At least 39 people were killed in demonstrations that began last month against planned tax increases.
Hundreds of Kenyans attended a concert in the capital, Nairobi, chanting slogans and dancing in honor of dozens of people killed in recent anti-government protests.
At least 39 people were killed in demonstrations that began on June 18, as protesters pressed for the cancellation of planned tax increases and the resignation of President William Ruto.
“The government is listening now because of the protests. So we are happy, but there is also a lot of sadness because many people died for the government to hear”, said activist Boniface Mwangi, who attended the concert.
“So we too are grieving and we say to the families of those who have lost their loved ones, ‘We stand with you and we will honor your sacrifice.’”
Thousands of young people fill Uhuru Park for the concert in memory of victims killed by police during anti-government protests pic.twitter.com/Ra7w234Saf
– Citizen TV Kenya (@citizentvkenya) July 7, 2024
At a concert by local artists at Uhuru Park, a vast green space in central Nairobi, young people held signs reading “RIP Comrades” and “We promise we will continue to fight”, while the crowd chanted “Ruto must go”. Others hammered crosses into the ground.
Sunday’s concert was held on Saba Saba Day, which marks the day in 1990 when similar protests began – demonstrations that ultimately forced the government of late leader Daniel arap Moi to return the country to multi-party politics.
Change for economic transformation?
Recent weeks-long protests in Kenya also saw police fire tear gas and water cannons at protesters. Kenyan police said they had arrested more than 270 people who they said were disguised as protesters and suspected of starting criminal violence during anti-government rallies in the country.
With growing pressure from protesters, President Ruto repealed a financial law that would have introduced a series of new taxes that Kenyans said would have increased the already high cost of living.
On Friday, he also proposed new austerity measures, including reducing the number of his advisers and disbanding 47 state-owned companies to help fill a budget gap caused by the withdrawal of tax increases, which were expected to raise 2,700 million dollars.
“I believe these changes will put our country on a trajectory towards economic transformation,” Ruto said.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
