KENYAN communists slammed “intimidation and repression” by authorities against a party leader today.

The central organising committee of the Communist Party of Kenya (CPK) said that, after participating in anti-government protests, its vice-chair Booker Ngesa Omole’s car was impounded by police, “who now demand his appearance in person at the Director of Criminal Investigations’ office.”

The CPK labelled the summons “nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt to silence dissent and crush the spirits of those who dare to demand justice and accountability.”

Kenyan communists have been at the forefront of protests against government proposals to raise taxes on a population already struggling to make ends meet.

The police decided on Wednesday to ban any demonstrations in Nairobi and its surrounding areas “until further notice,” even though Kenyan law guarantees the right to protest.

At least 50 people have been killed by the police and more than 400 injured in a month of anti-government protests.

Even the withdrawal of the plans by the president and his sacking of the government has failed to quell the unrest.

The CPK said it was calling on the international community “to stand in solidarity with Comrade Booker and all victims of police violence in Kenya.”