Kangemi P.C.E.

A Church compound (Off Waiyaki Way)

P.O. Box 10071 00100
Nairobi Kenya
Tel. No.: +254 722 884 565
Email: info@uspkenya.com Website: www.uspkenya.com
Users and Survivors of Psychiatry in Kenya (USP-K)

CEOs
Office
Mobile: +254 723664177 Email: kanyi.gikonyo@uspkenya.com Website: www.uspkenya.com
USPKENYA REGISTERED IN 2007 UNDER NGO COORDINATION BOARD REGISTRATION NUMBER OP. 218/051/2007/0456/4848

03-Jun-2013
Dear Sir / Madam,
RE: ENDORSEMENT OF CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS BY THE COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE

Users and Survivors of Psychiatry in Kenya (USPKenya) is a non-governmental organization that was
established and registered in Kenya in the year 2007. It is a membership organization whose major
objective is to promote and advocate for the rights of persons with psychosocial disabilities in Kenya.

USPKenya endorses the concluding observations of the Committee on Torture against Kenya as adopted
at its 50th Session as outlined below:

31. The Committee is concerned by reports of deplorable conditions in psychiatric institutions and other
places of deprivation of liberty and regrets the lack of information by the State party on the conditions
in such institutions. (arts. 16)

We endorse the recommendation that The Government of Kenya should ensure that all places of
deprivation of liberty, including psychiatric hospitals, are adequately monitored and that effective
safeguards are in place to prevent any ill-treatment of persons in such facilities. We would also urge
the Government to provide detailed information on the place, time and periodicity of visits, including
unannounced, to psychiatric institutions and other places of deprivation of liberty and on the findings
and the follow-up on the outcome of such visits.

We endorse the following recommendation: Considering that the Government of Kenya ratified the
Convention in 1997, we support the Committees recommendation that urges Kenya to table, as a
matter of urgency, the Prevention of Torture Bill (2011) before the Parliament, so that its provisions,
which include a comprehensive definition of torture in line with article 1 of the Convention and
render all acts of torture punishable by appropriate penalties, become the applicable law.

In addition we support the call for the ratification of the OPCAT: Recalling the State
Partys commitment during its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in 2010
(A/HRC/15/8, para. 101.3), the Committee recommends that Kenya considers
ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel,
Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

However we would also like to point out that Kenya signed the CRPD in 2007 and ratified in
2008. Article 16(3) of the CRPD also requires the monitoring of Mental Health Facilities.

Yours Faithfully,

Kanyi Gikonyo