Man found guilty of murder of human rights defender

Meru High Court has found a man guilty of the murder of human rights activist Elizabeth Ekaru.

Patrick Naweet, a security guard, was found guilty of murdering Ekaru at Kambi Garba in Isiolo County on January 3, 2022, in an attack described as ferocious in court.

Witnesses who included a forensic expert said Naweet inflicted multiple stab wounds on Ekaru in a vicious attack following a land boundary dispute.

Naweet had pleaded not guilty and though he said he had fought with the deceased, he had acted in self-defence after she overpowered and pinned him to the ground, as the dispute degenerated into a physical fight.

Principal Prosecutor Eric Masila called 11 witnesses to build a case against Naweet, whose lawyer Hilary Sandi told the court acted after he was provoked by Ms Ekaru.

Naweet who did not call any witnesses told the court he had not meant to kill Ekaru as he was defending himself after she attacked him.

He told the court he worked as a security officer at a hotel in Isiolo, said he and Ekaru had gone to the disputed boundary where they argued about the true position of the boundary.

He said Ekaru slapped him and he in turn hit her with a club he had.

Naweet claimed they struggled and Ekaru felled him, lay on top of him and held him by the neck and hit him with a stone.

He said he used a knife to stab her in the thigh.

Her screams attracted the public who came and beat him “thoroughly”.

"People came and started to beat me. I ran," said Naweet.

Under questioning by Mr Masila, Naweet maintained he acted in self-defence, and claimed Ekaru would not have died had the people rushed her to the hospital, instead of concentrating on him.

"It was self-defence. I did not intend to kill her but they nearly killed me. It is God who saved my life. It was an accident. I have never done it. I plead for leniency," he said.

His lawyer, Hilary Sandi said Naweet acted in self-defence and contested the murder charge.

The lawyer said Naweet being a Turkana man by tribe, suffered a culture shock when a woman attacked him and he reacted, leading to the death.

“He was provoked to act as he did. This is a Turkana man being choked by a woman. Anger pushed him to act the way he did,” Sandi argued.

Sandi said his client, 50, was a Turkana man and the farthest he had come to civilization was Kambi Garba in Isiolo County.

He said Naweet dropped out at Standard Seven and having been brought up in a Turkana culture where women were not outspoken, he experienced a culture shock when he encountered Ms Ekaru, an outspoken human rights activist.

It was an argument that seemed to displease Presiding Judge Edward Muriithi when he made his ruling.

“There was more than a tinge of unacceptable male chauvinism in the submission by the defence counsel, which sought to condone home-based violence in the Turkana community. It was argued that the accused as a Turkana man could not fathom the audacity of a woman to stand up to him, argue with him and allegedly slap him,” Justice Muriithi said.

He said; “Without profiling the (Turkana) community, but in answer to the submission of accused’s counsel (Sandi), this judgment will tell the accused that it is criminal to assault a woman, whatever the unlawful intentions and pretended provocations”.

Muriithi said DNA evidence placed only the two at the scene, leaving no question that Naweet caused the fatal injuries.

The judge said the prosecution had proved its charge of murder before the court, and “consequently, convicts the accused for the offence as charged”.

He scheduled pre-sentencing proceedings for September 5 this year.