Ex-US President Barack Obama's sister teargassed live on air in Kenya
Jun 25, 2024
Nairobi [Kenya], June 25 : Protesting against the controversial finance bill of Kenya, Auma Obama, the half-sister of former US President Barack Obama, was teargassed live on air on Tuesday, according to CNN.
The incident occurred when Auma Obama, who is a Kenyan-British activist, was in a chat with CNN's Larry Madowo with a group of teenage protestors.
"I can't even see anymore, we're being teargassed," she said.
Proposed tax hikes are the target of widespread protests in Kenya, which are expected to culminate in a "total shutdown" of the nation.
The people in the country have been organising rallies under the title of "7 Days of Rage" in response to the Finance Bill 2024, which has generated additional days of unrest around the country, reported CNN.
"I'm here because look at what's happening. Young Kenyans are demonstrating for their rights. They are demonstrating with flags and banners," Obama said.
William Ruto, Kenya's president, has declared that he is "proud" of the demonstrators and that he hopes to speak with them.
Security personnel, meanwhile, have been charged with kidnapping well-known Kenyans, especially those with sizable social media followings. Prior to the scheduled protests on Tuesday, Amnesty International Kenya reports that it was looking into the whereabouts of up to 12 people who were "abducted in the middle of night," according to CNN.
Amnesty Kenya executive director Irungu Houghton told CNN that the list consists of bloggers, content creators, human rights campaigners, doctors, and legislative staff members.
The demonstrations coincide with Kenya's rising international profile following US President Joe Biden's designation of the country as a "major non-NATO ally" on Monday.
This is the first time a country in sub-Saharan Africa has been granted this designation.
In May, as part of a major state visit to the White House honouring 60 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries, Biden declared his intention to promote Kenya to this status.
