British Man Caught Up In Maandamano Heartbroken To Discover Kamukunji Kids Don't Have Food

• Joshua, a British traveller and YouTuber, found himself amidst a charged crowd at a protest in Kenya, experiencing tear gas and capturing the event for his online audience
• Despite not having any political affiliations, Joshua embraced the rawness of the maandamano protest, witnessing the passion and anger of the demonstrators
• The tear gas incident highlighted the intensity of the protest, while the heartbreaking reality of people's struggle for food left a lasting impact on Joshua

After only three days in Kenya, Joshua found himself amid a charged crowd with people dancing and chanting. Shortly afterwards, police lobbed teargas into the crowd, and everyone scampered to safety.

Police teargas Joshua

Joshua's eyes started tearing up and within a short time, the crowds had regrouped, and the whole time he clung to his phone enough to tell his story to his online audiences.

In an interview with TUKO.co.ke, Joshua said: "I found out about the protest the day before it started. I didn’t do any research into the current situation here, I tend to be suspicious of mainstream media as I’ve found on my travels and at home, the reality of a situation is often far removed from what is presented, in one way or another."

From a personal perspective, the Brit did not have an affiliation with anyone and did not know the politics surrounding the protest.

"Maandamano was exciting, a rush; I was there to experience the day and see Kenya at its rawest. I was conflicted because on one hand, the people there were demonstrating for their cause, but I did not have any affiliation with anybody," he added.

YouTuber says demonstrators are angry

According to the Going Globull YouTuber, the demo had much more anger than previous demos he had ever attended.

" I don't go often, although I went to a free speech demo in London a few years ago. That was different in almost every way; it was much calmer, more organised and had security working alongside the demonstrators to ensure the safety of everyone," he said.

"It wasnt nearly as highly charged but also the stakes were much lower, so it's hard to compare the two fairly. Tumechokaa ; it was clear many people are struggling with the hard times. This is a situation we are seeing all over the world due to what I perceive as a tyrannical response globally to COVID -19 and we are now living with the consequences of the policies that were implemented during those times," he added.

Joshua also revealed that he is a small government guy, who doesn't look to politicians to provide opportunities.

"I believe in low taxes; many of the people at the rally were complaining about taxation and the cost of living. Having seen how many people live here, I can understand their anger," he said.

Unlike most tourists who always tag a Kenyan around, Joshua went to the maandamano all alone and now claims that he never felt any danger.

"People were constantly warning me to be careful with my things. Almost everyone was smiling and happy to see me there. I wanted to experience it fully; having a layer of security would have dulled the experience for me," he said

Joshua has, however, learnt a very important lesson and now says that if he ever saw another demo, he would observe and not move anywhere near it.

"To be clear, I wasn’t actively demonstrating I was just there out of curiosity. I do not support Ruto or Raila, or anyone else in Kenyan politics, as I have zero knowledge about politics here. 99% of what I know about modern Kenya've learned this week. I'm just fascinated by politics, people's movements and how we organise ourselves within modern societies," he said.

The teargas part was the highlight of the demos for Joshua despite hurting his eyes. The most heartbreaking part was hearing some people don't have food to give their kids.

"When I was speaking to someone in the rally, he told me the people need food, ‘our children need food’. Thats what stood out the most to me. Also, when grown men ask/beg other men for money or for food is sad. That is so commonplace that it's sometimes difficult to remember how sad that really is," he said.

After watching Joshua online, some Kenyans think he is just another Mzungu coming to paint Kenya/ Africa in a negative light.

"I've loved my time in Africa both times I've visited. I’m here to learn, explore, meet new people and show my experiences as honestly as possible on my YouTube channel (@goingglobull). I think a good percentage of people who have seen them understand that," he said.

"So far, I have loved Kenya, the people, the food, the landscape. It's so very different to home but there is also a familiarity about the place," he said.

Maandamano photos and videos

Another story highlighted the most memorable moments of the anti-government demonstrations over the high cost of living that rocked Kenya.

During the demos, there were running battles between demonstrators and police officers and some people were confirmed dead.

Mlolongo Mombasa, Kilifi, and Migori witnessed similar scenes, and a police Land Cruiser was stoned in Nakuru.