The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Representative in Kenya, Shaheen Nilofer, has condemned the tear gas attack on school in Kakamega County during the Tuesday, July 16 anti-governent protests.
In a bid to quell the protests, police in Kakamega lobbed tear gas canisters into Mwiyala Primary School. Gripped with panic and fear, the children scampered, sneezing and crying.
Nilofer stated, “I am deeply concerned about reports of tear gas entering Mwiyala Primary School grounds and affecting school children during today’s protests. Children and schools are not, and must never be, targets of violence. Every child’s safety should always be prioritized. #NotATarget.”
The incident elicited a public uproar among Kenyans too, including the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Faith Odhiambo, who stated, “Children should never be attacked. We need answers.”
The Mwiyala Primary School incident was not an isolated event, as school children around Milimani Law Courts were also caught in the crossfire and teargassed.
Police were also accused of teargassing patients inside a hospital in the Nairobi CBD. In Nakuru, protesters were also reportedly beaten up in a church after seeking refuge there.
