Author: Emmanual Onyango
Date: January 25, 2007
Source: Kenya Times http://www.timesnews.co.ke/25jan07/nwsstory/news13.html

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The World Social Forum (WSF) was yesterday at the receiving end of the wrath of poor, hungry and angry Kenyan school children and youth who stormed a five star restaurant and looted food.

The midday drama culminated from persistent protests by activists to have the Windsor restaurant, owned by Internal Security minister John Michuki, closed since it represented the capitalist world order that the forum seeks to abolish.

Led by activists from South Africa and Kenya, the youths and school children stormed the barbecue wing of the tent restaurant and began helping themselves to the fried chicken, beef stew and spaghetti that had been prepared.

The crowd utilised almost anything they could get hold of to carry the food including newspapers, seminar brochures and plastic cups. And as the drama unfolded, a troop of police officers, led by Kasarani OCS Paul Ruto, watched haplessly.

“We have to protect the image of our country. We cannot be patient any more with this state of lawlessness,” said Ruto.

The forty five-minute looting unfolded barely a day after the activists had caused commotion on Tuesday morning that led to a traffic snarl up along Thika road calling for the abolishment of the registration fee which they described as too high for Kenyan slum dwellers.

Intriguingly, WSF organising committee had struck an agreement on Monday night with Nairobi slum representatives to scrap the registration fee for Kenyans wishing to join the forum and allow street hawkers to compete against restaurants and water bottling companies.