AFRICA/KENYA - Further protests against the draft budget

Tuesday, 25 June 2024 youth economy violence

KENYA

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Nairobi (Fides Agency) - New protests are underway this morning, June 25, against the financial bill presented by the Kenyan government that includes the introduction of new taxes (see Fides 21/6/2024).
In Nairobi, security forces deployed to protect parliament and the presidential palace clashed with demonstrators, firing tear gas canisters. Demonstrations are also underway in other cities, such as Mombasa and Kisumu.
Although the authorities have reiterated that they want to respect the right to demonstrate enshrined in the constitution, some human rights organizations have accused them of illegally arresting at least a dozen protesters who are mainly active on social media. They were allegedly picked up by the police at night and taken to unknown locations.
The draft budget aims to raise an additional USD 2.7 billion in taxes to pay off Kenya's large debt to international creditors such as the International Monetary Fund; interest payments alone consume 37% of annual government revenue.
The government has already made concessions and promised in amendments to the bill to remove the proposed new taxes on bread, cooking oil, car ownership and financial transactions. However, this is not enough to satisfy the protesters, who are calling for the entire bill to be scrapped.
The protests are mainly being led by young people. The chairman of the Kenyan Catholic Bishops' Conference, Maurice and Archbishop of Kisumu, Muhatia Makumba, addressed the demonstrators and called on them to refrain from violence and beware of provocations. "Do not be influenced by people who have ulterior motives and want to create chaos," he said in his sermon at the mass last Sunday, June 23.
Archbishop Muhatia then called on the government to respect Article 37 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to demonstrate, and turned to President William Ruto, whom he urged to meet the demands of the young generation.
Despite the high level of debt, the Kenyan economy is showing signs of recovery with a growth rate of 5.6 percent in 2023, driven by the agricultural sector after several years of drought, and the services sector. Inflation has also fallen and stood at 5.1% in May 2024. (LM) (Fides Agency 25/5/2024)