The police killing of Boniface Kariuki last month ignited widespread grief and outrage over state-authorised police brutality. Hundreds of mourners have gathered at the funeral of a Kenyan mask seller shot dead by police, as opposition leaders called for the resignation of President William Ruto over remarks he made authorising the use of force to quell protests in recent times.
The funeral of 22-year-old Boniface Kariuki, who was point-blank shot by a police officer wearing riot gear while attending a rally against police brutality on June 17, was held on Friday in his native Kangema, roughly 100km (60 miles) northeast of Nairobi.
Kariuki, who later died at the hospital, was selling face masks during the rally. He is among over 100 individuals who have been reported dead in Kenya since last year, with police cracking down on surges in protests. The protests were originally started by planned increases in taxation for 2024, but were rekindled the previous month following the death of blogger Albert Ojwang in police custody.
The assassination of Kariuki was filmed and distributed globally on social media, bringing attention to police brutality in the nation and motivating outrage against a government viewed by many Kenyans as corrupt and immune to accountability. We are sad,” Edwin Kagia, 24, and Kariuki’s friend and fellow street vendor, said. “I heard that police kill people before, but I could not think that it would occur to my brother.
Reporting in Kakuma in northern Kenya, Al Jazeera’s Catherine Soi stated: “People are hugely upset about what is going on in Kenya. There’s a lot of impunity. They say there’s poor governance, and police brutality is on another level.”
Despite the mourning of the vendor’s death, President Ruto found himself under mounting pressure to resign, two days later, when he summoned police to shoot and “break the legs” of those caught looting or burning property during demonstrations.
