than 150 Kenyan teacher trainees stranded in Tanzania following a wave of post-election unrest in the neighboring country.
In a statement signed by Secretary-General Akelo Misori, the union said several Kenyan teachers have been targeted amid the political chaos, with reports of death threats and even fatalities.
“While a few Kenyan teachers have lost their lives, many more have received death threats over alleged involvement in protests. Some have also had their postgraduate studies disrupted by the ongoing crisis,” Misori stated.
KUPPET is now urging the Kenyan government to take immediate diplomatic action to safeguard its citizens.
The union appealed to the Cabinet Secretaries for Education and Foreign Affairs to intervene, so that the safety of teachers and to facilitate the repatriation of bodies of those who have lost their lives.
“We call upon the government to act swiftly not only to protect the lives and education of our teachers but also to assist in bringing home the remains of those killed in the clashes,” the statement read in part.
A family in Siaya County has appealed to the Kenyan authorities to help bring back the body of John Okoth Ogutu, a 33-year-old teacher who was reportedly killed by Tanzanian security officers during the unrest. Ogutu had been teaching at a private school in Tanzania before his death.
At the same time, Vocal Africa, a civil rights organization, has raised the alarm over the disappearance of Fredrick Lorent Obuya, a 29-year-old Kenyan lawyer and tour operator who was arrested in Dar es Salaam on October 31.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, November 5, Vocal Africa CEO Hussein Khalid said the organization had received “a distressing report” regarding Obuya’s case, linking it to the ongoing political tensions.
“As we continue to monitor the situation in Tanzania following the post-election violence, we have learned of the arrest of a Kenyan, Fredrick Lorent Obuya, in Dar es Salaam. His whereabouts remain unknown,” Khalid said.
Friends of Obuya told Vocal Africa that he was en route to Zanzibar for work when he was detained.
His last known location was Oyster Bay Police Station in Dar es Salaam, but he has since gone missing, deepening fears over the safety of Kenyans currently in Tanzania.
The unfolding situation has sparked anxiety among families and human rights advocates, with growing calls for the Kenyan government to step up diplomatic efforts to ensure the protection and safe return of its nationals caught in Tanzania’s political crossfire.