NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Thousands of protesters stormed Kenya’s parliament on Tuesday. To protest tax proposalsParts of the building were burned, lawmakers fled and police were shot at, but the president vowed to put an end to the violence. Several people were killed.
It was the first direct attack on the government in decades. Journalists saw at least three bodies outside the facility where police opened fire, and medical workers reported five people killed. Clashes spread to other cities. No arrests have been announced yet.
“Today’s events mark a watershed moment in how we respond to threats to our national security.” President William Ruto The president called the incident an “act of treason” and vowed to put down the unrest “at all costs.”
Kenya’s defence minister said the military was deployed to assist police during a “security emergency” and “intrusion into critical infrastructure”.
Protesters were demanding lawmakers vote against a finance bill that would impose new taxes on the East African economic hub where resentment over the soaring cost of living is simmering. Young people who came to power cheering Ruto’s promises of economic relief have taken to the streets to protest the pain of the reforms.
Lawmakers passed the bill but protesters outwitted police, funneled their forces into a tunnel and escaped through it. The fire in the building was later extinguished.
The Kenya Medical Association said in a statement that at least five people treating the wounded at the scene were shot dead. It said more than 30 people were injured, at least 13 with live ammunition. Police fired live ammunition and hurled tear gas canisters at protesters who sought treatment at a medical tent at a nearby church. Elsewhere in the city, Kenyatta National Hospital said 45 people were killed or injured.
One of the men was shot dead and carried away wrapped in a Kenyan flag, while the other was found lying on the pavement with his head in a gutter.
Internet service in the country slowed significantly, causing what NetBlocks called “major disruptions,” and at least one broadcaster said in a statement that it had “received threats from authorities to shut down its service.”
Ruto, who was in the outskirts of Nairobi for an African Union meeting, is due to sign the finance bill into law this week. He has two weeks to act, but religious and other leaders are urging him to reconsider.
The nearby office of the Nairobi governor, a ruling party lawmaker, was briefly on fire on Tuesday, with smoke billowing from its white exterior. Police used water cannon to put out the blaze.
Protesters could be heard chanting, “We are after all politicians.”
The Kenya Human Rights Commission released a video of police firing at protesters and called on Governor Ruto to immediately issue an order to “stop the killings”.
Instead, the president said the government was “mobilizing all resources” to ensure order.
Ruto on Sunday sought to calm rising national tensions, saying he was proud of young Kenyans who had come together to fulfil their democratic duty in earlier protests. He marketed himself as a “hustler.” He said he would start from humble beginnings and discuss their concerns.
Young people have vowed to band together to rein in the government amid soaring prices of fuel, food and other basic goods. In Nairobi, a regional hub for expatriates and home to the United Nations headquarters, inequality among Kenyans has deepened along with long-standing frustrations over state corruption.
Opposition to the finance bill has united large parts of the country, some in a clear rejection of the tribal divisions that have torn Kenya apart in the past, leaving some of Ruto’s most ardent supporters feeling betrayed.
“I was fooled by his lies and now I regret why I voted for him,” young man Oscar Saina told The Associated Press last week.
Defiant attitudes were also seen in other parts of the country on Tuesday as large numbers of protesters took to the streets, including in the presidential town of Naivasha, where protesters chanted “Ruto should resign”.
Witnesses said protesters tried to storm state house in the western city of Nakuru. There were also clashes in the western lakeside city of Kisumu. The governor of Mombasa, Kenya’s second-largest city, joined protesters outside his office to show his support.
Protesters set fire to ruling party offices in Embu, central Kenya, according to the Nation newspaper. Citizen TV aired footage from Nyeri, central Kenya, showing police facing off with protesters on smoke-filled streets.
The national gathering of Catholic bishops urged police not to attack protesters, saying “the country is bleeding… families are suffering dearly” and urged the government to listen to people’s suffering over “unjust” taxes.
Two people were killed in similar protests last week.Civil society groups have raised alarm about the crackdown.
Kenya Bar Association president Faith Odhiambo said on Tuesday that 50 Kenyans, including her personal assistant, had been “abducted” by suspected police officers. Civil society groups said some of them had been vocal in demonstrations and were taken from their homes, workplaces and public places ahead of Tuesday’s protests.
Diplomats from 13 Western countries, including the United States, said in a statement they were “shocked” by the scenes outside parliament and expressed concern about violence and abductions of protesters.
Police officials did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment. Speaker of Parliament Moses Wetangula has directed the inspector-general of police to provide information on the whereabouts of the missing people.
Also on Tuesday, hundreds of Kenyan police officers, who have long been accused of abuses by human rights watchdogs, were indicted. Arriving in Haiti He will lead a UN-backed multinational force to fight the country’s powerful gangs. The deployment is currently under legal challenge in Kenya, but the Ruto government is pushing ahead with it. Thank you to US President Joe Biden.
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AP Africa News: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
