NAIROBI — A Kenyan court blocked on Tuesday for another three weeks a proposed US Ebola quarantine facility and ordered the government to disclose the details of its agreement with Washington after two people were amid protests against the center.
The proposed 50-bed unit on an air force base in central Kenya for Americans exposed to the virus in Democratic Republic of Congo or Uganda has angered many Kenyans. They accuse the US of offloading the health risk of caring for patients.
One of the victims was shot in an area close to the Laikipia Airbase where a demonstration was taking place in the town of Nanyuki. He died after being brought to the town’s hospital by friends.
The other victim was already dead when he was taken to the hospital by soldiers.
The circumstances of their deaths are not clear, and officials have not commented on the matter. Both bodies, which are in the hospital morgue, appear to have gunshot wounds — one in the chest and the other on the shoulder.
A police spokesman told the Reuters news agency he was not aware of any deaths.
Last Friday, the High Court said the opening of the center should be halted after a rights group filed a case alleging the facility posed “grave and imminent risks” to public health. However, US military aircraft have continued to fly in staff and equipment in recent days, according to a US official and diplomatic sources.
Kenyan High Court Judge Patricia Nyaundi on Tuesday issued an order barring the Kenyan government from taking any steps to build or begin operations at the facility in Nanyuki before the case is resolved.
The judge also ordered the government to disclose all agreements and operational protocols related to the facility within seven days and scheduled the next hearing for June 23.
On Monday, hundreds of demonstrators marched through the town’s streets, blocking roads and burning tires, with police firing tear gas to disperse them.
Community leader Patrick Wahome told the BBC that one of those who died was shot when he “was heading home after closing his business”.
The town was calm on Tuesday morning and there was a heavy security presence on the streets.
The US plan to establish an Ebola treatment facility in Kenya has sparked public concern about cross-border infection risks.
Kenya has not recorded any Ebola cases so far.
Speaking for the first time about the issue on Monday evening, President William Ruto defended the plan saying that Kenya had “deployed every arsenal” to protect the country.
He told journalists that the US government had requested Kenyan support in dealing with the virus, which he had promptly accepted, describing it as a “mutual agreement”.
He called on Kenyans not to politicize a matter “so serious” as Ebola, asking politicians to avoid “reckless” talk about it.
“We are a responsible government. We know what we are doing,” he added.
Kenya’s doctors’ union and government watchdogs have opposed the plan saying it risks exposing local populations.
Source: Saudi Gazette