Anti-tax protesters in the Kenyan capital Nairobi have pushed their way into the complex where parliament sits.There have been reports of people being wounded as police fired rounds to disperse the crowds.
Thousands of protesters have been engaged in running battles with the police since morning, with the security officers firing rubber bullets and teargas to break up the crowds.The push by the protesters came just as MPs passed a controversial finance bill that introduced unpopular tax proposals. A BBC reporter in Nairobi said the crowds, in their thousands, were much bigger than in previous protests and the police seemed to be overwhelmed.
"There some things that are hard to understand, like how can you impose 16% tax on bread! How can you tax sanitary pads." Ahead of the demonstrations, lawyers and human rights groups expressed concern about arbitrary arrests and the intimidation of activists during earlier protests. The government has defended the taxes as necessary for raising additional revenue to reduce Kenya's debt, but last week conceded to some demands.