During June and July of this year, Kenya suffered major unrest as thousands took to the street day after day, not only in Nairobi, the capital, but also in other towns throughout the country, to protest against a Finance bill designed to further impoverish a population that was already suffering serious deprivation.
With “MPs due to take a final vote on the legislation on 25 June, protesters called for countrywide street action to urge legislators to rethink. Tens of thousands heeded the call. The scale and geographic spread of the protests was striking, with marches taking place in major cities that are traditional opposition bastions but also in small towns that have rarely ever witnessed protests and even in some of the ruling party’s biggest strongholds.”
“The demonstrations started on 18 June, and for a week were overwhelmingly peaceful, but in the early afternoon of 25 June, they took a violent turn. A number of demonstrators breached police barricades and stormed the precincts of parliament. They set parts of the building on fire, destroyed legislators’ offices and carted away property, including the speaker’s mace. Kenyan police, who have a well-deserved reputation for brutality, and have in recent days drawn strong criticism for repeatedly lobbing tear gas at protesters and charging them with batons, responded with live fire.” (What is behind Kenya’s protest movement? by Meron Elias, Crisis Group, 3 July 2024)
According to the Guardian: “At least 39 protesters were killed in the initial protests, hundreds more were injured and arbitrarily detained, and dozens abducted by government agencies as part of a brutal police crackdown.” (How one controversial bill has Kenya on the brink of disorder by Nimo Omer, 18 July 2024)
Police repression only had the effect of escalating the protests, to such an extent that the country’s president, William Ruto, in an attempt to pacify the people, withdrew the proposed legislation and sacked most of his cabinet (although he did reinstate several at a later date). Currently, now that the street protests have calmed down, he is rushing through legislation to ban demonstrations.
The Finance Bill 2024
The cause of the unrest was legislation that sought to raise an additional $2.5bn in government revenue through imposing VAT at 16 percent on previously exempt essential products such as cooking oil, bread, nappies and feminine hygiene products, as well as introducing new taxes on digital content, car ownership, etc – all “in a country already grappling with a particularly painful cost of living crisis. Ruto has introduced a number of unpopular taxes since the start of his tenure in 2022, in order to drastically reduce the country’s nearly $80bn national debt.” (The Guardian, op cit)
Specifically, he has withdrawn various subsidies designed to help the poor, that on fuel in particular, and has increased by 5 percent the income tax payable by high earners. The Finance Bill 2024 was therefore just the proverbial ‘straw that broke the camel’s back’.
The reason why Ruto tried to resort to such harsh measures against the people was his need to meet the interest payments on his country’s debt and avoid a default in repayment to creditors that would result in a desperately needed IMF loan being withheld.
Indeed, “Two weeks before the protests started, the Kenyan government and the IMF had a meeting where they agreed the government would increase taxes, reduce subsidies and cut government waste – in effect austerity measures – as conditions to access the IMF’s $3.9bn loan. Kenya’s national debt has ballooned over the years and interest payments have taken up 38 percent of annual revenues according to the World Bank.” (The Guardian, op cit)
Kenya’s financial situation is parlous indeed.
Although “Kenya has the fastest growing economy in Africa and a vibrant business centre … its government is desperate to stave off default. The country’s staggering $80bn in domestic and foreign public debt accounts for nearly three-quarters of Kenya’s entire economic output, according to a recent report from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Interest payments alone are eating up 27 percent of the revenue collected.” (Behind the deadly unrest in Kenya, a staggering and painful national debt by Patricia Cohen and Keith Bradsher, New York Times, 26 June 2024)
What a paradox. Kenya’s economy is doing extremely well, yet the whole country is pauperised(!)
“Kenya’s budget deficit is now on course to grow to 5 percent of GDP next year without the finance bill, compared with a projected 3.2 percent if the austerity measures had been passed, according to S&P Global. The credit rating agency said Kenya had the fifth-largest debt interest servicing bill in the world, eating up about 30 percent of all government revenues.” (Kenyan protests put IMF in the spotlight by Mehreen Khan, The Times, 1 July 2024)
It is clear that the main beneficiaries of Kenya’s thriving economy are the imperialist kings of finance, who collect such huge tribute from the country that the state is left having to borrow ever more in order to meet even its most unavoidable obligations. Much is made of the corruption and lives of luxury of Kenya’s politicians, which are certainly egregious, but what these people rake off for themselves in the service of imperialism is tiny compared with the tribute that imperialism extracts.
Groaning under its debt burden, like all other oppressed countries, Kenya has no hope of becoming financially stable and fully self-sufficient. Instead of being able to use its annual surpluses to develop its industry for the benefit of its people, it has to hand over the lion’s share to imperialism, which allows it to keep only a bare minimum.
