On 18 May 2026, police shot dead 20 people who were protesting fuel prices — 20 of them in a single day. In the month of May alone, police responded to peaceful protests with live gunfire, killing 24 people in total and injuring tens of others. We still do not know whether the four bodies exhumed from a shallow mass grave in Mwingi were protesters shot by police or victims of extrajudicial killings. No action has been taken against the killer officers or their superiors, who continue sending masked men to shoot protesters. So far during this month of June, the police have killed three people protesting against Ruto importing Ebola to Kenya, and injured many others. This week, masked men in civilian clothes entered a university campus and shot four students who were protesting the cancellation of their exams. Victor Kariuki and Abubakar Fugicha were admitted in serious condition to Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) with bullets lodged in their bodies. In April 2025, the High Court ruled that all police officers deployed to manage protests and public assemblies must be easily identifiable. They are prohibited by law from wearing masks, balaclavas, or civilian clothing and must display visible name tags or service numbers on their official uniforms. However, Ruto and Murkomen have a group of killers whom they dispatch to peaceful protests, with the sole mission of maiming and killing participants. Protests are not favours to citizens — they are a guaranteed right in the Constitution. You do not need a licence to protest. You only need to notify the police at least three days but not more than 14 days in advance, after which you may protest peacefully. Since June 2024, however, Ruto has turned protesting into a matter of life and death, with no hesitation in ordering police to shoot people. He's on record telling police to go ahead and shoot people in the leg, take them to hospital and then to court. Rex Masai, one of the first victims of the 2024 anti-finance bill protests, was shot in the leg and died from excessive bleeding after the bullet severed an artery. Ruto's order to shoot people in the legs, not only displayed his complete insensitivity to the loss suffered by Rex's mother, but also sent a chilling message to all mothers that he was willing to kill their children for simply opposing him. He has chosen to violate the Constitution by denying protesting Kenyans their right to life. In 14 days time, there will be peaceful marches countrywide to mark 25 June — the national holiday when, in 2024, Gen Z protesters entered Parliament and took power back to the people. It is important that we demand an end to this state-sponsored brutality, so that no more families have to bury their sons or daughters because of bloodthirsty police officers targeting young people. As we mark 25 June 2026, we must unite to stop our youth from being butchered. #RutoStopKillingUs #HakiSASA