Collins Olunga, a journalist with AFP in Nairobi, suffered an injury caused by a teargas canister thrown at him by police and was transferred to a hospital. Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) photographer John Omido, was sprayed with water mixed with harmful chemicals, a potent combination that was being used to disperse protesters. Jutus Mwangi from The Standard was rounded up, brutally bundled into a police vehicle and later thrown off the speeding vehicle. Maureen Muthoni from Nation Media Group was injured and arrested.
The protest was organised to voice opposition to a proposed finance bill, which aims to raise an additional USD 2.7 billion in taxes as part of efforts to lighten Kenya’s heavy debt loan.
The KUJ, an IFJ affiliate, stated that the union is “shocked at the unprecedented violence that the police meted out to journalists, who were deployed by media houses to inform citizens about the nationwide protests against the bill”.
Its statement further notes that the Kenyan Government had threatened to shut down the Kenyan Television Network to suppress the media and stop the journalists from doing their job. Communications Authority (CA) senior officers ordered television signal carriers to switch off KTN because the station aired pictures of protesters invading the Parliament.
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said that the high-handed nature of the police attacks against journalists who were covering the protest is a deliberate attack on media freedom and a disgraceful attempt to deny Kenyan citizens access to information. “Every government in a democratic state has an obligation to defend press freedom and guarantee the safety and independence of journalists and media workers. The Kenyan Government must launch an investigation into the brutalisation of journalists and to ensure that those responsible are apprehended and brought to justice.”