Kenya bans protests in central Nairobi

Kenyan authorities banned protests in central Nairobi and other hotspots as they tried to keep a lid on mounting political turmoil in the build-up to a repeat presidential vote.

The order issued yesterday covered business districts in Nairobi, the western city of Kisumu and the port of Mombasa - the scenes of repeated demonstrations since the Supreme Court annulled the last vote in August, citing irregularities.

The main opposition, which has held rallies calling for electoral reforms and the sacking of vote officials, said it would take to the streets again today, and on a daily basis from Monday, despite the ban. "The protests are covered by the bill of rights in the constitution. We do not hold the protests as a favour by the State," Dennis Onyango, the spokesman for opposition leader Raila Odinga, said.

Politicians and activists from all sides have traded insults and accusations since the court ruling, raising fears of a repeat of the ethnically charged violence that killed around 1,200 people after a contested 2007 vote.

President Uhuru Kenyatta, whose August election victory was annulled by the court ruling, is due to stand again against Odinga on Oct 26.