Kenya Backs Off Tax Increases

Biting the Dust KENYA Protesters set parts of Kenya’s parliament ablaze on Tuesday amid mass demonstrations against tax hikes in which more than 20 people were killed and led to President William Ruto scrapping the controversial bill, Reuters reported. “I concede,” the president said in a televised address on Wednesday as he announced he would not sign the 2024 finance bill. The package of contested measures was approved by lawmakers the day before and sparked protests across Kenya, in the worst crisis since Ruto came to power nearly two years ago. Violence culminated on Tuesday as police fired live rounds and tear gas at protesters. Medics and human rights advocates said at least 22 people were killed. Amid police shots, protesters stormed the nation’s parliament in the capital Nairobi and set a part of the building on fire. It was the biggest assault on Kenya’s governing institutions in decades, the Associated Press wrote. Buildings and vehicles were also set ablaze in Ruto’s stronghold Eldoret, Kenya’s Daily Nation reported. In an initial address, the president called the protests “treasonous” and a threat to “national security.” Meanwhile, protesters online vowed to continue their demonstrations, voicing plans to invade the State House – the presidential office and residence – on Thursday, as well as local offices of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday. As he caved to pressure by withdrawing the finance bill Wednesday, Ruto said he would launch a conversation with the nation’s youth. Though a welcome victory for protesters, the withdrawal was received with some bitterness following the dozens of deaths seen Tuesday, with one activist calling the president’s decision a public relations move. Meanwhile, human rights organizations said they were investigating the alleged abductions of over a dozen people, including influential online content creators, by security forces. The protest movement began online as citizens expressed frustration at proposed tax raises on items including bread and diapers. Though lawmakers took bread and cooking oil off the list before passing the bill, the amendments did not suffice to tame the angry mobs. Ruto, who some protesters called on to step down, now has to juggle between Kenyans’ outcry against rising living costs and IMF demands for deficit cuts.

