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NAIROBI.- Thousands of protesters protesting against a controversial new law that would introduce new taxes stormed Parliament in Kenya and left part of the building on fire as lawmakers evacuated. At least five people died and 31 were injured as a consequence of the serious repression against protests.
“At least five people died (…). “Thirty-one were injured,” Several NGOs indicated, including Amnesty International Kenya, without specifying the cities where the events occurred. Last week, two more people died in other protests over the same issue.
The incidents broke out in the city’s financial center, where The third demonstration in eight days of the “Occupy Parliament” movement was held, who opposes a project for the 2024-2025 budget that plans to introduce new taxes in this East African country.
The first clashes broke out at noon, when The protesters advanced in an area that houses several official buildings, such as Parliament, the Supreme Court and the Nairobi mayor’s office.
The protesters forced the police cordon and entered the Parliament facilities, where the deputies They had just approved the amendments to the text, before its final approval scheduled for before June 30. Previously, the police had used live ammunition against the protest.
The Kenyan NGO Human Rights Commission stated on the social network “He shot four protesters, […]killing one of them” in Nairobi.
A person shot dead was wrapped in a Kenyan flag and taken away, as reported by the AP agency.
Before the assault, The legislators fled through a tunnel, but protesters allowed opposition leaders who voted against the bill to leave the besieged building.
The office of the Nairobi governor, a member of the ruling party, was also briefly on fire. The office is located near parliament. Police water cannons were used to extinguish the fire.
Outside, protesters could be heard shouting: “We are going for all the politicians.”
The third round of protests occurred while legislators were voting the proposed financial law, which would introduce new taxes such as an ecological tax that would increase the price of products such as diapers and menstrual hygiene items. A proposed bread tax was scrapped amid public outrage, but protesters continued to call on parliament not to approve the rule in a country, the economic hub of East Africa, where Frustrations over the high cost of living have been simmering for years.
The Kenya Human Rights Commission on Tuesday shared a video showing officers shooting at protesters, and said accountability would be held.
The commission wrote a message to the president in X, William Ruto. “The world watches your descent into tyranny! The actions of his regime are an attack on democracy. All those involved in the shooting, actively or passively, must be held accountable”.
Among the protesters was the half-sister of former US President Barack Obama, activist Auma Obama, who was attacked with tear gas by police while giving an interview with CNN. “I can’t even see anymore, they are throwing tear gas at us,” the woman said while speaking with a journalist from the American network.
President Ruto was outside the capital attending an African Union retreat. On Sunday he said that he was proud of the young people who had come out to exercise their democratic duty and that he would involve young people in his concerns.
Ruto was expected to sign the finance bill into law this week. You have two weeks to act.
Law Society of Kenya president Faith Odhiambo said on Tuesday that 50 Kenyans, including his personal assistant, had been “kidnapped” by people believed to be police officers. He noted that there were cases of extrajudicial executions, police kidnappings, torture and people who had been held incommunicado for several days.
Among those missing were people who held prominent positions in the protests and who were removed from their homes, workplaces and public spaces before Tuesday’s protests, according to civil society groups.
The President of Parliament, Moses Wetangulaon Tuesday ordered the inspector general of police to report on the whereabouts of people who the opposition said had been kidnapped by the police.
Hundreds of Kenyan police officers, long accused of abuses by human rights groups and others, arrived in Haiti on Tuesday to lead a multinational force backed by the United Nations against the powerful gangs that have the country under their control. The deployment faces a legal challenge in Kenya, but President William Ruto’s government has pressed ahead, with the thanks of, among others, US President Joe Biden.
The movement “Occupy Parliament” emerged on social networks after the presentation in Parliament on June 13 of the 2024-2025 budget project that planned to establish new taxes, such as a 16% VAT on bread and an annual rate of 2.5% on vehicles individuals. For the goverment, The rates are necessary to give the heavily indebted country room for maneuver.
The government announced on June 18 that it would withdraw most of the measures, but the movement is calling for the text to be scrapped altogether. The protesters claim that the government plans to compensate for the withdrawal of some fiscal measures with others, in particular a 50% increase in fuel taxes.
Initially led by “Generation Z” (people born after 1997), the movement morphed into a broader protest against President William Ruto’s policies.
Moody Kimwele, 51, demonstrated with his 15-year-old son to denounce the increasing tax burden since the start of Ruto’s presidency in September 2022. “What have they done with the money? […] “You can’t see anything of what they have raised,” estimated.
“Ruto never kept his promises […] We are tired. Let him go,” declared Stephanie Wangari, a 24-year-old unemployed person.
Kenya, a country of 52 million inhabitants, is an economic engine of the region, However, faced with strong tensions. Inflation reached 5.1% year-on-year in May, with an increase in the prices of food products and fuel of 6.2% and 7.8% respectively, according to the Central Bank.
AP and AFP Agencies
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