Around two weeks after a controversial tax reform came into force in Kenya, people in the East African country again demonstrated against new taxes and rising prices.
There were clashes between the police and the demonstrators. The security forces used tear gas and protesters set fire to car tyres. Kenya’s opposition leader Raila Odinga had called for the protest. There were demonstrations in several cities across the country. Local media reported injuries and deaths. There were initially no official figures.
In the capital, Nairobi, at least 50 primary school children were injured by tear gas fired by police at protesters nearby. The children were taken to the hospital, some unconscious, but their condition is now stable, said clinic director Aron Shikuku. Nairobi Police Chief Adamson Bungei confirmed the incident to the German Press Agency. In the course of the protests, one of the most important traffic routes in Nairobi was also closed, as the operator announced.
Ongoing protests and violence
For several months there have been repeated demonstrations in the country with around 55 million inhabitants, some of which have been violently suppressed by the police. Odinga initially called for protests against the massive increase in the cost of living. President William Ruto’s controversial new tax law, which he wants to use to restructure the ailing state budget, has fueled the protests again.
The human rights organization Human Rights Watch had criticized the excessive use of force by the police against the demonstrators. At the end of May, she spoke of at least twelve people who had died since the protests began in March.
