Legislators are evacuating after the anti-tax protesters initially breached parliament. They quickly overwhelmed police soon after the lawmakers voted to pass a bill which introduces new nationwide taxes, including an eco-levy which raises the price of basic goods such as diapers, as part of efforts to curb waste management and be more environmentally friendly.
The new taxes were tucked away in Kenya’s Finance Bill 2024, and directly impacts imports, prices, and sales of diapers, batteries/dry cells, smartphones, earphones, clocks, radios, TV sets, cameras… staplers, printers, calculators, photocopying machines, keyboards, mice, projectors and LCD monitors.
The stringent Eco Levy especially impacts those who intend to import plastics into the Kenyan market, imposing a hefty fee per kilo on the products.
Protesters have been shouting while entering parliament, “We’re coming for every politician.” There are widespread reports that police have begun utilizing live fire against the throngs, also amid riot control measures such as tear-gas.
Currently, President William Ruto is outside the capital attending an African Union event, but he’s tried to strike a conciliatory tone, praising the enthusiasm of the youth – who are by and large the backbone of the demonstrations.
FLASH: The Kenyan parliament has just ERUPTED IN FLAMES as protests against the $2.7 BILLION TAX HIKE turn violent.
The hikes were spurred by Kenya’s latest IMF DEAL.
As Harvard Prof. Robert Barro puts it, “THE IMF DOESN’T PUT OUT FIRES, IT STARTS THEM.”pic.twitter.com/xyMcAucfNg— Steve Hanke (@steve_hanke) June 25, 2024
But the increasingly violent confrontations with police on the streets of Nairobi, which have been intensifying since last week when two people died, are also the result of alleged abductions by security services. The AP reports:
The Kenya Law Society President Faith Odhiambo said Tuesday that 50 Kenyans, including her personal assistant, had been “abducted” by people believed to be police officers.
Some of those missing included those who were vocal in the demonstrations and were taken away from their homes, workplaces and public spaces ahead of Tuesday’s protests, according to civil society groups.
Initial reports say at least eight people have been killed, according to a Kenya national broadcaster cited AP. The Kenya Human Rights Commission has also confirmed police are “firing live rounds” at demonstrators.
