Live bullets on protesters

– Live bullets, raids on houses and clouds of tear gas: for human rights defenders, the crackdown on Kenya’s opposition protest movement is yet another example of police impunity.

Frequently accused of extrajudicial executions, Kenya’s security forces have defended their actions, saying their men had at times been cornered by demonstrators, denying charges put forward by rights groups. But the number of deaths and injuries speaks for itself, says Otsieno Namwaya, co-author of a report on police brutality, jointly published by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International two weeks ago.

At least 49 people have died since the first presidential election on August 8, which was later overturned, in Kenya’s worst political turmoil in a decade.

The majority have been shot dead by police, rights groups say. “Policemen have shot live bullets at fleeing protesters,” said Namaya, pointing to “excessive use of force” in opposition strongholds.

For the most part, those who died were demonstrators, but there were others like a nine-yearold girl who was killed by a stray bullet in Nairobi. In some demonstrations, a group of uniformed men have been seen beating a lone protester on the ground.

Thursday’s presidential rerun was ordered by the Supreme Court after it overturned the August victory of President Uhuru Kenyatta. But two weeks beforehand, opposition leader Raila Odinga pulled out, calling a boycott on the grounds the vote would not be fair.

In four counties, the re-run never got off the ground, with Odinga supporters preventing poll stations from opening, forcing officials to postpone the vote to an as-yet-unknown date. On Friday, international observers said it was “imperative” security forces avoid excessive force. – AFP