ケニア 増税反対のデモ隊が議会突入 大統領が強硬措置表明

【ナイロビＡＦＰ＝時事】ケニアの首都ナイロビで２５日、政府の増税案に抗議するデモ隊の一部が議会に突入し、死傷者が出た、こうした事態を受け、ウィリアム・ルト大統領は「暴力と無秩序」には強硬措置を講じると表明した。（写真は、ケニア・ナイロビで、議会の敷地の外で避難するデモ参加者）
　物価高騰への反発が強まる中、増税案に反対するデモは、若者が中心となって先週始まった。抗議はおおむね平和的に行われていたが、ナイロビで２５日、デモ隊の一部が警察に投石し、バリケードを越えて議会の敷地内に侵入する事態に発展した。
　ＡＦＰの記者によると、国内のテレビ局は、荒らされた部屋や割られたガラス窓の他、破壊された車両など、議会突入後の状況を伝えた。
　ルト氏はナイロビで会見に臨み、デモは「危険人物に乗っ取られた」と主張。「平和的なデモの参加者を装った犯罪者が、国民や選挙で選ばれた議員、憲法にのっとって設立された制度を恐怖で支配し、罰を免れること」はあり得ないと述べ、「きょう起きたような反逆行為には、徹底して効果的かつ迅速な対応を取る」と表明した。
　警察を支援するために出動した軍はデモ隊に催涙ガスや放水銃、ゴム弾を使用。人権団体は、実弾も使われていたと主張している。
　同国医師会によると抗議デモではこれまでに１３人が死亡した。先に、国際人権団体アムネスティ・ケニアなどの複数のＮＧＯが発表した共同声明では、５人が発砲により死亡、３１人が負傷とされていた。
　アムネスティ・ケニアはＸ（旧ツイッター）で、理不尽な取り締まりが急増しているとし、政府に対して、デモ参加者の集会の権利を尊重するよう要求。人権監視機関も、当局がデモ参加者を拉致していると非難した。
　財政難にある政府は先週、増税案の一部撤回に合意。その一方で、燃料価格や輸出税などを引き上げる考えについては維持する姿勢を示している。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2024/06/26-18:06）

Kenyan President William Ruto vowed to take a tough line against violence and anarchy on Tuesday, after protests against his government's proposed tax hikes turned deadly and demonstrators ransacked parliament.
Mainly youth-led demonstrations had been largely peaceful as they grew over the past week but chaos erupted in Nairobi on Tuesday, with crowds throwing stones at police, pushing past barricades and entering the grounds of parliament.
The military has been deployed to support police who fired tear gas, water cannon, rubber bullets and -- according to a rights group -- live ammunition against protesters.
Five people were shot dead and 31 wounded, several NGOs including Amnesty Kenya reported in a joint statement.
We shall provide a full, effective and expeditious response to today's treasonous events, Ruto told a press briefing in Nairobi, saying the demonstrations were hijacked by dangerous people.
It was inconceivable that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people, their elected representatives and the institutions established under our constitution and expect to go scot-free, Ruto added.
I hereby put on notice the planners, financiers, orchestrators, abetters of violence and anarchy.
The United States appealed for calm and 13 Western nations -- including Canada, Germany and Britain -- said they were especially shocked by the scenes outside parliament.
UN chief Antonio Guterres was deeply concerned by the violence and saddened by the reported deaths and injuries, his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
African Union Commission chief Moussa Faki Mahamat also expressed his deep concern and called on the country to refrain from further violence.
- 'Unleashed brute force' -
Outrage over proposed tax hikes and simmering anger over a cost-of-living crisis fuelled rapidly growing demonstrations that have caught the government off guard.
This is the voice of the young people of Kenya, said Elizabeth Nyaberi, 26, a lawyer at a protest. They are tear gassing us, but we don't care.
We are here to speak for our generations and the generations to come, she added.
Amid the clashes, global web monitor NetBlocks reported that a major disruption had hit the country's internet service.
In the aftermath of the parliament compound breach, local TV showed images of ransacked rooms with smashed windows, while cars parked outside were vandalised and flags destroyed, according to an AFP reporter.
The governor's office in Nairobi City Hall -- just a few hundred metres from parliament -- was set alight, footage on privately owned Citizen TV showed, with a water cannon attempting to douse the fire.
After reports that live ammunition was fired at protesters, Kenya's main opposition coalition, Azimio, said the government had unleashed brute force on our country's children.
Kenya cannot afford to kill its children just because the children are asking for food, jobs and a listening ear, it said in a statement.
The military deployment was in response to the security emergency across Kenya, Defence Minister Aden Bare Duale said in a statement.
Despite the heavy police presence, thousands of protesters had earlier marched peacefully through Nairobi's business district, many live-streaming the action as they sang and beat drums in their push towards parliament.
Crowds also marched in the port city of Mombasa, the opposition bastion of Kisumu, and Ruto's stronghold of Eldoret, images on Kenyan TV channels showed.
- Protesters 'abducted' -
Amnesty International's Kenya chapter posted on X Tuesday that the pattern of policing protests is deteriorating fast, urging the government to respect demonstrators' right to assembly.
Rights watchdogs have also accused the authorities of abducting protesters.
The Kenya Human Rights Commission said the abductions had mostly occurred at night and were conducted by police officers in civilian clothes and unmarked cars, calling for the unconditional release of all abductees.
Police have not responded to AFP requests for comment on the allegations.
The cash-strapped government agreed last week to roll back several tax increases.
But it still intends to raise other taxes to fill the void left by the changes, including on fuel prices and export taxes, saying they are necessary for filling the state coffers and cutting reliance on external borrowing.
Critics say the move will make life more expensive in a country already saddled with high inflation where well-paid jobs are out-of-reach for many young Kenyans.
Kenya has one of the most dynamic economies in East Africa but a third of its 52 million people live in poverty.
The country has a huge debt mountain whose servicing costs have ballooned because of a fall in the value of the local currency over the last two years, making interest payments on foreign-currency loans more expensive.
After the government agreed to scrap levies on bread purchases, car ownership and financial and mobile services, the treasury warned of a budget shortfall of 200 billion shillings ($1.56 billion).