President William Ruto has received two “memos” from the United States embassy in less than a month following the departure of envoy Meg Whitman, signalling the return of a direct approach towards putting State House in check.
Hot on the heels of the embassy calling out Dr Ruto’s government for the high-handedness of police against peaceful protesters during the anti-femicide protests in Nairobi on December 10, the embassy on Tuesday condemned the trend of abductions believed to be conducted by agents of the State.
While mourning 39th US President Jimmy Carter, the US embassy, through its X handle, took the opportunity to pass a message to Dr Ruto.
“President Carter championed human rights worldwide. In the spirit of his legacy, we join the calls in Kenya for accountability and respect for rule of law. Abductions must end,” stated the embassy, currently under Chargé d’Affaires Marc Dillard awaiting the appointment of a substantive envoy.
In the condemnation of the actions taken against the anti-femicide protesters, the embassy said it was “regrettable and concerning to see police action against Kenyans exercising their constitutional rights to assemble and protest peacefully”.
“On #InternationalHumanRightsDay and every day, the United States supports efforts to #EndFemicideKE and protect the human rights of all,” it added.
The US also fired another salvo through the Africa Bureau under its Department of State. The bureau is under US Assistant Secretary of State Molly Phee.
In a December 31 post on X, the bureau wrote: “The United States echoes calls for transparent investigations and accountability in the wake of a reported rise in abductions and enforced disappearances.”
The post reproduced a December 26 statement by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights which indicated that there had been 13 more cases of abduction in the three months to December, bringing the total to 82 since June 2024.
The actions from the US embassy in Kenya are a far cry from the time of Ms Whitman, who served as the ambassador between August 2022 and November 2024.
A search of tweets posted over that period shows that hardly was the word “rights” mentioned. Whenever it was, it involved Ms Whitman meeting activists.
The reluctance to call out Dr Ruto as various human rights violations happened, especially during anti-government protests in mid-2024, was one of the sticky points of Ms Whitman’s legacy.
However, in an interview with the Nation two days after she announced her resignation, Ms Whitman insisted that no one had been more vocal than her in calling out the transgressions of Dr Ruto’s administration.
“No embassy here has done more than we have,” she said, referring to the period starting June 2024. “Secretary [of State Anthony] Blinken has spoken three times to the President.”
“We had our Under Secretary for Human Rights come to visit, and she gave a whole press conference, met with the President, along with me, and then we’ve been very clear with members of government, members of Parliament and the President himself about the need for accountability for the 60-odd deaths,” said Ms Whitman.
In an October 2024 instance where embassies of various Western powers signed a statement that the US did not, she said her office stood aside because it gave “mixed signals”.
“We thought that there was a mixed message in that statement. There was the congratulations part of the message and then, you know, a statement on abductions and the killings. And we thought that it was not appropriate to have a congratulations paired with, if you will, an admonishment,” said Ms Whitman.
After her exit, which she said was normal procedure when there is a change of guard at the White House, the embassy appears to have chosen the direct and prompt approach to addressing issues.
The recent actions by the US embassy can also be seen as a way of aligning with the foreign policy of president-elect Donald Trump, who is set to be inaugurated on January 20 for his second term.
