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1 person shot dead, parts of Kenyan parliament burn during protests

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Nairobi:

Kenyan police shot dead a protester near parliament on Tuesday, a human rights group reported. AFP journalists saw three people lying motionless on the ground as the crowd protesting against planned tax hikes broke through the barricades to enter the parliament complex, where a fire broke out.

The rallies, led mainly by Generation Z, which began last week, have taken the government by surprise. President William Ruto said at the weekend that he was ready to talk to the protesters.

But tensions escalated significantly on Tuesday afternoon as crowds began throwing stones at police, pushing back barricades and making their way toward the parliament complex, which was cordoned off by police in full riot gear.

Police fired shots at the crowd gathered outside the Parliament building, where MPs were debating a controversial bill proposing tax increases.

“The police shot at four protesters, as witnessed by the KHRC, killing one,” the Kenya Human Rights Commission said in a statement to X.

Shortly before, Irungu Houghton, the executive director of Amnesty International Kenya, told AFP that “human rights monitors are now reporting an increasing use of live ammunition by the national police in the capital, Nairobi.”

“It is now urgently necessary that the paramedics are given safe passage to treat the many injured,” he said.

Anger over the cost of living crisis led to nationwide rallies last week. Protesters demanded the repeal of the Finance Bill. People are angry about the rising prices of bread and diapers.

Despite a heavy police presence, thousands of protesters had previously marched through Nairobi’s business district and pushed back barricades on their way to parliament.

According to AFP journalists, police in full riot gear fired tear gas and rubber bullets into the crowd.

As protesters gained ground on their way to Parliament, many had followed the action earlier in the day via livestream as they sang, chanted and beat drums.

Crowds also marched in the port city of Mombasa, the opposition stronghold of Kisumu and Ruto’s stronghold of Eldoret, as images from Kenyan television stations showed.

– ‘At a crossroads’ –

According to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority and human rights groups, two people died during the demonstrations in Nairobi on Thursday.

Several organizations, including Amnesty International Kenya, said at least 200 people were injured in protests in Nairobi last week.

Amnesty International’s Kenyan chapter wrote on Tuesday that “the pattern of police-led protests is rapidly deteriorating” and called on the government to respect protesters’ right to assembly.

On Monday, ahead of the rallies, the human rights organization said Kenya was “at a crossroads.”

“Despite mass arrests and injuries, protests have continued to grow, underscoring widespread public discontent,” the statement said, warning that “escalation of violence could lead to further deaths and legal consequences.”

Human rights organizations accused the authorities of abducting protesters in violation of the law.

The Kenyan Human Rights Commission said the abductions mostly took place at night and were “carried out by police officers in plain clothes and in plain-clothes vehicles.” It called for the “unconditional release of all those abducted.”

Police did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment on the allegations.

Protesters also resorted to unconventional tactics, such as asking bars to stop playing music at midnight on weekends, while partygoers erupted in chants of “Ruto must go” and “Reject the finance bill.”

Their demonstrations found support among some Anglican and Catholic church leaders.

– Mountain of debt –

The financially weak government agreed last week to reverse several tax increases.

However, the government still intends to increase other taxes, as these are necessary to fill the state coffers and reduce dependence on foreign loans.

Kenya has a huge mountain of debt, the cost of servicing which has skyrocketed over the past two years due to the depreciation of the country’s currency, making interest payments on foreign currency loans more expensive.

The tax increases will put further pressure on Kenyans as well-paying jobs remain out of reach for many young people.

After the government agreed to abolish taxes on bread purchases, car ownership, and financial and mobile phone services, the Finance Ministry warned of a budget deficit of 200 billion shillings ($1.56 billion).

To fill the gap left by these changes, the government now plans to raise fuel prices and export tariffs, a move critics say will make life even more expensive in a country already suffering from high inflation.

Kenya has one of the most dynamic economies in East Africa, but a third of the country’s 52 million people live in poverty.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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