A Kenyan court has suspended a police ban on protests in the capital, stating that citizens have a right to demonstrate peacefully.
Before the High Court’s decision on Thursday, police had barred protests in Nairobi indefinitely, saying they lacked leadership that would ensure peaceful demonstrations.
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The judge issued a “conservatory order” to prevent the ban from being enforced, pending a final ruling on the case. The court said it will hold another hearing on July 29.
The suspension came before a planned protest, in which demonstrators were expected to march to the president’s office calling for his resignation over poor governance.
The acting police inspector general, Douglas Kanja, said in a statement that the lack of leadership had “made it difficult to enforce safety protocols”.
Protesters were yet to be spotted on Thursday, but major roads leading to the president’s office remained barricaded by the police.
Kenya has seen a month of protests that started with calls for legislators to vote against a controversial finance bill that was proposing higher taxes amid a cost-of-living crisis and ballooning public debt.
President William Ruto said he would not sign the finance bill that was passed by parliament on June 25 – the day protesters stormed and set fire to part of the building, prompting legislators to flee.
The president last week dismissed almost his entire Cabinet and the attorney general, as demanded by protesters who accused ministers of incompetence, corruption and display of opulence.
Some businesses in Nairobi remained closed in anticipation of planned protests on Thursday. Police remained heavily deployed around the central business district patrolling the streets.
Government spokesperson Isaac Mwaura on Thursday said the economy had incurred loses worth 6 billion Kenyan shillings ($45m) due to the continuing demonstrations.
Police have been accused of brutality against protesters. Japhet Koome, the former inspector general of police, resigned on July 12 after calls from demonstrators for him to take responsibility for the shooting of protesters.
The Independent Policing Oversight Authority on Wednesday said it had forwarded four out of 10 cases of police brutality to the director of public prosecutions with recommendations.
The watchdog had recorded witness statements and directed that various police officers appear before it to give their testimony.