River Yala Victims to Get Compensation as Government Makes Major Announcement
President William Ruto came out today with the announcement that families who’ve lost loved ones whose bodies turned up in River Yala will be included in the government’s compensation programme for those who have suffered human rights abuses.
Ruto dropped the news on Wednesday, October 7, during the unveiling of the Raila Odinga mausoleum at Kang’o Ka Jaramogi, a bit of a trial run for his already verbally drenched speech on the late former Prime Minister’s efforts to get some justice and compensation for people touched by political violence.
The President said that the government has already chipped in KSh2 billion for a broader compensation scheme, which they’ve already started handing out payments to verified claims. A look at the latest figures shows that a whopping 1,000 plus claims have already gone through the system, with over KSh1 billion given out by the end of September.
Ruto Announces Compensation for River Yala Victims
Ruto made it clear that the government will now be compensating families who had loved ones whose bodies were pulled from River Yala, in addition to other people and their families who’d been victims of alleged secret police disappearances.
“And it’s not just River Yala , this compensation will also be for the families of the many who’ve gone missing and whose bodies were later discovered in all these places – Yala etc.”
The announcement is a step up for the existing compensation framework which has been dealing with claims of deaths, injuries, rape, economic loss and a host of other recognised forms of harm. And the President made the link clear between this initiative and Raila Odinga’s long running campaign to get justice for those on the wrong end of political violence and protest related deaths.
Government Sets Aside Ksh2 Billion for Victims
Ruto confirmed that the government is setting aside KSh2 billion to help out, and the good news is that some verified claims are already being paid out.
The compensation plan is being run through a verification process before people can get money and the official Victims Compensation Fund says the KSh2 billion came from Parliament and that the payments will be made direct to the victims or people who have been approved to get the cash. By the end of September 2026, the compensation panel had handled over 1,000 claims and a whopping KSh1.014 billion had been paid out. All of this had to do with fatalities, injuries, rape, economic loss and other forms of harm.
The panel’s made it clear that this compensation plan is not meant to replace the legal system or other ways that victims can get redress.
Makau Mutua Welcomes River Yala Compensation
Prof Makau Mutua, the man at the helm of the Panel of Experts on Compensation for Victims of Protests in Kenya, welcomed the news with a big smile on his face thanks to Ruto’s announcement.
Mutua reckons that the decision is a game-changer for the families of the people who lost their lives and who have been left without a word on the disappearance of their loved ones, all of which are linked to the River Yala tragedy.
“In a move that’s never been seen before in this country, President Ruto has made good on his promise to compensate all the scores of people who were brutally killed at River Yala and at the same time reaffirmed the government’s commitment to bringing those responsible to book. And as the good book says, ” Let justice flow down like a torrent from the mountains,” Mutua chipped in.
The panel that Mutua is chairing has been hard at work verifying and categorizing claims being made by victims and families in need of compensation under the government’s compensation programme.
Ruto Revives River Yala Debate With Matiang’i
And while Ruto was at it, he also had a few words for Fred Matiang’i, the former Interior CS. He basically questioned Matiang’i’s call for special treatment of victims of the June 25 2024 protests by pointing out that the same attention should have been given to the victims of the River Yala killings.
Ruto told Matiang’i to keep his lectures to himself and instead focus on answering questions on his watch when bodies were recovered from the river. “Before lecturing the rest of us on human rights, you need to answer for those bodies that turned up during your time as Interior CS,” he told Matiang’i.
He also took Matiang’i to task over a memorial for the River Yala victims. “Before you go on and on about the rights of victims, when are you planning to do something about a memorial for them?” Ruto asked.
Ruto’s comments were a thinly veiled attack on Matiangi and and anyone thinking that they would get away with trying to sweep the issue under the rug will have to think again.
Matiang’i Responds to River Yala Questions
The news that River Yala victims are to receive some long awaited cash comes within a bigger compensation package that the government has put together for all those who have been victims of human rights abuses.
The programme comes with its own set of hoops that victims and families need to jump through before they even get a chance to claim compensation. These hoops include verification, authentication and categorization of the claims before a penny of the compensation can be handed over. The panel has already said that they will be looking at medical records, police reports, photos, witness statements and pretty much anything else that they deem relevant to the claims made.
The Kenya National Human Rights Commission has also put together its own reparations framework which among other things promises restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction and guarantees of non-repetition.
The inclusion of River Yala families in the compensation process means that finally some families who have been left without a word on the disappearance of their loved ones are going to have some answers, even if it’s through the compensation process.
What Happens to River Yala Victims’ Families?
River Yala became the focal point for all sorts of public outrage when the bodies started turning up in the river. The who, what, when and where questions surrounding those deaths are still unanswered and many people are still waiting for the answers.
The discovery of the bodies raised questions about the role of the state in the alleged abductions and killings and the dead bodies that were recovered from the river. Ever since then, right groups and families of the victims have been trying to get answers on the identities of the victims and the circumstances that led to their deaths.
Ruto’s latest move has changed the focus to compensation but as he himself said, compensation alone does not bring closure. The official compensation framework is very clear that it is not an admission of liability on the part of the state and that the money is not a guarantee that the state will not be held accountable in a court of law.
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River Yala Victims to Get Compensation as Government Makes Major Announcement
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