The government must ensure efforts to contain Kenya’s first imported Bundibugyo Ebola case do not lead to violations of human rights, Amnesty International Kenya has said, warning against excessive surveillance, discrimination and the use of quarantine as a form of punishment.
The rights organisation said the State has a responsibility to protect lives and safeguard public health, but measures taken to contain the virus must also respect fundamental freedoms and the dignity of those affected.
“Public health and human rights are not competing objectives,” Amnesty said in an advisory issued on Wednesday.
The organisation said any emergency measures introduced in response to the case must be “lawful, necessary, proportionate, time-bound, and non-discriminatory”, citing lessons Kenya and other countries learned during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Amnesty placed particular focus on the handling of personal information collected through contact tracing, saying authorities must ensure that sensitive details belonging to people who may have come into contact with the patient are not exposed.
“Contact tracing is vital, but it handles deeply sensitive data,” the organisation said.
It urged health authorities to limit data collection to information needed for public health purposes and ensure passenger manifests and other records used during contact tracing are protected from unauthorised access or disclosure.
The rights group also called for strict confidentiality in the handling of suspected and confirmed Ebola cases, cautioning against releasing information that could reveal the identities of patients.
“Fear of public exposure drives patients into hiding,” it said.
On quarantine, Amnesty said the government should only impose restrictions where they are needed to prevent the spread of infection and should not use them as punishment for people who may have been exposed to the virus.
“Quarantine is an infection-control tool, not a criminal sanction,” it said.
Those placed in quarantine, the organisation said, should have access to suitable accommodation, food, clean water, sanitation, medical services and psychosocial support throughout the period of restriction.
Amnesty further urged the government to consider home quarantine where conditions allow it, saying restrictions should be guided by medical evidence rather than fear or public pressure.
The organisation called for additional safeguards for children, women and other vulnerable people who may be affected by quarantine and other measures introduced as part of the response.
It also urged authorities to ensure health workers involved in the Ebola response have enough personal protective equipment, proper training, occupational health support and access to psychosocial care.
Beyond the health risks posed by the virus, Amnesty warned that stigma could create another challenge for containment efforts.
It urged the government and the public to guard against discrimination targeting people from the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as refugees, migrants, traders and communities living around border areas.
“Ebola is a disease, not a nationality,” it said.
Amnesty also called for clear and open communication from authorities, saying the public should receive timely information about the disease and the measures being taken to contain it.
The organisation stressed the need to protect media freedom and freedom of expression during the response, while cautioning authorities against relying on excessive policing to enforce public health measures.
“Coercion cannot sustain public health,” Amnesty said, arguing that public cooperation and confidence are essential to containing the disease.
Kenya confirmed its first imported Bundibugyo Ebola case after a Kenyan citizen who had been living in the Democratic Republic of Congo travelled overland from the DRC through Uganda before taking Jambojet flight JM8523 from Entebbe to Nairobi on October 3.
The traveller arrived at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and was later taken to Nairobi Hospital, where he was isolated and tested for Ebola. The tests returned positive before the patient later died in Nairobi.
The death triggered an expanded contact-tracing exercise as health authorities moved to identify people who may have been exposed during the patient's journey and after his arrival in Kenya.
The Ministry of Health has so far identified 57 contacts, with 10 of them placed in quarantine.
The government has maintained that Kenya is dealing with an imported case that is under management rather than a wider Ebola outbreak in the country.
As part of the response, authorities have stepped up surveillance at 15 points of entry and activated isolation and treatment facilities to deal with suspected cases.
Five designated facilities have a combined capacity of 241 beds, while health officials are working with county governments and other health facilities to strengthen preparedness should the number of suspected cases rise.
The rights group said the response should remain focused on stopping transmission while ensuring that people affected by the measures are treated fairly, their privacy is protected and their basic needs are met.
Amnesty's concerns come as Kenya expands surveillance and contact tracing following the confirmation of the imported case, with public health authorities seeking to prevent further transmission while maintaining public confidence in the response.