Kenyan protest leaders on Wednesday vowed to carry on marches against controversial tax hikes, a day after 13 people were killed when police opened fire on the youth-led crowds who stormed the parliament.
As security forces patrolled the streets of the capital Nairobi, supporters of the week-old protest movement took to X, using the hashtag #tutanethursday, or "see you on Thursday" in a mix of Swahili and English.
"You cannot kill all of us," wrote the journalist and activist Hanifa Adan on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday. "Tomorrow we march peacefully again."
Last week thousands of people marched across the country against the tax increases, but tensions sharply escalated on Tuesday after parliament passed the contentious bill, which must be signed by Ruto to become law.
Crowds then stormed and burned down parts of the country's parliament building, with local TV showing burnt furniture and smashed windows.
The violence prompted President William Ruto's government to deploy the military.
Simon Kigondu, president of the Kenya Medical Association, told AFP: "So far, we have at least 13 people killed, but this is not the final number.
"We have never seen such a level of violence against unarmed people."
An official at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi said Wednesday that medics were treating "160 people... some of them with soft tissue injuries, some of them with bullet wounds".
'Violence and anarchy'
In posts online, protest organisers shared fundraising efforts to support those hurt in the demonstrations.
Ruto's administration has been taken by surprise by the intensity of opposition to its tax hikes.
Ruto warned late Tuesday that his government would take a tough line against "violence and anarchy", likening some of the demonstrators to "criminals".
"It is not in order or even conceivable that criminals pretending to be peaceful protesters can reign terror against the people, their elected representatives and the institutions established under our constitution and expect to go scot-free," he said.
Long-running grievances over the rising cost of living spiralled last week as lawmakers began debating the bill containing the tax hikes.
The treasury has warned of a gaping budget shortfall of 200 billion shillings, following Ruto's decision last week to roll back some of the most controversial tax hikes.
While Kenya is among East Africa's most dynamic economies, a third of its 52 million population live in poverty.
(with newswires)
