Kenya’s going through it right now. At least eleven people are dead, hundreds locked up 567 if you’re counting after cops opened fire during these anti-government protests. That’s according to the police themselves, by the way. Pretty wild.
There’s this medic, Dr. Aron Sikuku, out at Eagle Nursing Home on the edge of Nairobi he told the BBC that two bodies came in, both with gunshot wounds. And get this: crowds of protesters showed up outside his hospital, demanding to take the bodies away. The tension’s off the charts.
All this is happening on the anniversary of the Saba Saba protests think 7/7/1990, the day Kenya basically started fighting for multi-party democracy. Fast forward 35 years, and it’s like déjà vu, but with way more smoke and pain.
Police put out a statement Monday night, patting themselves on the back for their “exceptional restraint and professionalism” which, y’know, seems like a bit of a stretch when people are dying. They said 52 officers and 11 civilians got hurt. Meanwhile, the state human rights commission (the KHRC) dropped a brutal report, saying police have been using way too much force, which, let’s be real, isn’t exactly a shock. The KHRC said the cops were rolling around in street clothes and unmarked cars, sometimes even teaming up with armed gangs in Nairobi, Kajiado, Nakuru, Kiambu, Eldoret you name it. Police always deny that stuff, but the commission claims they’ve got proof of abductions, injuries, and dozens more arrests.
Monday morning was just chaos. Commuters and people traveling overnight got stuck at checkpoints miles from the city center. Hardly any cars were getting through. Key roads to government hotspots the State House, parliament, all that were locked down with razor wire. Some schools even told kids to just stay home.
Did that stop the protests? Nope. Fires in the streets, people trying to bust through police lines, clouds of tear gas everywhere, water cannons rolling. According to the Nation newspaper, the chaos has hit 17 out of Kenya’s 47 counties. In Meru, a shopping center went up in flames black smoke pouring out. In Ol Kalou, one protester lost their life, another survived after getting shot. Kamukunji, near where the original Saba Saba demos went down, saw cops and protesters clashing, fires everywhere.
Former PM Raila Odinga was supposed to show up at Kamukunji, but he bailed, saying roadblocks kept people from getting there. Didn’t stop him from totally roasting the police, calling them “rogue” and saying they act like colonial-era goons. He wants a national talk about fixing the police. Wild fact: Odinga himself got arrested back in the OG Saba Saba protests, but he actually backed the government last year. Politics, man.
By mid-morning, tons of travelers were still stranded. Buses just stuck in places like Kabete, 13km out from the center of Nairobi. People who couldn’t cough up cash for a motorcycle ride were just stuck there, waiting it out. Humphrey Gumbishi, a bus driver, told the BBC they started their trip Sunday night, only to get blocked by police in the morning. His take? The government needs to sit down with Gen-Z protesters and hash this mess out.
Honestly, the whole thing’s just messy as hell, and the end isn’t in sight.
So, here’s what went down: Sunday night, the cops put out a statement, saying almost like a flex it’s their job, by the constitution, to keep folks safe and things under control. No surprise there.
Fast forward to Monday, the streets were packed with Gen-Z yeah, the TikTok crowd who are basically fed up. They’re not just shouting into the void; they want actual change. Good governance, people held accountable, and, honestly, some real justice for all those who’ve been on the wrong end of police violence. It’s not new, either. This vibe’s been rolling since last year just a different verse in the same old protest song.
Remember June 25th? That day was chaos. At least 19 people lost their lives, and businesses? Smashed, looted, just wiped out all over the country. All of it in memory of last year’s anti-tax protests, where folks died standing up to the system.
Now, here’s where it gets wild on Sunday, right before the next big demo, this armed gang hits up the Nairobi office of KHRC (that’s the Kenya Human Rights Commission, for those not in the know). They’d been hosting a presser women, mainly, calling out state violence. Suddenly, boom like 25 dudes roll up on motorbikes, yelling, “There will be no protest today.” Real subtle, guys.
According to KHRC’s Ernest Cornel, these guys weren’t just there for show. Rocks, clubs, you name it. They jacked laptops, a phone, and even robbed some of the journos who were just trying to cover the event. BBC Newsday got the rundown straight from Cornel.
For context the whole Saba Saba thing? It’s not just some random date. Back in the day, those protests basically cracked open Kenya’s one-party system, bringing in multiparty democracy. President Moi’s government? Zero chill. Loads of arrests, and at least 20 people reportedly killed. Pretty grim.
Now, Saba Saba’s kinda sacred stands for resistance, democracy, the whole fight-for-your-rights vibe in Kenya. Feels like history keeps repeating itself, doesn’t it?