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| Image via Heritage Times |
Kenya's Interior Ministry has proposed significant revisions to the country's security legislation, making it more difficult for civilians to engage in peaceful rallies.
Under the constitution, Kenyans have the freedom to assemble, demonstrate, and picket, but they must be peaceful and unarmed.
During protests in opposition strongholds last week, a university student was killed when police used tear gas and live bullets to disperse demonstrators.
The ministry's planned measures are aimed at limiting the number of protesters in a day and making demonstrators pay for cleanup costs.
Protesters will also have to obtain permission from those affected by the protests. Protesters will also be held responsible for compensating those harmed by their actions.
With the proposed changes, the Interior Ministry also wants to restrict the ability to assemble and protest.
It is unrealistic for security agencies to allow large groups of people to parade through streets and areas of their choosing, carrying stones and other offensive weapons and disrupting the daily lives of others.
Therefore, law enforcement agencies will not tolerate any plans aimed at repeating the violent, chaotic and economically disruptive protests that took place in Nairobi and Kisumu on March 20, 2023.
In short, the government will submit subsidiary legislation to Parliament in the form of regulations under the Public Order Act and the Statutory Instruments Act to legally restrict assemblies, demonstrations, vigils, and petitions, including but not limited to notification procedures and duties of security authorities to protect the rights of participants in the group, rally, surveillance, or petition.
According to the Ministry of Interior, Delineating assembly, demonstration, picket, and petition zones; requiring public agencies and entities to keep a zone clear for persons wishing to petition authorities; and requiring organizers of assemblies, demonstrations, pickets, and petitions to provide times, routes, and other relevant information to assist law enforcement with escort and security.
Limiting the number of assemblers, demonstrators, picketers, and petitioners on any occasion, liability for cleanup costs, and responsibility for and payment of damages to persons harmed by the actions of assemblers, demonstrators, picketers, or petitioners.
