KENYA’s President William Ruto has ordered police to shoot protesters targeting businesses in the legs, ensuring they are incapacitated but not killed.
The UN and human rights groups have accused the police of using excessive force in the recent wave of anti-government protests – 31 people were killed on Monday, according to a state-run body.
“Anyone caught burning another person’s business or property should be shot in the leg, hospitalised, and later taken to court. Don’t kill them, but ensure their legs are broken,” the president said.
He further warned his political rivals against sponsoring and using violent protests and “unlawful” means to forcibly remove him from power.
In addition to the 31 deaths, more than 100 people were injured and about 532 arrested in the protests which hit the capital Nairobi and other major cities, said the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR).
The Kenya police says that 11 people died.
The UN said it was deeply troubled by the killings and criticised the Kenyan police for using “lethal ammunition” against protesters.
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But in an address on Wednesday, Ruto defended the police action, saying an attack on security forces would be a “declaration of war” against the country.
“Kenya cannot and will not be ruled through threats, terror, or chaos. Not under my watch,” the president said, vowing to “firmly” deal with those behind the protests.
He said any change of government was only possible through the ballot and not through protests, urging his opponents to wait for the 2027 general elections.
“This country will not be destroyed by a few people who are impatient and who want a change of government using unconstitutional means. It is not going to happen,” Ruto added.
Speaking to the BBC World Service’s Newshour, government spokesman Gabriel Muthuma accepted there had been incidents of excessive force by police, adding that some policemen were under investigation.
But he claimed that Ruto’s order to shoot protesters in the legs should be viewed in the context that “we’ve had people who have now taken up to go and burn the police stations…to go and burn people’s property and sometimes actually injure the police.”
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has denied claims that the opposition was planning to overthrow Ruto.