NAIROBI, July 20, 2023 (AFP) – Shops and schools reopened Thursday as Kenyans resumed normal life, despite an opposition call to join anti-government protests after earlier demonstrations prompted widespread closures and resulted in deadly clashes.
Veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga has staged several demonstrations since March against the government, alarming the international community which has urged both sides to find a political solution after earlier protests left more than dozen dead.
Odinga’s Azimio alliance had vowed to stage three straight days of protests this week, and on Wednesday evening urged “Kenyans to come out in an even bigger way tomorrow”.
Schools in Nairobi and the opposition bastions of Kisumu and Mombasa reopened Thursday, with the interior ministry assuring Kenyans that it had taken “adequate measures to guarantee the safety and security of learners”.
Nairobi’s business district, which was largely shuttered on Wednesday, also resumed activity, with stores reopening and office-goers heading to work.
“Yesterday, I did not go out because I was expecting some mess, and the schools were closed. But I am out today, life is getting back to normal,” urban planner Godfrey Mononyi told AFP.
Bookseller Charles Muru, 51, said he shut his kiosk on Wednesday due to “fear of the protests”.
“Today it is near to normal, not normal yet, but we are getting there,” he told AFP.
“It is hurting us, the protests have to stop.”
Police have used tear gas and live rounds to disperse stone-throwing crowds, sparking outrage from rights groups, with two people shot dead on Wednesday in Kisumu according to a hospital official.
Although Wednesday’s protests appeared to be more muted, with fewer reports of casualties resulting from sporadic clashes, Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki said the authorities had arrested over 300 people for looting, arson, robbery and assault.
It is the third time this month that Odinga has staged mass rallies against a government he says is illegitimate and to blame for a cost-of-living crisis.
The government in turn has accused the opposition of derailing efforts to improve the economy, with President William Ruto on Wednesday urging police to take firm action against “criminals, gangs and anarchists and all the people who want to cause mayhem.”
Odinga called off earlier anti-government demonstrations after Ruto agreed to dialogue, but the talks broke down.
