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Police fire on demonstrators trying to storm Kenya parliament, several dead

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  • Protesters, police clash outside Nairobi parliament
  • At least five people shot dead, dozens wounded
  • President Ruto says tax debate ‘hijacked by dangerous people’
  • Strike called against proposed tax increases
  • Protests take place in other cities around Kenya
NAIROBI, June 25 (Reuters) – Kenyan President William Ruto said on Tuesday security was his “utmost priority” after protests against a bill to raise taxes descended into violence, with police firing on demonstrators trying to storm the legislature, killing at least five.
In chaotic scenes in the capital Nairobi, protesters overwhelmed police and chased them away in an attempt to enter the parliament compound, with Citizen TV later showing damage from inside the building, which had been partially set ablaze.
Protests and clashes also took place in several other cities and towns across Kenya, with many calling for Ruto to quit as well as voicing their opposition to the tax rises.
In a televised address to the nation, Ruto said the tax debate had been “hijacked by dangerous people”.
“It is not in order, or even conceivable, that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people…,” he said, pledging a swift response to Tuesday’s “treasonous events”.
Police in Nairobi opened fire after tear gas and water cannon failed to disperse the crowds. They eventually managed to drive protesters from the parliament building and lawmakers were evacuated through an underground tunnel, local media said.
Later on Tuesday, Defence Minister Aden Duale said the army had been deployed to help the police deal with a “security emergency” which had resulted in the “destruction and breaching of critical infrastructure”.
A Reuters journalist counted the bodies of at least five protesters outside parliament.
The Kenya Medical Association said that at least five people had been shot dead while treating the injured, and that 31 people had been injured, with 13 shot with live bullets and four with rubber bullets.
The association called on authorities to establish safe medical corridors to protect medical staff and ambulances.

CAUGHT BETWEEN COMPETING DEMANDS

Ruto won an election almost two years ago on a platform of championing Kenya’s working poor, but has been caught between the competing demands of lenders such as the International Monetary Fund, which is urging the government to cut deficits to obtain more funding, and a hard-pressed population.
Kenyans have been struggling to cope with several economic shocks caused by the lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, two consecutive years of drought and depreciation of the currency.
The finance bill aims to raise an additional $2.7 billion in taxes as part of an effort to lighten Kenya’s heavy debt load, with interest payments alone consuming 37% of annual revenue.
In Washington, the White House said the United States was closely monitoring the situation in Nairobi and urging calm.
Ambassadors and high commissioners from countries including Britain, the U.S. and Germany said in a joint statement they were deeply concerned by violence they had witnessed during recent anti-tax protests and called for restraint on all sides.
Kenyan activist Auma Obama, the half-sister of former U.S. President Barack Obama, was among protesters tear-gassed during the demonstrations, a CNN interview showed.
Internet services across the East African country experienced severe disruptions during the police crackdown, internet monitor Netblocks said. Kenya’s leading network operator Safaricom said outages had affected two of its undersea cables but the root cause of the outages remained unclear.
Item 1 of 15 Demonstrators try to obstruct a police vehicle as police use water cannons to disperse protesters during a demonstration against Kenya’s proposed finance bill 2024/2025 in Nairobi, Kenya, June 25, 2024. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi
Parliament approved the finance bill the Finance bill moving it through to a third reading by lawmakers. The next step is for the legislation to be sent to the president for signing. He can send it back to parliament if he has any objections.
Opposition politicians called on Ruto to step down.
“Ruto must go, Ruto must resign, he must do the honourable thing,” senior opposition leader Eugene Wamalwa said in a statement on TV.
Another opposition leader, Raila Odinga, urged the immediate withdrawal of the finance bill to make way for dialogue.
“I am disturbed at the murders, arrests, detentions and surveillance being perpetrated by police on boys and girls who are only seeking to be heard over taxation policies that are stealing both their present and future,” he said in a statement.
The government has made some concessions, promising to scrap proposed new taxes on bread, cooking oil, car ownership and financial transactions. But that has not been enough for protesters.
The finance ministry says the concessions would blow a 200 billion Kenyan shilling ($1.56 billion) hole in the 2024-25 budget, and compel the government to make spending cuts or raise taxes elsewhere.
Tuesday’s protests began in a festival-like atmosphere but as crowds swelled, police fired tear gas in Nairobi’s Central Business District and the poor neighbourhood of Kibera. Protesters ducked for cover and threw stones at police lines.
Police also fired tear gas in Eldoret, Ruto’s hometown in western Kenya, where crowds of protesters filled the streets and many businesses were closed for fear of violence.
Further clashes broke out in the coastal city of Mombasa and demonstrations were held in Kisumu, on Lake Victoria, and Garissa in eastern Kenya, where police blocked the main road to neighbouring Somalia’s port of Kismayu.
In Nairobi, people chanted “Ruto must go” and crowds sang in Swahili: “All can be possible without Ruto”. Music played from loudspeakers and protesters waved Kenyan flags and blew whistles in the few hours before the violence escalated.
Police did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

