'They don't even know what it means,' activists on controversial charges

Vocal Africa CEO Khalid Hussein scape police dragnet along Muindi Mbingu street during Gen Z demo June 25, 2025. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

Majority of protesting youth are not informed about the Protection Terrorism Act.

Activist Shakira Wafula with Active Citizen opines that arrested protestors don’t even understand what the terrorism charges mean.

This is after a growing outrage over terrorism charges levelled against dozens of young protesters arrested during the June 25 and Saba Saba protests.

Many of the arrested, largely Gen Zs, say they had no idea that they were being charged under such severe offenses that carry life-altering consequences.

 “Some of these youth are still in school, others are just starting out in life. If these charges stick, they may never qualify for scholarships, loans, or jobs. I’m told this thing hangs over you for life. They will be rendered useless in a country that already gives them so little,” says Wafula.

According to rights groups, the government’s move to  charge peaceful demonstrators with terrorism is not only excessive but a dangerous precedent that criminalises dissent.

The protests, driven by frustration over extra-judicial killings, over taxation and government spending, have seen thousands take to the streets with many arrested, injured or killed.

Wafula, while on Spice FM on Thursday, July 24 held that the youth are not being mobilised by political actors, but driven by their own life reality.

“No one calls them to the streets. It’s desperation. They’ve exhausted all other avenues. And now, instead of being heard, they are being labeled terrorists,” she stated.

Vocal Africa CEO Hussein Khalid sees the terrorism charges as a strategy to instill fear among youth so that they tone down on their quest. He said protesters have recounted police brutality, ignoring pre-agreed protest routes, and infiltration by politically sponsored goons meant to discredit the movement.

 “They are trying to suspend constitutional guarantees using propaganda and violence. The goal is to make us give up our rights. But this generation won’t go quietly like those before us," Hussein explains adding that use of excessive force hinders many from going to the streets. “The government wants people to fear protest. If you know you’ll be beaten, teargassed, or killed, you’ll stay home.”

“And that’s the point…they want the streets empty so they can continue ruling without accountability. We know it’s deliberate. They want protests to seem violent, so they can justify crackdown.”

But Khalid avers that the real crime is the impunity that continues to shield police and politicians behind the violence.

“No officer has been jailed for protest killings. No politician has been named. Instead, they slap young people with terrorism charges. We don’t need dialogue until there is justice.”

He believes that the Gen Z momentum will not be lost by the government pressure.

“The President conceded to not signing the Finance Bill 2024. That proves people power works. We must keep pushing. This is the moment…te opposite of accountability is impunity and we must end it now.”