Attachments
A wave of protests rocked Kenya in January, with thousands of people taking to the streets in support of the independence of the judiciary and women’s rights. With hundreds of demonstrations reported throughout the country, January marked a new record high in the number of protest events recorded by ACLED since July 2023, when thousands of Kenyans demonstrated against the cost of living and new taxes. Mobilization of lawyers’ and women’s organizations ignited the latest protest movements. The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) mobilized in support of the judiciary amidst a row between Kenyan President William Ruto and the courts, which Ruto accuses of siding with the opposition.1Vivianne Wandera, Why is President Ruto in a Row with Kenya’s Judiciary: a simple guide,’ Al Jazeera, 5 January 2024 Another wave of protest emerged over a spate of violence against women.2United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, ‘Statistical framework for measuring the gender-related killing of women and girls (also referred to as “femicide/feminicide”),’ March 2022 The Africa Data Hub reports that over 500 women were victims of femicide between 2016 and 2023, mostly by intimate partners, family, or friends.3Africa Data Hub, ‘Silencing Women,’ accessed on 16 February 2024 This nationwide mobilization points to the relevance of such issues — the independence of the judiciary and women’s role in society — in spurring political and social activism in Kenya.
The Clash of Powers: The Reason Behind the Executive and Judicial Tension
Several peaceful protests were organized by the LSK on 12 and 17 January in some of Kenya’s largest cities, including Nairobi and Mombasa (see map below). The LSK is a bar association with over 20,000 members whose main objective is to promote the rule of law in Kenya.4Law Society of Kenya, accessed on 20 February 2024 The protests were organized in support of the judiciary amid a row between President William Ruto and the courts. This row is connected to the 2023 Finance Act, which aims to increase government revenue through implementing various taxes, including a housing levy and increased VAT on petroleum products. The Finance Act was signed into law in June 2023, in the wake of a series of demonstrations triggered by the high cost of living (for more, see Kenya Situation Update April 2023 and June 2023). As a result, the High Court of Kenya initially suspended the bill after nine petitions were submitted to the court, saying its contents violated provisions of the constitution and the 2012 Public Finance Management Act.5Fred Obura, ‘Judges Lift Order Suspending Kenya’s Finance Act 2023,’ The Kenya Wall Street, 31 July 2023; Reuters, ‘Kenya supreme court upholds ruling in favour of 2023 finance law,’ 8 September 2023