Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki on Sunday, March 26, revealed plans by the government to amend the law governing the manner in which demonstrations are conducted in the country.
In a statement sent to newsrooms, Kindiki stated that the government was mulling introducing changes to the Public Order Act touching on 10 regulations of picketing and public assembly.
"The Government shall introduce in Parliament subsidiary legislation in the form of Regulations pursuant to the Public Order Act and the Statutory Instruments Act to provide for the legal circumscription of assemblies, demonstrations, pickets and petitions; including but not limited to," the statement read in part.
The proposed changes, according to the CS, would touch on the following:
1. Notification Procedures
2. Duties of security agencies to protect the rights of those participating in the assembly, demonstration, picket, or petition.
3. Demarcation of assembly, demonstration, picket, and petition zones.
4. Duty of public agencies and institutions to set aside a zone for persons who wish to present petitions to public authorities.
5. Duty of organizers of assemblies, demonstrations, pickets, and petitions to provide the hours, routes, and other relevant information to assist law enforcement agencies to escort them and provide them with security.
6. Consent requirements from persons whose activities are likely to be affected by assemblers, demonstrators, picketers, and petitioners.
7. Obligations of the organizers of assemblies, demonstrations, pickets, and petitions to ensure that the activities remain peaceful, unarmed, and generally within the law including compliance with the duty not to infringe on the rights of others.
8. Limitations on the number of assemblers, demonstrators, picketers, and petitioners at any particular occasion.
9. Responsibility for clean-up costs.
10. Responsibility for, and payment of, damages to those harmed by activities of assemblers, demonstrators, picketers, or petitioners.
Meanwhile, he maintained that the planned protests by Azimio remained illegal as they interfered with the rights of other Kenyans.
"It is not feasible for security organs to allow masses of people to roam streets and neighborhoods of their choice carrying stones and other offensive weapons while chanting political slogans and disrupting the daily activities of others," Kindiki remarked.
Earlier, the Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome declared the Azimio mass action protests unlawful and threatened to arrest anyone planning to cause skirmishes in the Nairobi Central Business District.
In response to Koome, Azimio leader Raila Odinga and co-principal Martha Karua declared that they would lead their supporters in peaceful mass protests and dared the police boss to arrest them.
Furthermore, Karua warned President William Ruto against instructing the National Police Service to commit violations against human rights.
She made it clear that regardless of Ruto flying out of the country, he would be held responsible for any violations as the head of state.
