Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei has objected to the detention of two Kenya Airways (KQ) employees by the Military Intelligence Unit known as Detection Militaire des Activities Anti Patrie (DEMIAP) in Kinshasa, DRC.
In a statement on Friday, April 26, Sing’Oei said the Kenyan embassy in DRC is actively engaging with DRC authorities to resolve the matter.
The Foreign Affairs PS noted that the Kenyan government is committed to protecting citizens working abroad, adding that developments on the detention of the KQ staff will be made public.
“Kenya takes great exception to the arrest and detention of its nationals lawfully carrying out commercial activities in the Democratic Republic of Congo by authorities in DRC. Our Mission in Kinshasa is engaging actively on the matter,” said Sing’Oei.
He added, “We shall update the public on developments touching on this issue. The government reaffirms its commitment to protecting our citizens working abroad.”
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KQ said in a statement on Friday morning that the two employees were arrested on Friday 19 April and their phones confiscated.
"The reason for their arrest was alleged to be missing custom documentation on valuable cargo that was to be transported on a KQ flight on April 12th, 2024. However, the said cargo was not uplifted or accepted by KQ due to incomplete documentation," KQ explained.
The national carrier pointed out the Military Court ordered the military Intelligence Unit to release the duo but the soldiers have ignored the court directive.
"Despite the court orders, the military intelligence unit is still holding them incommunicado, yet these are civilians being held in a military intelligence facility," KQ remarked.
KQ Chief Executive Officer Allan Kilavuka called on both the Kenyan and DRC governments to work and resolve the standoff which he described as harassment of Kenya Airways employees.
