Detained in a toilet, Kenyan opposition figure deported again against court orders

Kenyan opposition politician and lawyer Miguna Miguna has once again been deported to Dubai after he was refused entry into Kenya and detained at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport after his arrival on Monday.

Miguna had returned to the country after an earlier deportation to Canada in February for holding a dual citizenship. This was immediately after he coordinated a mock swearing in of Raila Odinga as “people’s president”. A high court ruled that his deportation and confiscation of his Kenyan passport were illegal and ordered his return.

The immigration authority refused him entry and detained him in a disabled toilet at the airport, Miguna claimed. The media was not allowed to film the situation and the authorities refused to adhere to a court order to release him.

According to Miguna, he was dragged, assaulted and drugged during the forced deportation to Dubai and needs medical attention. “I’m sick. I need medical treatment…I need urgent help here,” he said in a Twitter post.

The ministry of interior said it will address the public on the issue on Thursday and had denied that Miguna was being held illegally but had failed to follow arrival procedures when he landed in Kenya.

On Wednesday, a high court judge found Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i, Immigration chief Gordon Kihalang’wa and Police chief Joseph Boinnet in contempt of court and ordered them to appear before him on Thursday for sentencing.

Their conviction was in relation to their refusal to obey court orders.