NAIROBI (Reuters) – Police in the Kenyan capital Nairobi fired tear gas to try to disperse protesters who protested on Monday against what they said was a wave of unexplained kidnappings of government critics, as well as the detention of some of those involved.
Dozens of Kenyans have been abducted in recent months, according to rights groups, who blame Kenyan police and intelligence services for the extrajudicial arrests.
Kenyan authorities have said the government does not condone or engage in extrajudicial killings or abductions.
Some groups of young protesters marched through downtown Nairobi, while small groups of others staged sit-ins as clouds of tear gas hung in the air. They shouted anti-government slogans and some held placards denouncing the illegal detentions as mounted police patrolled nearby.
Among the protesters was opposition MP Okiya Omtatah, who took part in the protest, and the protesters used thick chains to hold them together as riot police tried to separate them.
Kenya’s Daily Nation newspaper reported that Omtatah and 10 other protesters were detained during the protest.
Nairobi police chief Adamson Bungei and national police spokeswoman Rosalia Onyango did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.
The alleged kidnappings followed anti-government protests that began in June this year.
Originally aimed at overturning proposed tax increases, the demonstrations eventually evolved into a movement that cut across Kenya’s traditional ethnic divisions, becoming the biggest threat to current President William Ruto’s government.
