Kenya’s Antigovernment Protests

A public demonstration in Kenya.

The Kenyan government is doubling down. Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said the protests that rocked the country on Wednesday were “terrorism disguised as dissent,” an “unconstitutional attempt” to change the government. He thanked police for their “remarkable restraint” and claimed they had helped “foil an attempted coup.” That’s the official version. But rights groups tell a different story. Amnesty International says at least 16 people were killed, all by gunfire, and that the victims weren’t attackers - they were citizens. Some were students, some were bystanders, none were armed. And while the government insists key buildings were targeted and police stations torched, the bigger fire might be the public’s growing fury over police violence.

Take David Mwangi. Just 19, shot in the head while picking up his little brother from class. Or Dennis Njuguna, 17, a secondary school student who’d just finished his school day before a bullet ended his life. Their mothers are shattered, torn between grief and disbelief. And still, government leaders point fingers at “anarchists,” brushing off the deaths as necessary fallout. At least 400 people were injured that day, including nearly 300 police officers. But even that doesn’t mask the growing anger in the streets. Protesters chanted “Ruto must go,” waving branches in peaceful defiance. The government tried to silence the outrage by banning live broadcasts, but that move was overturned by the courts. So now, as the country buries its young and counts the damage, the world watches - wondering what kind of justice, if any, will follow.