Nairobi - The African Mirror

Sep

05

2024

Kenyan artists reflect Gen Z hopes and frustrations in new exhibition

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

AS young protesters in Kenya took to the streets in June to demand the government account for its spending of taxpayers’ money, the Wajukuu Art Project was opening a new exhibition in Nairobi. Visitors to In the Absence at The African Arts Trust Gallery are greeted by large installations. Draped materials hang from a pillowy sky, razor-sharp knives are welded to rusty iron sheets, suspended lanterns reflect off aluminium mirrors and poems are written on walls. Kenyan curator Rose Jepkorir’s text on the exhibition proposes that In the Absence creates an atmospheric space where visitors can reflect with themselves –…

Jul

04

2024

By The African Mirror

Protestors call on Kenyan President to quit

NEWS

Kenya experienced widespread unrest, with riot police clashing with protesters in Nairobi and other cities across the country. This marks the most extensive demonstrations since deadly protests a week ago that resulted in at least two dozen fatalities. According to Reuters, the protests began peacefully but turned violent as the day progressed. In Nairobi's business district, police fired tear gas and charged at stone-throwing demonstrators. The news agency describes scenes of burning kiosks, injured protesters, and police arrests. Reuters reports that the unrest has spread beyond the capital, with hundreds marching in Mombasa, Kenya's second-largest city. The news agency notes…

Jun

27

2024

By GIULIA PARAVICINI and AARON ROSS

Kenya president backs down on tax hikes after deadly unrest

NEWS

KENYAN President William Ruto withdrew planned tax hikes, bowing to pressure from protesters who had stormed parliament, launched demonstrations across the country and threatened more action this week. The move will be seen as a major victory for a week-old, youth-led protest movement that grew from online condemnations of tax rises into mass rallies demanding a political overhaul, in the most serious crisis of Ruto's two-year-old presidency. But some demonstrators said on social media that despite Ruto's climbdown they would go ahead with a rally planned for Thursday, with many reiterating demands that he resign. Ruto announced he would not sign a finance bill including…

Jun

26

2024

By AARON ROSS, GEORGE OBULUTSA and GIULIA PARAVICINI

Police fire on demonstrators trying to storm Kenya parliament, several dead

NEWS

KENYAN President William Ruto said security was his "utmost priority" after protests against a bill to raise taxes descended into violence, with police firing on demonstrators trying to storm the legislature, killing at least five. In chaotic scenes in the capital Nairobi, protesters overwhelmed police and chased them away in an attempt to enter the parliament compound, with Citizen TV later showing damage from inside the building, which had been partially set ablaze. Protests and clashes also took place in several other cities and towns across Kenya, with many calling for Ruto to quit as well as voicing their opposition…

Jun

21

2024

By MONICAH MWANGI and JEFFERSON KAHINJU

Police fire tear gas, water cannon at anti-tax protesters in Nairobi

NEWS

RIOT police in Nairobi fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse thousands of demonstrators as coordinated marches took place across Kenya against government plans to raise $2.7 billion in additional taxes. Late into the protest on Thursday, officers fired tear gas to disperse protesters who were marching on a road near State House, President William Ruto's office and official residence. Earlier, police had sprayed people with purple-coloured water from water cannon, as they sought to clear protesters in Nairobi's central business district and blocked their path to parliament. The demonstration had appeared peaceful. The Kenya Red Cross said on…

Jun

19

2024

By HUMPHREY MALALO

Kenyan parliament panel urges govt to scrap some new taxes as hundreds protest

NEWS

A Kenyan parliamentary panel recommended that the government scrap some new taxes proposed as part of next year's budget, as hundreds of protesters angered by the measures took to the streets in the capital Nairobi. The tax hikes, including new levies on cars and bread, are the latest effort by President William Ruto's administration to boost revenue and reduce borrowing, but they have triggered widespread opposition. Last year, the government introduced a housing tax and increased contributions to the national health scheme in moves that also sparked protests. Kimani Kuria, chair of the Kenyan parliament's finance committee, said the committee…

Jun

17

2024

By The African Mirror

Kipyegon targets double gold in Paris

ATHLETICS

DOUBLE Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon said she is looking forward to a bright summer in Paris, where she will chase two gold medals, after winning the 1500m and 5000m at the Kenyan Olympics Trials in Nairobi. Despite not competing since September’s Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, the 30-year-old secured her ticket in both distances for the Paris Olympics with a season's best performance. A day after winning the 5000m in 14:46.28, the Rio and Tokyo Games 1500m champion demonstrated her mastery of the distance on Saturday, setting the track ablaze with a record time of 3:53.98, the fastest time ever in…

Jun

14

2024

By The African Mirror

Policeman shoots and injures magistrate in Kenyan court

NEWS

A police officer shot and injured a magistrate at a court in Kenya's capital Nairobi, before being killed in a shootout with other officers, the judiciary said. Monica Kivuti, a magistrate at the Makadara Law Courts, was shot after rejecting the bond request for the police officer's wife, chief registrar of the judiciary Winfridah Mokaya said in a statement. "Immediately (after) this decision was pronounced, a person shot at the magistrate," Mokaya said. "Police officers (at) the scene responded and neutralized the shooter." Kivuti and three other officers who were injured in the ensuing shootout were being treated and in…

May

26

2024

By ESTHER MUSEMBI, BIRD STORY AGENCY

From IT specialist to poet extraordinaire: The story of Njeri Wangari

LITERATURE, ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

WHEN Njeri Wangari walked into the spotlight at an event in Nairobi in May, it was clear she had command of the stage. The DJ cut the house music right on time and Wangari launched into her lines of poetry at the open mic event. With her brightly patterned kitenge kimono and commanding voice, Wangari wowed the Mother's Day crowd, with the audience snapping their fingers - considered clapping in spoken poetry circles - in all the right places. She finished her performance with another spoken word piece celebrating women and mothers, to which she received a standing ovation from…

May

21

2024

By SMITH OUMA

Kenya’s flood evictions may violate the law – scholar

NEWS

RECENT floods in Kenya have left at least 270 people dead, displaced more than 200,000 and destroyed property, infrastructure and livelihoods across the country. In Nairobi, hundreds of people in informal settlements were left homeless and thousands were displaced. And now, the government has been evicting people from flood-prone areas. Smith Ouma is a legal expert with a focus on urban governance. His research has covered land and tenure rights in Nairobi’s informal settlements. Moina Spooner, from The Conversation Africa, asked Ouma to share his thoughts on the government’s response to the flooding in Nairobi’s informal settlements and how it…