London High Court rules that Mau Mau torture claims are not time barred
On 5 October, the High Court in London held that three Kenyans could pursue their claims of torture, sustained during the Kenyan emergency, against the UK government.
Click here to read the judgment.
The period of limitations for these cases had long run out with a period of delay of approximately 50 years. The Court has the discretion to extend the period of limitations in certain circumstances, under the
Limitations Act 1980.
Although the UK government did not dispute the torture which occurred or that the claimants were
victims of such torture, the foreign office claimed that too much time had elapsed and it was now
impossible to hold a fair trial. The Court did not accept this argument and noted that there was a
significant amount of documents which would serve sufficiently as evidence.
Bulletin readers will remember in a
previous issue that the same High Court Judge last
year rejected the UK government’s claim that it was the duty of the Kenyan government to claim
responsibility for abuses which occurred during the Kenyan emergency.
This case is considered a test case and has the capacity to pave the way for thousands of claims from other victims of mistreatment, not only from Kenya but also from other British colonies. The Foreign Office confirmed that it was planning on appealing the decision as it may have “potentially significant and far-reaching legal implications”.
This ruling enables the claimants to proceed with an action for damages. If these individuals were to succeed in their claim it would not be the first time reparations were made to victims for historical injustices. In 2000, Austria established a fund to compensate individuals forced into slave labour during World War II.