ORGANIC MOVEMENT

Thousands had taken to the streets of Nairobi and several other cities during two days of protests last week as an online, youth-led movement gathered momentum.
Protests in Kenya have usually been called by political leaders who have been amenable to negotiated settlements, but the young Kenyans in the current demonstrations have no official leader and they have been growing increasingly bold in their demands.
While protesters initially focused on the finance bill, their demands have broadened to demand Ruto’s resignation.
Amid the unrest, Kenya’s sovereign dollar bonds slid on Tuesday afternoon, Tradeweb data showed. The 2034 maturity fell the most, trading 0.6 cents lower at 74.7 cents on the dollar.
“They are budgeting for corruption,” said protester Hussein Ali, 18. “We won’t relent. It’s the government that is going to back off. Not us.”(Reuters)
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Canadian police prepare for influx of asylum-seekers escaping Trump

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FILE PHOTO: Asylum seekers cross into Canada from the U.S. border near a checkpoint on Roxham Road near Hemmingford, Quebec, Canada April 24, 2022. REUTERS/Christinne Muschi/File Photo
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Canadian police and migrant aid organizations are preparing for a potential influx of asylum-seekers fleeing to Canada as President-elect Donald Trump returns to power in the United States.

This development comes as Canada grapples with record refugee claim numbers and an aim to reduce immigration.

Trump, the former and now future U.S. president, won this week’s election with a platform that includes enacting the largest deportation effort in American history, raising concerns among Canadian authorities about a new wave of border crossings.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have been preparing for months, said RCMP Sergeant Charles Poirier on Thursday.

“We knew a few months ago that we had to start prepping a contingency plan because if he comes into power, which now he will in a few months, it could drive illegal migration and irregular migration into (the province of) Quebec and into Canada,” Poirier told Reuters.

The worst-case scenario, Poirier explained, would be a surge of people crossing into Canada.

“Let’s say we had 100 people per day entering across the border, then it’s going to be hard because our officers will basically have to cover huge distances in order to arrest everyone,” he said.

During Trump’s first term in 2017, thousands of asylum-seekers crossed the Canadian border outside formal checkpoints to file refugee claims, most often at Roxham Road near the Quebec-New York border.

However, Roxham Road is no longer an option for would-be asylum-seekers, following a bilateral agreement between Canada and the U.S. This pact, which now applies to the entire 4,000-mile border, mandates that asylum-seekers trying to cross outside formal checkpoints be turned back unless they qualify for a narrow exemption.

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Now, those who attempt to cross into Canada undetected must evade authorities and hide for two weeks before they can safely seek asylum – a high-risk approach, say immigrant advocates.

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“When you don’t create legitimate pathways, or when you only create pathways where people have to do the impossible to receive safety, you know, unfortunately, people are going to try to do the impossible,” said Abdulla Daoud, director of The Refugee Centre in Montreal, which provides support services for migrants.

As these pressures mount, Canadian police are on “high alert,” prepared to mobilize additional resources if the need arises, Poirier added. This could mean deploying hundreds of extra officers, increasing patrols with additional cruisers, chartering buses, and even setting up temporary facilities near the border.

“All eyes are on the border right now. … We were on high alert, I can tell you, a few days before the election, and we’ll probably remain on alert for the next coming weeks,” Poirier said, underlining the tense anticipation among Canadian Police amid Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown threat.

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US election: Kamala Harris concedes defeat, calls Trump

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US election: Kamala Harris concedes defeat, calls Trump
Kamala Harris
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Democratic presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, officially conceded defeat to her Republican rival, Donald Trump, in the 5 November 2024 United States presidential election.

