A protester was killed in a protest against the US Ebola center in Kenya, witnesses said
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Kenyan police shot and killed a protester as hundreds staged fresh protests on Tuesday against a Kenyan detention center for Americans exposed to Ebola, witnesses and a protest leader told Reuters.
Patrick Wahome, who helped organize protests in Nanyuki city center against the facility, and witnesses at the scene said the man died from a gunshot wound to the head.
Two Reuters journalists, who did not witness the shooting, saw the body lying motionless with a large head wound in the back of a police van.
A police spokesperson said he had no information about the incident.
The proposed 50-bed wing at Laikipia Air Base, near Nanyuki, has angered many Kenyans. They accuse the US of taking the risk out of caring for those exposed to the Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, where there have been more than 500 confirmed cases and 100 confirmed deaths.
Two people were killed in protests last week in Nanyuki, where frustration has grown as Kenyan and American authorities have publicly reaffirmed their commitment to the plan.
On Tuesday, the police started firing tear gas in the morning, dispersing hundreds of protesters who had gathered in different parts of the city. Some waved Kenyan flags while another carried a white cross with the words “Reject Ebola” written in red.
More than 10 protesters were also arrested by the police, Reuters reporters said.
CBC’s Eli Glasner asked a doctor on the front lines of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo about the impact of cuts to foreign aid, including the dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) last year.
Protester Priscilla Imani said the juxtaposition of this area with the detention center scares tourists who often come to climb Mount Kenya or see rhinos in the nearby conservation area.
“My message is: Laikipia is not a dumping ground and our voices must be heard,” he told Reuters.
A High Court judge has twice issued injunctions preventing the Kenyan government from taking any steps to build or start work on the site. His latest order gave the government one week to disclose all agreements and operating procedures related to the facility.
Joshua Malidzo, a lawyer who opposes the system of solitary confinement and represents the Katiba Institute, a legal rights group, said the court’s deadline expired on Monday without the government taking action.
US military aircraft continued to fly personnel and equipment after the court issued its orders, according to US sources and communications and flight tracking data, with several planes expected to land this week.
A satellite image seen by Reuters shows dozens of white tents from late May on an area of about 11 hectares in the airspace.
A government spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.
The United States said it was aware of the court challenge and was “working with the Kenyan government to resolve any objections.”
Several US citizens have contracted Ebola in eastern Congo and Uganda.
Six, including one who tested positive for the disease, were transferred to a medical center in Germany last month, while one was taken to the Czech Republic.
US President Donald Trump’s administration has said it “will not and will not allow” any cases of Ebola to enter the US.
The Nanyuki center is designed for Americans who have been exposed to the virus but are no longer showing symptoms. Kenyan officials have said the center will also serve Kenyans and foreigners, but US officials have yet to confirm this.
Many protesters directed their anger at President William Ruto, with some chanting “Ruto must go!” Last week, the President said his administration was doing the “right thing” by establishing the center.
FIFA World Cup host countries Canada, Mexico and the United States have announced a 90-day travel ban from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan due to concerns about the spread of Ebola in central Africa.