Police Fire On Tax Protestors In Kenya

LIVE Updated June 25, 2024, 12:54 p.m. ET9 minutes ago 9 minutes ago Live Updates: Police Fire Arms Amid Tax Protests in Kenya; 5 Reported Killed Demonstrators breached the Parliament to protest the passage of a bill that raises taxes. At least five people have been killed and more than 30 others were wounded, according to Amnesty International and several prominent civic organizations. Share full article Pinned Abdi Latif Dahir Updated June 25, 2024, 12:49 p.m. ET15 minutes ago 15 minutes ago Abdi Latif DahirReporting from Nairobi, Kenya Here’s the latest on the protests in Kenya. Police fired tear gas and shots rang out Tuesday as thousands of demonstrators flooded the streets around Kenya’s Parliament in the capital, Nairobi, after lawmakers passed tax increases that critics say will make life onerous for millions. At least five people have died from gunshot wounds and more than 30 others were wounded in clashes between protesters and police, according a joint statement by Amnesty International and several prominent Kenyan civic organizations. That could not be independently confirmed. A video posted to social media by the independent Kenya Human Rights Commission showed police firing as protesters marched toward them. The Parliament building was breached and its main entrance was briefly on fire, and Kenya’s Red Cross said that its vehicles had been attacked and staff members injured. The turmoil over the finance bill that includes the tax hikes has shaken Kenya, an East African economic powerhouse of 54 million people that has long been an anchor of stability in a tumultuous region. At least one person was killed and 200 others were injured in protests across the country last week, according to Amnesty. The contentious bill was introduced by the government of President William Ruto in May to raise revenue and limit borrowing in an economy facing a heavy debt burden. But Kenyans have widely criticized the legislation, saying it adds punitive new taxes and raises others on a wide range of goods and services that would escalate living costs, and detractors have pointed to corruption and mismanagement of funds. The president now has two weeks to sign the legislation into law or send it back to Parliament for further amendments. Protesters draped in the Kenyan flag blew whistles and trumpets and chanted, “Ruto must go.” There were signs the protests were spreading beyond the capital, as protesters blocked streets with burning tires in Nakuru, a city some 100 miles from Nairobi. Here’s what else to know: The protests have been guided by younger people who have used social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram to initiate a leaderless movement that has galvanized the nation. The internet watchdog group NetBlocks is reporting a major disruption to internet connectivity in Kenya. Kenya’s communications authority said Monday after days of protests that it had “no intention whatsoever” of shutting down internet traffic. Before Tuesday’s protests, several activists who are prominent critics of the bill were abducted, according to the Law Society of Kenya. The abductors’ identities were not publicly known, but some were believed to be intelligence officers, said the Law Society’s president, Faith Odhiambo. Ms. Odhiambo later said that some of those abducted had been released. CNN aired footage of the half sister of former President Barack Obama, Auma Obama, being tear-gassed as she was interviewed about her opposition to the bill. The protests comes as an initial group of 400 Kenyan police officers was arriving in Haiti for help to stop the rampant gang violence that has upended the Caribbean nation, an effort largely organized by the Biden administration. Show more Abdi Latif Dahir June 25, 2024, 12:14 p.m. ET50 minutes ago 50 minutes ago Abdi Latif DahirReporting from Nairobi, Kenya At least five people have died from gunshot wounds and more than 30 others were wounded in clashes between protesters and police, a joint statement by Amnesty International and several prominent Kenyan civic organizations, including the Kenya Medical Association, the Law Society of Kenya and the Police Reforms Working Group Kenya. Declan Walsh June 25, 2024, 11:39 a.m. ET1 hour ago 1 hour ago Declan WalshReporting from Nairobi, Kenya In a joint statement, the ambassadors of 13 Western embassies in Kenya, including the United States, said they were “shocked” by the scenes around Kenya's Parliament on Tuesday. They said they were “deeply concerned” by allegations that some protesters had been abducted by the security forces and called for “restraint on all sides.” Image Credit...Luis Tato/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images 1000 ft.300 m. © Mapbox © OpenStreetMap

Will THe ANC/DA Coalition Work IN South Africa?

Let’s Make a Deal SOUTH AFRICA South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was re-elected for a second term over the weekend after his African National Congress (ANC) reached a coalition agreement with three other parties following last month’s dismal showing for the party in the general election, Al Jazeera reported. The ANC, which dominated South Africa’s politics since the end of apartheid in 1994, lost its majority for the first time in the May 29 parliamentary vote, paving the way for coalition talks with other parties. On Friday, the anti-apartheid movement reached a deal with the main opposition party and rival Democratic Alliance (DA) to form a unity government. The coalition will also include two other parties, the Inkatha Freedom Party and the Patriotic Alliance. Soon after the agreement was signed, lawmakers participated in a marathon parliamentary session to reelect Ramaphosa, despite a boycott from the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party of former President Jacob Zuma, who fell out with the ANC. Meanwhile, parliament picked a lawmaker from the ANC and the DA as its speaker and deputy speaker, respectively – the first instance of power-sharing between the two parties. Ramaphosa hailed the new coalition deal as a “new birth, a new era for our country,” adding that it was time for parties “to overcome their differences and to work together.” The agreement marks the end of the ANC’s dominance in the country’s politics: The party of freedom fighter Nelson Mandela has been losing popularity in recent years amid rising poverty, inequality, spiking crime, and corruption scandals. Despite ending the political gridlock, analysts said the new coalition agreement is raising questions about whether the two parties will be able to govern effectively, the Associated Press noted. They disagree on numerous issues, including nationalization and privatization of key industries, healthcare, labor rights and foreign policy, such as South Africa’s pro-Palestine stance. The coalition agreement has caused internal divisions within the ANC, too, with some senior leaders preferring a coalition with Zuma’s MK or the far-left Economic Freedom Fighters, the BBC added. Share this story