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Police fire tear gas as protests continue
Kenyan police fired tear gas to disperse protesters in the capital Nairobi who had turned out to express their anger at the government and mourn those killed in previous protests.
Security forces, including the military, have been heavily mobilized and roads are blocked around the city’s main buildings.
This comes two days after more than 20 people lost their lives in protests against tax increases, which set part of parliament on fire.
The following day, President William Ruto bowed to pressure and said he would withdraw the finance bill containing the unpopular tax proposals.
State agents have been accused of kidnapping hundreds of people linked to the protests.
The state-funded National Commission of Kenya said it had helped secure the release of more than 300 “illegally detained” people.
Protesters vowed to gather again in Nairobi city center to mourn the dead. Some have demanded the president’s resignation.
But turnout in the capital on Thursday was much lower than the previous protest, when people stormed parliament.
Groups of protesters have attempted to enter the city center, but most have been repelled by police.
Before the protests, some promised to march to the president’s official residence, State House.
But senior figures linked to the protests have warned against doing so due to the risk of further violence.
Roads leading to the State House were blocked, with police turning away some drivers and pedestrians.
On Thursday morning, local television stations showed empty streets in the central business district, with many security forces on patrol.
There were also protests in cities across the country.
In Mombasa, Kenya’s second-largest city, large crowds took to the streets chanting “Ruto must leave”, and businesses had to close due to some looting and stone throwing.
President Ruto’s hometown of Eldoret, which on Tuesday saw violent clashes, is calm.
But there were some clashes in Migori, western Kenya, where police fired tear gas as they clashed with protesters.
Crowds of protesters confronted security officers in Kisumu, also in the west.
Before Thursday’s protests, Auma Obama, half-sister of former US President Barack Obama, told the BBC that young people were taking to the streets again because they “still want their voices to be heard”.
Obama, who was teargassed as he joined Tuesday’s protests, told BBC Newsday that young people were still offended.
Mr Ruto promised to enter into dialogue with them, but that has not yet happened, she said.
“The grievances are not over. It’s way beyond financial reach right now, so a conversation has to happen. There has to be a dialogue. I hope that happens. We don’t want any more bloodshed,” Obama added.
Ruto won the presidency in 2022 after campaigning to defend the interests of the “drug lord” – the ordinary citizen who struggles to make a living.
But since then he has introduced a series of taxes and increased others, which has made him unpopular as people have complained that they cannot pay more when they are already struggling due to the cost of living crisis.
The finance law outlined plans to introduce new taxes this year, including on bread and cooking oil, triggering mass protests.
The government bowed to pressure and removed some of the taxes, but did little to assuage people’s concerns, who demanded that the law be withdrawn entirely.
On Wednesday, the president gave in to the demand, saying that “the people have spoken.”
But he defended the law, saying his government took the difficult decisions necessary to stabilize the economy and help free Kenya from the debt trap that forces it to spend 61 cents of every fiscal dollar on repaying its loans.
Mr Ruto now aims to balance the books by introducing a new public austerity program, including a cut in his cabinet’s expenses.