Nairobi — A thirteen-member league of western diplomatic missions based in Nairobi has offered to mediate the escalating clash between the opposition and government.
The alliance led by the United Kingdom Tuesday asked for peaceful resolution of the current stalemate after the Raila Odinga-led Azimio Coalition revived weekly protests to challenge President William Ruto's tax plan which entails an 8 per cent increment in VAT on fuel.
The league including the United States, Canada, Australia, Netherlands, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland and Ukraine urged parties to the conflict "to find constructive and peaceful solutions".
"We recognise the daily hardship faced by many Kenyans and urge all parties to table their concerns through a meaningful dialogue and resolve their differences peacefully to build the nation together, ensuring no further loss of life," the embassies stated.
The foreign missions cited incidents of violence and destruction of property witnessed during Azimio protests as well as reported cases brutal crackdowns.
On July 12 alone, nine deaths were reported in what went down as the most chaotic protest yet.
"We are saddened by the loss of life and concerned by high levels of violence, including the use of live rounds and the destruction of property, during the recent demonstrations," the mission said in a joint statement.
The call for dialogue to facilitate deescalation of a confrontation between violent protesters and the police came even as the government maintained its unwillingness to engage Raila labeling him as anarchist.
Kenya has contested the characterization of riotous protests by the opposition as peaceful terming them "anti-democratic".
'Anti-democratic protests'
Responding to concerns over the use of brutal force by protesters, Nairobi fiercely criticized the UN Rights Office for failure to call out violent opposition protesters.
In letter addressed to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights OHCHR on Sunday, Kenya's Permanent Mission to the United Nations said the protests called by Azimio leader Raila Odinga were anything but peaceful.
"Such a designation belies the widely and credibly documented ground reality," Kenya asserted in a comprehensive response to a statement issued Friday by UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence.
Laurence had expressed concern over what he characterized as widespread violence in Kenya after a protest called by the opposition turned chaotic leading to nine deaths.
"We call on the authorities to ensure the right to peaceful assembly as guaranteed in the Kenyan constitution and international human rights law," he said.
Kenya faulted Laurence's statement for overlooking the destructive nature of the protests in question.
"These events entailed rioting, vandalism, and the large-scale destruction of civilian objects, actions incompatible with the principles of peaceful assembly as outlined by multiple resolutions and undertakings by the Human Rights Council and the OHCHR," Kenya's Mission in Geneva went on to state.
Kenya also challenged Laurence's assessment of the situation terming the conclusion that the protests were widespread as misleading.
"Moreover, the Permanent Mission wishes to contest the portrayal of these violent acts as being widespread. The unfortunate incidents of violence were, in reality, confined to a few areas, not representative of the entire country."
Disarming protest leaders
The government adopted the tough stance even as it announced a radical plan to disarm opposition leaders by withdrawing their State-assigned security over public safety concerns.
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Speaking a day after the July 12 protest, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki accused the opposition of violating the constitution by resorting to armed picketing.
"We cannot have armed protesters. This applies to everyone participating in the protest, including bodyguards. We will not allow arms, even for those engaging in peaceful demonstrations," he explained.
Kindiki asserted that moving forward, the government will not tolerate violent protests resulting in fatalities, injuries to civilians and security personnel, disruption of daily businesses, destruction of private and public property, or looting.
"Destruction of critical infrastructure funded by the public is hooliganism, lawlessness, and a recipe for anarchy," he emphasized.
"Burning down offices, vandalizing property, assaulting innocent civilians, and looting public and private assets do not contribute to reducing the cost of living."