According to Al Jazeera, a senior campaign aide to Harris revealed on Wednesday that she congratulated Trump on his victory and emphasised the importance of a peaceful transition, underscoring the role of a president in uniting the country.

“They discussed the importance of a peaceful transfer of power and being a president for everyone in the country,” the aide reported.

Harris is expected to deliver her first public remarks since her projected loss later on Wednesday in Washington, DC.

Initially, she was scheduled to address supporters gathered at Howard University, her alma mater, on election night. However, with results still being finalised, her campaign director informed the emotional crowd that she would delay her speech until further outcomes were confirmed.

Trump achieved a decisive victory, comfortably surpassing the 270 Electoral College votes needed to secure the presidency.

As is tradition, Trump will be inaugurated as president and officially take office on Monday, 20 January 2025, following the customary transition period after the election.

Between now and 20 January 2025, President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance will collaborate with their transition team to coordinate the handover from President Biden’s administration.

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We must stop smuggling gangs before they act – Starmer, UK Prime Minister

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UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer
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Sir Keir Starmer, UK Prime Minister, has vowed to use counter-terrorism tactics to stop people-smuggling gangs “before they act”, as he announced an extra £75m to police the UK’s borders.

In a speech, the prime minister said the UK’s new Border Security Command (BSC) would “treat people smugglers like terrorists”, with enhanced powers to trace suspected human traffickers and shut down their bank accounts.

The cash boost, which will be used to hire hundreds of new investigators and intelligence officers, takes the funding for the BSC to a total of £150m.

But former immigration chief Kevin Saunders said the changes would not deter illegal migrants from coming to the UK and stop small boat crossings.

In a speech to the Interpol general assembly in Glasgow, which brings together senior police and ministers from nearly 200 member countries, the prime minister said it was his “personal mission to smash the people-smuggling gangs”.

“We are going to treat people smugglers like terrorists – we are taking our approach to counter terrorism, which we know works, and applying it to the gangs,” he said.

“We have got to combine resources, share intelligence and tactics, and tackle the problem upstream, working together to shut down the smuggling routes.”

The government has said it will pass new laws to give those tackling smuggling gangs enhanced powers to trace suspects’ movements and freeze their bank accounts.

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Meanwhile, the BSC will get additional funding for:

An extra 300 staff to strengthen global partnerships and deliver new legislation

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An additional 100 specialist investigators and intelligence officers for the National Crime Agency (NCA), to tackle criminals involved in people smuggling

New NCA technology around advanced data exploitation, to boost collaboration with European partners investigating trafficking networks

Creating a new specialist intelligence unit examining information from key police forces

Boosting the Crown Prosecution Service’s ability to deliver charging decisions more quickly on international organised crime cases

However, speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Saunders, who was chief immigration officer for ports, said “unfortunately what the prime minister is trying to do is not feasible”.

The UK would only be able to prosecute and jail people smugglers “in the UK and the majority of people smugglers are actually based in the Middle East and Turkey”, Mr Saunders said.

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Under the UK’s asylum system “you can’t deport failed asylum seekers” who destroy documents, Mr Saunders said.

Without official documents, the UK is often unable to prove the asylum seekers country of origin meaning their home countries will refuse to take them.

A Conservative Party spokesperson said: “It is a shame that Starmer has not recognised the extent of the crisis in the Channel sooner, as he and the Labour Party voted against numerous measures to stop the gangs while they were in opposition.

“If Starmer continues to ignore the need for a deterrent to stop migrants crossing the Channel, there will be more deaths in the Channel as more and more migrants continue to cross it.”

Sir Keir cancelled the Rwanda deportation scheme, which was the Conservative government’s plan to discourage Channel crossings.

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More than 5,400 people crossed the Channel in small boats in October – the highest monthly figure since October 2022.

In total, more than 27,500 people have made the crossing so far this year, more than the same period in 2023.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the high number of crossings in October was linked to unusually fair weather.

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However, she told the BBC the government could not just blame weather conditions for spikes in illegal immigration and had to “go after the criminal gangs at the heart of this”.

Pressed over when a drop in small boat crossings could be expected, Cooper would not commit to a specific target.

She added that it would take time to get investigators and new technology in place but the government wanted to make progress “as rapidly as possible”.

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