The result is that it has no reserves to assist in times of crisis:
“In Kenya’s case, its government took out vast loans after a period of economic expansion in the early 2000s to cover the costs of infrastructure projects, including roads, railways, massive dams and rural electrification. This latest global debt crisis cycle, however, which is considered to be the worst on record, was precipitated by events far beyond any single country’s control.
“The deadly coronavirus pandemic shuttered already fragile economies. The sudden need to provide vaccines, medical care, protective clothing to hospital workers and subsidies to people unable to afford food or cooking oil further depleted government bank accounts.
“A war between Russia and Ukraine along with sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies caused global food and energy prices to soar. The wealthiest countries then corralled spiralling inflation by raising interest rates, causing debt payments to balloon.
“On top of those woes, recent floods in Kenya destroyed infrastructure and agricultural land and displaced thousands of people.” (New York Times, op cit)
This is the desperate situation in which Kenya found itself and why receipt of the IMF loan was urgently needed. But the IMF demanded austerity measures, and in implementing these the Kenyan government brought on the current unrest.
Being in hock to imperialism necessitates considerable loss of sovereignty. Not only do imperialist institutions dictate fiscal policy, but even foreign policy. William Ruto is entirely behind the USA’s unconscionable positions on the question of Nato’s war in Ukraine and the genocide in Gaza. Ruto even provided troops to help quell the recent uprising of the people in Haiti!
What is most interesting about the recent uprising in Kenya is the rejection by the people of both Kenya’s parliamentary parties, both of which supported implementation of the IMF’s austerity demands, exposing for all to see the fact that bourgeois democracy is democracy for the rich, not for the people.
Kenya’s bourgeois parties have traditionally encouraged tribalism over class interests, but the current uprising has not a tinge of tribalism to be found anywhere. The youth of all tribes were at one in standing up against IMF-imposed austerity, all of them ready to lay down their lives in the struggle for justice.
In this struggle the Communist Party of Kenya has played a leading role, with 49 comrades losing their lives as a result of police brutality. We reproduce below its statement of unconditional support for the uprising:
President William Ruto: The imperialist puppet exposed and why the CPK shall take to the streets today
Statement by the Communist Party of Kenya, unmasking Ruto’s betrayal and mobilising for Kenya’s sovereignty and justice.
The Communist Party of Kenya vehemently condemns President Ruto’s recent actions, which expose his true allegiance as a subservient agent of western imperialism. His visit to Washington and address at the G7 summit confirm beyond doubt that he is held captive by the foreign forces that facilitated his ascent to power. This is no longer speculation but a glaring fact: President Ruto is a puppet of the western ruling class, betraying the Kenyan people at every turn.
Domestically, Ruto’s policies are skewed towards US imperialism, perpetuating economic and social inequalities. His overt camaraderie with the genocidal zionist Israel regime further implicates him in international atrocities. Ruto’s support for the Nato proxy war with Russia in Ukraine underscores his role as a mouthpiece for CIA-scripted propaganda. This betrayal extends to the economic front, where the dictates of IMF and World Bank economists drive our fiscal policies, pushing unpopular financial laws that benefit foreign interests over Kenyan sovereignty.
Moreover, Kenya’s recent designation as a non-Nato ally puts our country in the crossfire of global military conflicts. Under Ruto’s rule, the establishment of an illegal US military base in Wajir and the expansion of the British military base in Nanyuki demonstrate a total surrender of our sovereignty. The complete handover of Manda Island in Lamu for US military operations further highlights Ruto’s role as a tool of US military escapades, as compromising our national security and sovereignty for foreign interests.
President Ruto has committed the ultimate act of treason. Once believed to be a patriot and defender of the people’s rights, he has turned his back on those who trusted him. His rhetoric of change was hollow; instead of uplifting the poor, he has enriched the wealthy, sowed division, and perpetuated corruption. This is not merely a political misstep; it is a profound moral failing, a stain on his legacy that history will not easily forget.
The Kenyan people deserve leaders who prioritise their wellbeing, who recognise that their power comes from the people and must answer to the people. Ruto’s betrayal will be remembered as a choice of power over principle, personal ambition over public service. History will judge him harshly for this.
There is no redemption for Ruto until he falls from power. The Communist Party of Kenya, alongside progressive organisations, hereby announces the intensification of our protests. We will exert maximum pressure to lead all processes necessary to remove Ruto from office and hold him accountable for his ongoing crimes. Our struggle is for a new phase in Kenyan history – one where true sovereignty, justice and integrity prevail.
The path forward for President Ruto, if he dares to take it, is clear: he must listen to the people, address their needs, and act with honesty and integrity. Yet, we recognise that such a course correction is unlikely. Thus, our movement remains resolute. We will not rest until Ruto is removed from power and prosecuted, ensuring that Kenya can begin a new chapter free from the yoke of foreign domination.
For the people, for justice, for a truly sovereign Kenya!
