The video was taken in November 2019 during a students’ strike in Juja.
This video shared on X, showing police officers assaulting a young man in a red T-shirt and dreadlocks purportedly during one of the GEN Zs demonstrations in Kenya is missing context.
The text accompanying the video reads: “Message from a friend. We despair: Police=our children, Gen-Z =our children Our children are fighting in the name of governance!! Shame on Ruto’s governance.”
A screenshot of the X post
The post was shared on 20 July 2024 amidst Gen-Z demonstrations, which began on 18 June 2024, over the contentious Finance Bill 2024. The president later withdrew the bill in its entirety.
However, the demonstrations, which have been marred by cases of police brutality, abductions and deaths of protestors, have continued amid a push for better governance.
But is the video an accurate depiction of the current situation?
VERIFICATION
A reverse image search of the video shows that the footage was taken in November 2019 during a protest by Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology students. The students demonstrated over incidents of insecurity. The incident was also reported here.
A screenshot from the reverse image search.
VERDICT
The video is from past demonstrations in 2019 and is not related to the ongoing demonstrations led by the GEN-Zs. It is therefore MISSING CONTEXT.
This fact-check was produced by Lake Region Bulletin, under the African Fact-Checking Incubator programme, with support from PesaCheck, Code for Africa’s fact-checking initiative, and the African Fact-Checking Alliance(AFCA).
