Latest news with #KenyaNationalCommission
Times of Oman
5 days ago
- Politics
- Times of Oman
Kenya protests: 31 die in highest one-day death toll of year
Nairobi: The death toll from Kenya's anti-government protests on Monday has surged to 31, marking the highest single-day toll since demonstrations began earlier this year, according to the state-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. The report on Tuesday said another 107 people were injured and more than 500 were arrested amid widespread destruction of property, including supermarkets. The figure did not include specifics and it was not clear whether the toll included police officers, who the report accused of working with armed gangs in the wake of violence. Kenyans demanding better governance and removal of president Kenyans have been protesting for weeks to call for better governance and police accountability, as well as demanding the removal of President William Ruto over alleged corruption. Kenyans yesterday took to the streets to demand political reforms on a day — July 7 — that has significance in history because of major pro-democracy protests that took place on the same date thirty-five years ago. The East African nation transitioned into a multiparty democracy from a one-party state with elections in 1992. During protests yesterday, police blocked access to central Nairobi so people couldn't rally in the city center, as they had done before. Young Kenyans last year had briefly stormed the parliament in Nairobi during protests over planned tax hikes, which were ultimately withdrawn. Volker Turk, the UN high commissioner for human rights, on Tuesday urged that grievances leading to the protests be addressed, with his spokesperson saying Turk "renews his call for calm and restraint, and full respect for the freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly."
New York Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Dozens Are Killed as Antigovernment Protests Erupt Across Kenya
At least 31 people were killed and more than 100 others wounded in protests that erupted across Kenya on Monday, a rights group said, as simmering anger against President William Ruto's government boiled over into clashes between protesters and the police. The group, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, said on Tuesday that it had also documented at least 532 arrests and two forced disappearances. The police fired live rounds, rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons at protesters across the country, the group said. From atop deserted overpasses across Nairobi, the capital, officers blasted tear gas canisters at demonstrators congregating below. Some protesters threw rocks at the police, while others danced. The demonstrations on Monday occurred on Saba Saba Day, which commemorates the start of Kenya's multiparty democracy movement in 1990. Saba Saba, which in Swahili means 'Seven Seven,' refers to the first pro-democracy rallies held in Nairobi. In a major show of force, armed police officers barricaded and blocked major roads leading to Nairobi's central business district, leaving normally crowded streets deserted save for a few determined protesters who traveled on foot. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Times of Oman
6 days ago
- Politics
- Times of Oman
Kenya: At least 10 killed in anti-government protests
Nairobi: At least 10 people have died in anti-government protests in Kenya as of Monday evening, according to a statement released by the state-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR). Police earlier this morning had closed roads leading into the capital, Nairobi, to block protesters from rallying in the city center, reported Felix Maringa, DW's Nairobi correspondent. A police statement released late Monday said over 560 people were arrested around the country during Monday's protest. The statement, which was released after the KNCHR report, estimated that 11 people were killed, and that dozens of police officers were injured. Protesters on Monday were commemorating the July 7 demonstrations, known as "Saba Saba," Swahili for seven seven, the first major protests in Kenya that took place 35 years ago. Those protests called for a transition from a one-party state to a multiparty democracy, with the first multiparty elections having taken place in 1992. Today, protesters are demanding President William Ruto's resignation over his alleged corruption. Other issues protesters have cited include high cost of living, police brutality and poor governance. Authorities shut down roads leading to central Nairobi, parliament Roads leading to parliament, which was stormed during protests against proposed tax increases last year, and the president's office, were barricaded using razor wire. Police officers also stopped pedestrians, vehicles and bikes from entering the city, except for those deemed to have essential duties. Public Service Minister Geoffrey Ruku had urged all government employees to report to work on Monday, insisting that the demonstrations would not disrupt public services. But most businesses remained closed in the capital as people stayed away from going into work in the central business district. Police spokesperson Michael Muchiri said that during the demonstrations "certain individuals remained determined to engage in acts of lawlessness that involved multiple criminal acts." Protesters light bonfires, police hurl tear gas to dispel crowds Protesters lit bonfires and threw stones at police, while police fired and hurled tear gas canisters, injuring demonstrators, according to reports. