More Violence In Kenya

Protests and Funerals: Kenyan President’s Failure to Listen Threatens Kenya’s Stability Kenya Vendor Boniface Kariuki, 22, was selling masks at a rally against police brutality in June in his hometown of Kangema near the Kenyan capital of Nairobi when a police officer in riot gear asked him to move. He did. The officer shot him anyway. The incident, captured on film, ricocheted around Kenya, setting off fury around the country over police brutality and at a government that many see as corrupt, unaccountable, and murderous. “We can’t feed our families, so we have to be on the street to stop the increasing prices, to stop the (police) abductions, and to stand up for our country,” Festus Muiruri, a 22-year-old protester in Nairobi, told Reuters. “We want the president to hear us.” Kariuki is one of more than 100 people who have been killed across Kenya since last year, when protests initially broke out against tax hikes on everyday items such as bread and cooking oil: These hikes came as the average Kenyan struggled with a cost-of-living crisis while accusing government officials of living extravagantly. Those demonstrations, led by Kenyan youth, were met with a violent crackdown. They culminated with protesters storming the parliament. The government backed off its tax measures. Now, a year later, the protesters’ calls for an end to government corruption and justice for those killed in 2024 were never resolved, say analysts, just put away for the next time public anger was triggered. It was in June after the death of a teacher and blogger, Albert Ojwang, in police custody. He was arrested for “the offense of false publication” and died of “self-inflicted” wounds, which the state pathologist refuted. Protests broke out over Ojwang’s death, leading to the rare arrest and resignations of those involved. However, on July 7th, demonstrations against the government ignited again after Kenyans marched to mark the anniversary of a 1990 uprising known as the “Saba” (Swahili for Seven-Seven) protests that returned the country to a multi-party democracy after years of autocratic rule by then-President Daniel arap Moi. The government, led by President William Ruto, however, moved in forcefully, with police using live bullets, teargas, and water cannons, also hitting the relatives mourning the death of loved ones last year. At least 31 people died. Now protesters are calling for the president to step down, yelling, “Ruto must go” and “wantam” (one term) at rallies. The government has gone on the offensive, calling protesters terrorists who are orchestrating a “coup,” with Ruto ordering police to “shoot their legs and take them to court.” Hundreds have been arrested. The government also threatened the media if it didn’t halt its coverage of the protests. The protests have created tremendous turmoil in Kenya, East Africa’s economic heavyweight, with shops and businesses closing, and some even destroyed by protesters and looters. They are also scaring off tourists and investors. Another impact is on Ruto himself. Elected in 2022 with the help of young voters on promises to improve their lives and put a stop to police brutality, extrajudicial killings, and corruption, he will face a tough election in 2027. Analysts say the likelihood of his resignation is low – one big issue is that there is no obvious successor: In March, Ruto allied with former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, previously his main rival. Regardless, his political capital is far lower than it was three years ago, much of that due to a promise he made when he was elected and then promptly broke – he told his young supporters he would listen to them. “If the Ruto administration is failing at every turn, it is because Ruto struggles with the very concept of democracy, adamantly refusing to listen, let alone respond to any kind of dissent,” World Politics Review wrote. “Yet Kenyans have a clear vision of what kind of society they want to live in, and it is not one in which an impervious ruler barricades himself in a tower dictating to the people below by force and fiat. They want to be heard.” On the last day of June, Kariuki died of his wounds at a local hospital, another victim of Ruto’s unwillingness to listen, the magazine added. The officer who shot him has been charged with murder. A plea hearing is set for next week. Regardless, observers say the protests will go on, as will the funerals. “We are in sorrow,” Edwin Kagia, 24, Kariuki’s friend and fellow vendor, told Al Jazeera at the funeral. “I used to hear that police kill people, but I could not imagine it would happen to my brother.”