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Kenya’s national high school drama festival took a dramatic turn on Thursday after police fired tear gas to disperse crowds gathered to watch Echoes of War, a controversial play performed by students of Butere Girls High School in the town of Nakuru.
Set in a fictional kingdom where youth clash with untrustworthy leaders and police, the play has drawn comparisons to last year’s anti-tax protests led by young Kenyans. Initially barred from the competition under unclear circumstances, the play was reinstated by a High Court ruling.
Tensions flared when the play’s author and former senator Cleophas Malala was detained by police ahead of the performance. The students stormed out of the venue in protest, chanting and singing the national anthem.
“The young girls of Butere Girls’ have exercised an act of heroic restoration. I’m determined to ensure that Echoes of War is displayed before a Kenyan audience,” Malala said after being released without charge.
One of the girls asked, “There’s no audience. Who are we performing for?” as anti-riot police sealed off the venue, reportedly harassing students and dispersing the crowd with tear gas.
Education Minister Julius Ogamba questioned Malala’s role in the school play, while Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen criticised the politicisation of student theatre: “Let us have a thick line between politics and education.” He added, “Even the competition loses value if we do not allow the teachers to be scriptwriters.”
Amnesty International called the crackdown “a worrying pattern of state-sponsored repression of free expression, press freedom, and the right to associate.” Chief Justice Martha Koome condemned Malala’s arrest, saying it “contravened the court order” and “poses a serious threat to the rule of law.”
Opposition leader Kalonzo Musyoka also criticised the tear gas deployment near students, praising the girls’ bravery. The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) issued a statement demanding the students be allowed to perform like others.
Echoes of War features a tyrannical sultan battling youth activism—drawing stark parallels to Kenya’s current political climate. It remains unclear if the play will reach the finals, typically held at State House with the president in attendance.
Malala is no stranger to controversy. In 2013, his play Shackles of Doom—also performed by Butere Girls—was banned by the government before a court overturned the decision. The play critiqued Kenya’s ethnic politics and unequal resource distribution.
Once a key ally of President William Ruto, Malala was expelled from the ruling United Democratic Alliance last August and has since become a government critic.
