‘Legally baseless’: Ex-LSK president Theuri condemns terrorism charges against protesters

Former Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Eric Theuri has criticized the government’s decision to charge arrested protesters with terrorism-related offenses, calling the move "ridiculous" and lacking any legal foundation.

In an interview with NTV on Monday, Theuri singled out the case of activist Boniface Mwangi, who was on Saturday night arrested by Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) officers at his home in Lukenya, Machakos County, for “facilitating terror” during the recent June 25 demonstrations.

Theuri said the use of terrorism charges is a gross misuse of the law and risks inflaming public anger rather than addressing the underlying causes of unrest.

“To charge Boniface Mwangi or any of these people with acts of terrorism is completely ridiculous. It has no legal basis,” Theuri said. “You may want to use how terrorism is defined to show that some of those things happen, but it’s much more than that.”

Theuri pointed out that terrorism is a grave criminal offense involving high levels of coordination, financing, and a clear intent to cause widespread destruction and loss of life, criteria he said do not apply to peaceful protesters.

“It involves a lot of organization, a lot of finances, you know, and people sitting somewhere and planning to cause death and destruction within a country,” he said.

He expressed concern that the government was misapplying counterterrorism laws to suppress civil dissent, warning that such tactics could deepen public mistrust in law enforcement and the justice system.

“When we use our laws selectively in an attempt to deal with a manifestation of a social problem, we do not cure the problem. What we are doing is that we are creating an even bigger problem,” he said.

Theuri also warned that terrorism charges, which allow suspects to be detained for extended periods of up to 90 days without trial, risk violating constitutional safeguards.

“That is the reason why the constitutional protections of being presented in court within 24 hours for any offense or within 14 days don’t even apply to terrorism,” he noted.

The former LSK president criticized the police service for what he described as a deteriorating public image, citing allegations of disobeying court orders and extrajudicial killings.

“If you have a police service that is known for not obeying court orders, killing people, such that when you see the police, instead of feeling safe, you feel unsafe, what are we creating?” Theuri asked.

“We desperately need the police to maintain law and order, but if they have such a reputation, what is supposed to happen when there is unease, a situation of violence?”

Mwangi is currently held at Nairobi’s Pangani Police Station. Following his arrest, DCI said they searched his office in Nairobi’s Hurlingham area and found two unused tear gas canisters and a single blank round of ammunition.

Detectives claim the items are evidence of Mwangi’s involvement in what they describe as “acts intended to cause public disorder and fear.”

The charges have sparked backlash from human rights defenders, legal advocates, and civil society groups who gathered outside the police station on Sunday to condemn increasing arrests, arbitrary detentions, and questionable charges against government critics.

The activist is expected to appear in court on Monday.

Former Chief Justice David Maraga is also among those who have taken issue with the pressing of terrorism charges against protesters, terming it a way to suppress dissent.