The High Court has ordered lawyer Miguna Miguna to obtain emergency travel documents from the Kenyan Embassy in Canada, Germany or wherever he is, within 72 hours.
Justice Hedwig Ong'undi, while restating that the lawyer is a Kenyan citizen by birth, also ordered the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs Raychel Omamo to ensure the order is complied with and that the lawyer should be allowed to return to Kenya.
"Once he is in possession of the travel documents and presentation of the same to Air France, the airline is directed to allow him to board the next immediate flight to Nairobi," ordered the judge.
Upon landing, she said, the immigration officers should allow him to enter Kenya using his national identity card for identification.
Mr Miguna was deported to Canada in March 2018 after swearing in ODM party leader Raila Odinga as the ‘people’s president’. He has twice tried to return to Kenya but the same has failed because of the "red alerts" which he said were issued by the Kenyan government blocking international airlines from flying him to Nairobi.
Justice Ong'undi rejected an argument by Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho that Dr Miguna requires a visa to travel back.
Later, after the arrival, he should apply for a passport in Nairobi and be issued with the same in seven days, the court stated.
It was also held that both the exiled lawyer and the government have an obligation to observe the citizenship immigration regulations.
The judge noted that a fortnight ago, the lawyer was advised to visit the Kenyan high commission in Ottawa, Canada and obtain an emergency certificate to enable him to travel to Kenya.
The advice was relayed to Dr Miguna through the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) in a response to its request dated November 10, 2021 to the Ministry of Interior to facilitate his safe return.
Passport deposited in court
In the letter, Immigrations Director-General Alexander Muteshi said the directorate is not in possession of Dr Miguna’s passport as the same was deposited in court pursuant to a court order issued by Justice Luka Kimaru.
“With regard to him (Miguna) being issued with a passport, we reiterate that we are not in a position to issue one, as Mr Miguna has not made an application for replacement which is a statutory requirement under Section 28(1) of the Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Act of Kenya,” reads the letter.
Justice Ong'undi said there was no evidence that Dr Miguna had applied for new or renewal, visited the Ottawa embassy or his Canadian passport had been endorsed as required by the regulations.
