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Kenyan authorities have dropped terror charges against prominent activist Boniface Mwangi, instead hitting him with a lesser charge of unlawful possession of ammunition. This decision follows widespread condemnation amid a wave of deadly protests against President William Ruto and police brutality in the East African nation.
Rights groups have criticized the government’s harsh response to the unrest, including the recent use of terrorism charges against protestors. Mwangi was detained on Saturday and accused by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations of “facilitation of terrorist acts,” a charge he denied, declaring in an image on X: “I am not a terrorist.”
Appearing in a Nairobi court on Monday, Mwangi chanted “Ruto Must Go.” His charge sheet, seen by AFP, accused him of “possession of noxious substances to wit three teargas cannisters without lawful authority,” along with a single round of blank ammunition. He pleaded not guilty and was released on a one million shilling (around $7,000) bail bond.
“The truth is our president is scared of young people, because young people are organising by themselves, they are going to the streets, they are demanding better,” Mwangi told supporters and journalists outside the court.
“Our president thinks people are being paid to go to the streets, and they think I am the financer. People hate Ruto for free,” he added.
A coalition of rights groups welcomed the court’s decision to drop the terrorism charges against Mwangi but expressed deep concern over their use “in more than 100 other cases.” The coalition urged authorities to “abandon this dangerous approach to managing public dissent.”
Mwangi’s detention over the weekend sparked significant online condemnation under the hashtag #FreeBonifaceMwangi. The search warrant police used to raid his home and office accused him of paying “goons” to incite unrest at protests last month.
Mwangi has been arrested multiple times in Kenya. In May, he was also detained in neighboring Tanzania while attending the treason trial of opposition leader Tundu Lissu. Mwangi and Ugandan activist Agather Atuhaire claim they were tortured and sexually abused while in Tanzanian police custody before being returned to their respective countries. The pair filed a case against the Kenyan, Tanzanian, and Ugandan governments at the East African Court of Justice last week.
Mass protests initially erupted in Kenya in June 2024 over tax increases and reignited last month due to police violence and illegal detentions. Rights groups report that over 100 people have been killed by police in the latest round of protests, while the government puts the figure at 42.
