Kenyan police officers and protesters, some of whom were throwing stones, clashed on Wednesday in a fresh wave of demonstrations organised by the opposition.
The clashes left at least 12 people injured.
The opposition called for three days of countrywide protests with the aim of pressuring the president to repeal a finance law imposing new taxes. President William Ruto had previously declared that no protests would be allowed, stating that he would confront opposition leader Raila Odinga directly.
According to an anonymous police officer, four protesters were injured in the Mathare area of the capital, Nairobi. The Associated Press witnessed one man being shot in the shoulder and two others in the leg in Mathare.
In Nairobi’s Kangemi area, Alvin Sikuku, a health records worker, said that two young men had been brought to the Eagle Nursing Home clinic. Sikuku reported, “Police are using live bullets.” One man suffered a severe back injury from being shot, while the other was wounded in the leg. Sikuku added, “We don’t yet know if they were protesting or just walking by.”
In Nakuru city, Nakuru Referral Hospital Medical Superintendent, James Waweru confirmed that four people arrived with gunshot wounds; two were shot in the abdomen, one in the chest, and another in the leg. A fifth person had been cut and wounded.
Calls for dialogue were made as President William Ruto reiterated his stance against the protests, pledging to confront opposition leader Raila Odinga “head-on.”
Nairobi resident Wycliffe Onyango pleaded for the president to adopt a conciliatory attitude, expressing the hardships faced by the population due to the high cost of living. Onyango urged the government to address the issue. “Ruto and Raila should talk. The government should stop chest thumping. Ruto is doing wrong by chest-thumping.”
Similarly, Sheikh Amza, another resident, championed holding talks and expressed disapproval of both the protests and the soaring cost of living.
