A collective of East African civil society actors and human rights defenders gathered in Nairobi today to issue a blistering condemnation of what they described as a burgeoning "autocratic alliance" between regional leaders.

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The group, speaking under the banner of the Pan-African Solidarity Network, expressed profound alarm over recent remarks made by Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu, which they interpret as an explicit endorsement of transnational state violence.

The controversy stems from a speech delivered by President Suluhu in Dar es Salaam on May 4, during which she used the Swahili expression "nitawapiga mikwaju," translating to a promise to "beat them hard" or "crack down" on dissenters.

Activists noted with particular concern that Kenyan President William Ruto was present at the event and appeared to signal his tacit approval of the hardline stance.

KHCR deputy executive director Cornelius Oduor opined that discussing compensation while simultaneously endorsing state violence is contradictory and insulting to the victims.

“We cannot be having a situation where we are discussing compensation—reparations—and the Presidents can tolerate a discussion that goes against the very principle… it's a mockery," Oduor said.

Geoffrey Mboya gave a direct challenge to the leadership.

"The people of East Africa reject your threats and shall continue to defend democracy," Mboya stated, addressing the Presidents.

He characterised the appeal for the suspension of the rule of law as a dangerous precedent that the region knows all too well, reminding those present that such rhetoric has previously led to arbitrary detention, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.

The activists provided a grim retrospective of state conduct in both Tanzania and Kenya over the last three years to frame the current threat. They highlighted the 2025 "sham elections" in Tanzania, which were preceded by the brutal torture of thousands and the disappearance of journalists and activists such as Boniface Mwangi and Agather Atuhaire.

The situation in Kenya was described as equally dire; speakers cited the 2023 cost-of-living protests where police allegedly killed at least 100 people. Further violence was noted during the 2024 and 2025 Finance Bill and Saba Saba demonstrations, where Gen Z protesters faced deadly force and unlawful detention.

Felix Wambua, another prominent voice at the proceedings, argued that the rhetoric heard in Dar es Salaam is a precursor to further violence ahead of Kenya’s 2027 elections.

He claimed that this autocratic alliance, stretching from Dar es Salaam to Nairobi and including Uganda, deliberately paints young people as a "disorderly threat" to justify state aggression.

Wambua emphasised that the alliance is not only repressive but illegal, as it violates the constitutions of both Kenya and Tanzania, as well as the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights.

The group demanded that both Presidents Suluhu and Ruto publicly apologise and retract their statements, guaranteeing that there would be no repetition of utterances advocating the murder of civilians.

They also accused the President of leaning towards Tanzania's autocratic tendencies.

"President William Ruto was not elected by the people of Kenya to receive advice from Samia Suluhu on how to deal with dissent and how to deal with people who think otherwise."

They called for an immediate halt to extrajudicial killings and for the state to account for all individuals currently missing following court orders.

The group also questioned Ruto's motives, accusing him of expanding private business interests or infrastructure in Tanzania while simultaneously pushing for the privatisation of public assets within Kenya.

John Maina Ndegwa, an advocate of the High Court of Kenya, concluded the session by asserting that President Suluhu cannot be allowed to redefine democracy to suit an autocratic agenda.

He warned that the confession of unlawful domestic and transnational violence could and would be used against the leaders in the future. The coalition ended with a call for citizens across East African borders to remain united and continue the incredible and important work of defending their constitutional freedoms.