Victims of police brutality recall scary encounters during demos

Lameck Owuor nursing bullet wounds after he was shot by police during Azimio la Umoja anti-government protests in Rongo town. [James Omoro, Standard] "Do you want to kill my child?" shouted a husky and frantic voice. A father's anguished cry echoed through the alleys of Mathare, Nairobi. Victor Juma, a loving father, raced outside his home, desperate to shield his two-year-old daughter from tear gas that had made her unconscious. With tears in his eyes, Juma pleaded with the officers to stop the assault on his humble dwelling. "You also have children; how will you feel when they are injured?" Juma cried, his voice firm yet fearful, because his child was unconscious in the hands of his wife after police teargassed his small slum house. But instead of compassion, the police responded with threats, violence and torture, raining terror upon protesters and non-protesters alike. Juma's only crime was trying to protect his family. He was arrested and mercilessly beaten. The 25-year-old was not armed and was in sandals, a sign he was in his house, and he just wanted to protect his family as the police descended on Mathare. "My child got hit by a tear gas until she fainted. I have not hit anyone," said Juma, now popularly known as Mathare Man, after the video of his arrest by a police officer in civilian clothes masquerading as a journalist, went viral on social media. "I was arrested and beaten by a rungu and a hard wire; my only mistake was protecting the little one and my family," Juma said. The harrowing account was not isolated. Fredrick Akama faced similar fate in Migori, succumbing to effects of tear gas after the police raided his home, subjected him to beatings, and left him to suffocate. Victor Juma who had come to plead with police not to tear gas their homes roughed up by the anti-riot police officers in Mathare. [Collins Kweyu, Standard] The 57-year-old was inside his house when the police opened the window, showered the house with teargas, and then closed his door from outside. "The police beat him properly when he tried to open the door and then closed it after adding more teargas," his cousin, Cidi Otieno, said. "And when things cooled, neighbours stopped taking him to hospital, and he died." Otieno said the postmortem revealed that he choked to death. "We lost him. May his soul rest in peace and those who killed him never find peace," Otieno said, adding, "he had other injuries since the police were beating him to stay in a house full of teargas." Nicholas Owino, convener of the Social Justice Centre in Migori, said they are among the people police blocked from accessing health facilities. Owino said several people were nursing bullet wounds, and some were in deep pain but were blocked from accessing health facilities by police. Others had run to hide in hospitals after police raided their homes, shooting indiscriminately, breaking doors and beating others. "The police were brutal, and they shot many people. We discovered gunshots on those killed and those who have been treated, as we documented. While we were documenting the cases, we also found no police officer treated or admitted to any of the hospitals, a clear indication no officer was injured," Owino said. Others were also kicked out of a sub-county hospital without being treated. Owino said among those killed was a 19-year-old student going home from school to see his brother for school fees and two other 20-year-olds sent by their parents to shop. Fidel Castro Ochieng, 19, a Form Four student at Olembo Boys High School, is undergoing treatment after police raided his family's home in Kisumu and shot indiscriminately, leaving nine bullets in his body. Some of the Azimio la Umoja supporters hospitalised after they were shot by anti-riot police officers in Kitengela. [Peterson Githaiga, Standard] It is the same story facing Nairobi Bantamweight boxing champion, Raphael Shigali, who was shot dead around the Makadara-Hamza area along Jogoo Road after leaving Jericho Social Hall, where he was training upcoming boxers. "He is a family friend and was killed by armed police despite not being in a demonstration. He had just left Lumumba hall after training," Adagala Adagala said. The reports by civil society groups revealed that one person died in Makueni, three in Nakuru, and three in Kisumu last week during protests. However, police told The Standard they were barred from announcing the dead or revealing any information to the media. On Thursday, Amnesty International Kenya said the death toll had risen to 30, after six people were shot dead the previous day, Wednesday. On Friday, health officials reported that two more people died in Nakuru and Kisumu following gunshot wounds. Amnesty International Kenya's Executive Director Irungu Houghton called for urgent investigations and prosecution of police officers and their commanders responsible for the excessive use of force. Makueni Governor Mutula Kilonzo said it was disheartening to note that despite several similar complaints about the use of live bullets against innocent Kenyans, leaving their families and friends in deep shock and agony. "It is disheartening to note that despite several and similar complaints about the use of live bullets against innocent Kenyans, the Kenyan police have, with reckless abandon, shot several people dead, leaving their families and friends in deep shock and agony," Mutula said. Several health workers and police said at least two people were shot dead and 26 others wounded. Boniface Ogutu Akach, who was among tens of victims kidnapped by police in different counties, said armed plainclothes officers ambushed the protest, ruthlessly targeting its leaders. Boniface was among prominent figures they sought to silence. An Aziumio la Umoja supporter roughed up by anti-riot police officers in Mathare. [Collins Kweyu, Standard] In a swift and terrifying moment, Boniface was kidnapped and forcibly taken to an undisclosed location. "When the time has come, no ruling elite will stand against citizens who desire change. Change, inevitably, is the mark of nature," Akach said. Casual labourer Rosemary Ngugi, whose son Stephen Ngugi, was killed during protests denied claims that her son was part of the crowd demonstrating.According to her, Ngugi, a casual labourer in Kitengela town was pulling a cart full of cassava headed to the market before he was hit by a bullet on the chest."I was a UDA die-hard, but you see my support for them did not spare my son from the bullet. He was busy on his errands but now he is nursing a bullet wound. This is a clear indication that the protesters do not have identification on who they elected," she said.Rosemary appealed to the police to desist from using live bullets that have caught many innocent Kenyans in the crossfire."I am not able to feed my family after selling the only sack of beans I harvested to get my son from Kajiado to Kirinyaga. Let the government chip in and pay bills for innocent people injured in the protests," she added. The opposition Azimio la Umoja coalition said at least 50 people have been killed by police in the skirmishes since March."We are witnessing unprecedented police brutality. Police and hired gangs have shot and killed or wounded scores of people at close range," Azimio leader Raila Odinga said during a press conference in Nairobi. Witnesses, families, civil society groups also blamed police officers from special units suspected of impersonating journalists and arresting protesters, further escalating tensions. The Media Council of Kenya has condemned this behaviour, stating that it not only endangers the lives of genuine journalists but also undermines the public's trust in media reporting. The council demands that the police cease such "unprofessional tactics" and respect the constitutional rights of journalists to cover events freely and safely. The opposition and human rights advocates also decried arbitrary arrests and lack of transparency in the detention process. In response to mounting criticism, the state defended the actions of the police, citing arrest of over 300 protesters. "More than 300 people have been arrested and will be charged with various crimes, including looting, malicious damage of property, arson, robbery with violence, assaulting law enforcement officers among other crimes," said Interior CS Kithure Kindiki said.

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