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights said in its report Monday evening that numerous police officers were not wearing their uniforms and patrolling the streets in unmarked vehicles, in defiance of a court order that asks officers to be clearly identified by their uniform. "They fire live rounds everywhere. They are not even targeting anyone, then it lands to whoever it will land. The police are being used improperly by the government, they should think about who they are killing. We are not animals, we are human beings like them, and we need to be protected by them. Yet, they are the ones killing us," Nairobi resident Evans Nyakwara told DW. Kenyans protesting police brutality, 'adamant' about changing situation According to the KNCHR, protests took place on Monday in 17 out of Kenya's 47 counties. They mark the latest in a series of widespread demonstrations. "Kenyans have continued to castigate police over what they call heavy handedness when it comes to dealing with protesters, and police have continued dealing very brutally with the protesters," said DW correspondent Maringa. "We have police lobbying teargas into homesteads, we have water cannons discharging water into homesteads, but Kenyans have remained adamant that they will remain on the streets until they see the changes that they clamor for come to pass," he added. Kenya hit by protests over the last months Kenya's latest wave of violent demonstrations was sparked by calls for police accountability following the death of a blogger in police custody last month. During protests on June 17, a police officer shot a civilian at close range, further angering the public. On June 25, at least 19 people were killed and more than 400 injured during protests against police brutality that were timed to coincide with the one-year anniversary of demonstrations against President Ruto's proposed tax hikes.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kenya human rights watchdog says 10 killed, 29 hurt in anti-government protests
NAIROBI (Reuters) -Ten people died in protests in Kenya on Monday, the government-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights said, with 29 injured after scattered anti-government demonstrations broke out across the country.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
10 dead, dozens arrested in more anti-government protests in Kenya
July 7 (UPI) -- At least 10 people were shot dead and 29 injured in Kenya as anti-government protests erupted after restarting early last month. Two bodies initially were taken to Eagle Nursing Home in Kangemi, on the outskirts of the capital city of Nairobi, after suffering apparent gunshot wounds. Hundreds of protestors gathered outside the hospital to demand the bodies, local medic Dr. Aron Sikuku told the BBC. "Police operated in plainclothes and unmarked vehicles" on Monday and collaborated with "armed criminal gangs in Nairobi, Kajiado, Nakuru, Kiambu, and Eldoret," according to the state-run Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KHRC) in a scathing report on excessive police force. Kenyan police officials have denied such previous accusations. On Sunday, Kenyan security agencies were "on high alert to deal decisively with criminals and other elements of ill intent who may seek to infiltrate peaceful processions to cause havoc, mayhem, or destruction of property," Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen posted on X earlier that day. Meanwhile, government officials have yet to confirm Monday's reported fatalities. The demonstrations marked the 35th anniversary of Kenya's Saba Saba protests, meaning "seven-seven," which launched in 1990 to push for multiparty democracy in the African nation. Reports indicate that hundreds of early morning commuters and overnight travelers were stranded in Nairobi, with few vehicles allowed to enter the city. Also, the road to key government sites -- such as Kenya's parliament building and the presidential residence -- were barricaded with razor wire. According to the Nation, a leading Kenyan newspaper, the nationwide demonstrations spread to at least 17 of Kenya's 47 counties. Some school officials advised students to remain home over fears of violence. Tear gas and water cannons were used by authorities as clashes broke out and fires lit in parts of Nairobi in attempts to breach police barricades. Hundreds were stranded by midmorning inside and outside the center of the city, with major roads closed and many commuters unable to afford to pay extra money for transit to their destination. "We want the government to engage in a dialogue with Gen Zs so all this can come to an end," Humphrey Gumbishi, a bus driver, told the BBC. He said they started traveling at 8:30 p.m. local time Sunday night only to find police blocks. The ongoing demonstrations, largely led by Gen-Z participants, have demanded greater accountability, good governance and justice for victims of police brutality. The continued wave of deadly anti-government protests started last year against President William Ruto's unpopular tax policies amid rising everyday costs as scores of Kenyans were killed at the time after storming parliament in June 2024. At least 19 citizens were killed a few weeks ago on June 25 as thousands of businesses were looted and destroyed in one day as violent activity gripped the country and government officials banned live TV coverage in attempts to quell violence. In early June, protests again erupted, spurred by the questionable death in police custody of teacher and blogger Albert Ojwang. On Sunday, the Kenyan Human Rights Commission claimed "hired goons" allegedly "sent by the state to silence dissent" stormed the NGO's office and "violently" disrupted a press conference by Kenyan mothers "calling for an end to arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings targeting protesters ahead of Saba Saba demonstrations." Ex-Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga canceled a scheduled appearance in Nairobi, saying "the roadblocks all over town which made it difficult for people to make it to Kamukunji" meant he did not "join Kenyans in commemorating this important day." Odinga was arrested last year after Saba Saba but then threw his support to Ruto's government. Ruto was declared the winner with just over 50% of the vote versus Odinga's 48.8% in the African nation's August 2022 presidential election in which the opposition party leader suggested was not a free or fair vote. On Monday, he blasted what he described as Kenya's "rogue police force that shoots people with impunity, a force inherited from the colonialists," and called for a national dialogue on reforming Kenyan police agencies.
