Kenya鈥檚 Gen Z risk death to protest economy, police killings

Kenya鈥檚 Gen Z risk death to protest economy, police killings

Hiiraan Online

Today from Hiiraan Online:

Somali Music

Google Plus

advertisements

Kenya鈥檚 Gen Z risk death to protest economy, police killings

FacebookFacebook messengerTwitterWhatsAppLinkedInTelegramEmail

Saturday July 5, 2025

Kenyan youth attend anti-government protests in Nairobi on June 25, 2025. Thomson Reuters Foundation/Nita Bhalla

Banners and bandanas at the ready, young Kenyans faced one final job before taking to the streets last week to mark the death of more than 60 fellow protesters in anti-government demos a year ago.

Write their own eulogies 鈥 just in case.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 care if I died. We have no life as it is. There are no jobs, the cost of living is high, and Kenyans are really struggling,鈥 said Wilson, a jobless 19-year-old from Nairobi.

鈥淲e have a government that isn鈥檛 listening to its people.鈥

Wilson was among the many who took to social media to post their own obituaries before masking up and joining thousands marching in Nairobi, fearing police might well open fire again.

They did 鈥 and at least 19 died, with hundreds more injured in June 25鈥檚 commemorations of the deadly anti-tax protests.

鈥淲e knew what was at stake. Over the past year, the government has tried to silence us and we have seen how protesters have been killed,鈥 Wilson, who did not want to give his surname, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Wilson used his TikTok farewell to thank his parents for all they had done, explaining how he had no choice but to protest 鈥 whatever the cost 鈥 in pursuit of a better life for all Kenyans.

Popular anger in the East African nation has been fuelled by increasing frustration with President William Ruto, elected in 2022 after campaigning as a champion of low-income 鈥渉ustlers鈥.

Despite crafting a reputation as a global statesman, at home Ruto is dubbed 鈥榋akayo鈥 鈥 a Swahili name for a greedy biblical tax collector 鈥 by Kenyans frustrated with rich politicians flaunting their wealth while their own living standards fall.

Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen denied the police had used excessive force last week and instead accused demonstrators of attempting to overthrow the government, dismissing the groundswell as 鈥渢errorism disguised as dissent鈥.

But there is little sign the protests will die down, with more already scheduled for next week.

鈥楽AME MONKEYS, DIFFERENT FOREST鈥

Last year鈥檚 protests, led by Gen Z and millennial Kenyans, led to the withdrawal of a controversial finance bill that raised a raft of taxes. They were also followed by a crackdown on people voicing dissent, both in person and online.

It was the crackdown that helped fuel last week鈥檚 protests with many demonstrators chanting slogans like 鈥淩uto must go鈥 and 鈥淓nd police brutality now鈥 as they marched through Nairobi.

鈥淣othing has changed in the last year. It鈥檚 the same monkeys, different forest,鈥 said Evans, 30, masked up to protect himself from tear gas.

鈥淲e are struggling and hustling everyday. There is no future for young people in this country,鈥 he said.

Economists said some lessons had been learnt, with the government pursuing a much more cautious tax stance in this year鈥檚 finance bill.

It dropped measures including an expansion of PAYE tax and levies on mobile phones, electric buses and solar equipment.

Ruto is under pressure to raise revenues through tax and wants to get debt below 55% of GDP in two years, as recommended by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

Legislators also rejected a controversial proposal granting wide-ranging access to personal data, citing privacy concerns.

Jervin Naidoo, political economist at Oxford Economics Africa, said while the new finance measures may bring temporary relief, they fail to address the underlying economic pressures.

鈥淯nemployment is around 13%, with youth unemployment alarmingly high at 67%. Meanwhile, about 85% of employed Kenyans remain in the informal sector, where incomes are low and irregular,鈥 Naidoo said in a report published last week.

鈥淧ublic frustration will likely persist without substantial progress in creating jobs, especially for young people, and in improving real incomes.鈥

BILL TO BAN PROTESTS
The government, however, does not seem to be willing to make concessions to people taking to the streets.

Murkomen said they were trying to enact 鈥渞egime change鈥, and said police had been forced to hold back crowds who sought to approach parliament and State House, the president鈥檚 residence.

Deputy President Kithure Kindiki said church leaders, foreign diplomats and opposition politicians had encouraged them.

Members of parliament are now considering draft legislation that would make it illegal to protest near key institutions.

Such measures are unlikely to deter those Kenyans who plan a return to the streets on July 7 to mark pro-democracy protests against former ruler Daniel Arap Moi in 1990.

鈥淚t won鈥檛 be over until this government goes,鈥 said 25-year-old student Joy, who did not want to give her surname. 鈥淲e will be out on the streets again and again. They can鈥檛 kill us all.鈥

(Reporting by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla; Editing by Lyndsay Griffiths. The Thomson Reuters Foundation is the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters.)

Opinion| Privacy Policy|Sports|Somali Music|Somali Map

All Rights Reserved Copyright. 漏 1999-2025, www.hiiraan.com

Read More…