the realization of this entitlement by every person in the country. States are also prohibited, under the terms of the negative obligation, from unjustified interference with this freedom. However, movement rights are not absolute. International human rights and domestic laws impose certain restrictions on its enjoyment. The ICCPR116 and the Banjul Charter117 allow States to restrict an individual’s enjoyment of this freedom in specified circumstances, namely, where its national security, public order, public health and/or morals are threatened. The Kenyan Constitution contains a similar list. 118 Under the constitution the burden is on the State to prove that public order or security is threatened. Current Status One of the greatest hurdles that stateless persons and persons at risk of statelessness face in Kenya is the freedom to move freely within the country, despite constitutional and international law guarantees. As noted previously, their lack of documentation has wide consequences. Unlike nationals and lawfully resident foreigners, stateless persons or persons at risk of statelessness do not have any official document that they could use to identify themselves. Failure to hold any document exposes them to intimidation, extortion, arbitrary arrest and detention by law enforcement officials.119 Although officially there are no restrictions on the freedom of movement of individuals in Kenya, practice shows that law enforcement officials often target the locations where those who do not hold IDs are known to reside. Any person found without an ID may be detained for periods ranging from a few hours 120 to several months.121 Some could be charged in court for being in the country unlawfully. The following narratives capture this state of affairs: Travelling is a problem. I cannot go from Garissa to Dadaab. …. I have been harassed by police. There are too many police barriers between Garissa and Dadaab. I have been detained for not having documentation. I have been arrested several times, before turning 18 and after turning 18. After I turned 18 once I was arrested and stayed in remand for about one month. I was released under section 87A of the Criminal Procedure Code when the court found that I was born in Kenya. See article 12. See article 12. 118 See section 81(3). 119 Similar trends have been noted elsewhere in the context of refugees. See Edwin Abuya and Dulo Nyaoro, ‘Victims of Armed Conflict and Persecution in South Africa: Between a Rock and a Hard Place’, (2009) 32 Hastings International and Comparative Law 1 at 14. 120 Interview with Albert, Nairobi, 15 September 2009 (‘[In 2008] I travelled to Garissa and on my way back on a road block, the police requested for IDs, which I did not have. They took me to the cells where I stayed for less than an hour before the bus driver pleaded my case’). 121 Piet, for example, was detained for one year. Theodore also ‘spent some time in jail’. 122 Interview with Aissatou, North Eastern Province, 17 September 2009. 123 Interview with Ali, Nairobi Province, 15 September 2009. 116 117 OUT OF THE SHADOWS TOWARDS ENSURING THE RIGHTS OF STATELESS PERSONS AND PERSONS AT RISK OF STATELESSNESS IN KENYA 21