UNICEF condoles with families affected by Saba Saba demos

Police engage protesters in running battles during the Saba Saba protest/FILE

UNICEF has expressed its condolences to families who lost loved ones during the Saba Saba (7/7) protests in Kenya.

In a statement, the agency said: “We especially extend our heartfelt sympathies to the family of a young girl who was tragically killed by a stray bullet while sitting innocently in the sanctity of her own home.”

UNICEF also raised concerns over reports of children being arrested during the protests.

“Detention should be the last resort as outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Africa Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child,” the agency said.

It called for minors who have been detained to be given immediate access to legal assistance and family contact.

It also urged authorities to separate children from adults while in custody and keep them detained for the shortest time possible.

“Children must be protected from harm at all times and under all circumstances. It is their fundamental right,” UNICEF said.

The young girl mentioned by UNICEF was a 12-year-old named Bridget Njoki Wainaina.

She was killed by a stray bullet while watching TV with her parents at their home in Ndumberi village, Kiambu, during the Saba Saba protest.

The bullet was allegedly fired by officers during a confrontation with protesters outside.

The bullet pierced through the house wall and seriously wounded her.

“It was around 6:20 pm, when we heard a loud bang. On checking on my daughter, I saw blood on her hands and thought she had just scratched herself. But when I looked carefully, there was a hole in her head. I screamed for help, and her father came running,” Wainaina, Lucy Ngugi said.

Ngugi added that their home is 2 kilometers from the main road where the protests were taking place.

The family rushed Wainaina to St. Bridget’s Hospital, where she died while being resuscitated.

The young girl’s mother described her as a bright, respectful, and hardworking child with big dreams, now tragically cut short by what she called “a careless and unjust act of violence.”