Faced with the challenge, Kenya still wants to harden the tone

While supporters of Raila Odinga demonstrate regularly, the police are said to be harshly repressing the protest. The Kenyan Minister of the Interior promises the end of "impunity".

"This culture of impunity will end." The words of the Kenyan Minister of the Interior, Kithure Kindiki, are harsh and promise a new tightening of the screws. Blame it on a series of demonstrations that degenerated. On the one hand, we deplore that the police forces set fire to the powder. On the other – that of the State, therefore –, we denounce “generalized violence” and “looting”.

In a part of Nairobi, clashes have in any case taken place, particularly on the side of Mlolongo, about twenty kilometers southeast of the Kenyan capital. The barricades were erected, while the tires were set on fire. Clashes took place with the police.

At the origin of these clashes, demonstrations. Since the last presidential and the election of William Ruto, supporters of Raila Odinga, the opponent and unsuccessful candidate in the election, regularly take to the streets. The Kenyan authorities banned the rally, while the opponent announced its cancellation. But nothing worked, the demonstrators insisted on taking to the streets.

While the police fired tear gas, in order to disperse the demonstrators, it is now a communication battle that has begun. On the one hand, Raila Odinga is counting on the fed up of his supporters, deploring the poor quality of life of Kenyans. He also castigates the police, accusing them of opening fire and killing protesters.

The balance sheet climbs: last week, already, half a dozen demonstrators had died. And for Odinga, there is no question of calming things down: “Protesters have been arrested for having participated in an exercise guaranteed by our constitution. I have always said, these gatherings are peaceful until the police decide to disperse them with bullets and tear gas, ”said the opponent.

Who from Odinga or the government is right? Several NGOs have already denounced the acts of police repression. Police try to disperse gatherings when they are prohibited. The Ministry of the Interior confirms that “lives have been lost” and that there are many injuries, but specifies that this concerns “dozens of law enforcement officers and civilians”.

Finally, the government believes that this will cause "unimaginable losses for the country's economy". William Ruto's tenure in any case begins in a chaotic way.