Civil society protest: nothing crude about the mode

Article 33(1) of the Constitution of Kenya provides, among others, for freedom of expression through ‘…artistic creativity…’

The right to freedom of expression does not extend to
a) Propaganda
b) Incitement to violence
c) Hate speech; or
d) Advocacy of hatred that constitutes ethnic incitement, vilification of others or incitement to cause harm; o on based on any ground of discrimination in Article 27(4).

Article 37 states thus, ‘Every person has the right, peaceably and unarmed, to assemble, to demonstrate, to picket, and to present petitions to public authorities.’

Under Article 20 the Constitution commands that the Bill of Rights binds all persons and state organs.It is with this constitutional framework that the ‘Occupy Parliament’ protest against the insatiable greed of the members of the National Assembly, County Assemblies and Governors should be appreciated.

PARLIAMENTARIANS GREEDY LIKE PIGS

The protest was dramatic and eye catching not only for the participation of livestock in the protest but the analogy conjured by the similarity of the compelling greed shown by the public servants and the pigs.

The protest should be seen in the broader context of seeking equity and justice to the majority of Kenyans who are heavily taxed to underwrite public expenditure while in the same breadth, the infrastructure and amenities expected to ameliorate their suffering are left wanting and hardly catch the attention of the legislators who seek to do all in and outside their power to have their way.

During the protest, part of which I was present, the police brutalized and beat up peaceful and unarmed protestors whose only weapon was their vocals and agility to dance to their liberation songs. The brutal beatings were obviously in contravention and contempt of the Constitution and other laws.

However, during the progress of the protest and after, the social media, followed by print and other electronic media became awash with criticism of the protestors. Some of the criticism was founded on empathy with the livestock that had been brought to the frontline of the protest. It is entirely possible that some of the facebook and twitter critics were writing from the comfort of restaurant tables waiting for the pork sausage and ham they had just ordered.

DEFLECTION FROM THE ISSUE OF POLICE BRUTALITY AND FOCUS ON LIVESTOCK

What is curious however is that a good number of them did not even notice to mention the brutality meted on the protesters by the police, by itself a crime and violation of the Constitution, while others impulsively cheered the police on reckoning that that the protesters were being put in their place by the police. They reminisced the KANU/Moi days.

As if that wasn’t enough, a section of members of the National Assembly who claim the Muslim faith attempted to import religious interpretation and indirectly petitioned all Muslims to take negative view of the protest because of the presence of pigs and that some names of persons believed to profess their faith had been scribbled on the animals. These Members of the National Assembly have not been heard in Parliament to protest on the impoverishment of the majority poor through, inter alia, the huge wage bill. Indeed they were not reported to even condemn the police brutality on the protesters. Instead they seemed to wish the protesters lived in a country where the ‘FATWA’ edict would be pronounced upon them.

FAILURE TO CONDEMN ACTS OF POLICE BRUTALITY

One would forgive them for thinking there was anything anti Islam in the protest had the animals not borne names of people from faiths other than Islam. Further and more important, the Holy Book the Quran prohibits the eating of the flesh of the swine. It does not prohibit seeing or even coming close to a pig.

Wilfred Nderitu, a former two term chairperson of the International Commission of Jurists (K) and currently legal representative of the victims in case one at the International Criminal Court (ICC) did author an article in the Daily Nation of 17 May 2013 where he decried the use of the pigs for their symbolism of ‘greed’ and filth. He however agrees with the grievances advanced by the protesters. Mr. Nderitu takes exception to the ‘sight of blood’ for personal reasons. However, what strikes one is that Mr. Nderitu does not write one word in empathy or sympathy with the brutalized protestors nor does he condemn the act of brutality. Further he opines that the use of pigs risked eliciting some religious intolerance and sensitivity! If this isn’t stereotyping populations then I don’t know what is.

KENYANS WILL NOT RELENT

He suggests that there should have been a more ‘civilized’ way to protest without the stomach churning sight. I don’t know why one would think that protests are necessary and therefore that there should be guidelines and benchmarks. If all public bodies delivered faithfully, diligently, openly and accountably, protests should become minimal and unnecessary. Much like the way armed struggle in most of Africa is now history. However, the guidelines and benchmarks for protests, picketing, demonstrations and petitioning public authorities have been set out in the Constitution. They are in the magical two words; ‘…peaceably unarmed…’

Like they say in advertising, if an advert elicits much comment, whether critical or adulatory, it must be a good advert. I therefore think that the protest of May 14 that brought out the stark comparison of greed between pigs and a category of public servants (for there are many out there) as graphically as is real. It is a wakeup call for them to recognize that Kenyans will not relent.

Having said that however, we also know that a starved parliament will become weak and at the beck and call of the executive for rent from the executive in return for unholy partnership. KANU under Moi used to confer hand outs to ‘well behaved’ members of Parliament to retain and sustain their support even when it was against the public interest to do so. It is therefore imperative that both Parliament and the County Assemblies are paid well within our collective public means.

Unfortunately, the arguments being made by the members of both the national assembly and county assemblies fall far short of anything convincing that the salaries and emoluments recommended by the SRC are too lean. Instead they are sounding like ‘…We are used to eating big, you must serve us big...’ More like the experience of a pupil joining Form one in a Boarding school where the diet is completely different from their home one, demanding to be served like his/her mother would.

*Haron M. Ndubi, Advocate of the High Court of Kenya and Director, Haki Focus.
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