Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Violence slowing down humanitarian effort
Roadblocks and violence across much of western Kenya are putting a strain on efforts to assist hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people (IDPs), according to relief workers. “On 14 January, one of our trucks, carrying 17 tonnes of vegetable oil for IDPs, was looted in Burnt Forest [in Rift Valley Province],” Peter Smerdon, senior public information officer for the UN World Food Programme (WFP), told IRIN. “Then on 28 January three of our trucks were stoned; one of the trucks was looted of some of its corn soya cargo.” Another three WFP trucks heading for the western city of Kisumu only managed to reach their destination after security escorts guided them through numerous roadblocks
MorePublic Statement Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation
Goal:
To ensure that the National Dialogue and Reconciliation is carried out in a continuous and sustained manner towards resolving the political crisis arising from the disputed presidential electoral results as well as the ensuing violence in Kenya, in line with the agreement between His Excellency Mwai Kibaki and Honourable Raila Odinga, as publicly announced on 24th January and reaffirmed on 29th January 2008 at County Hall in Nairobi.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Gang infiltrates Kenya police
A quiet rebellion and near-total collapse of the chain of command has exposed Kenya’s police force as incapable of dealing with the growing national crisis in the country, amid growing fears that it has also been infiltrated by the outlawed pro- government Mungiki sect. Speaking to the Mail & Guardian on condition of anonymity following the chilling murder on last Tuesday of an opposition MP, a senior police inspector and an officer in the criminal investigations department admitted that all was not right in the police force.
Annan: Kenya solution not about Kibaki or Raila
Mediator Kofi Annan has warned that a resolution of Kenya’s disputed presidential poll will not be about individuals as the parties begun discussing crucial political issues today. Speaking when he met company chief executives before today’s session of the talks started, Mr Annan said the mediation process between the Government/Party of National Unity and the Orange Democratic Movement will focus on building of strong institutions and not on individuals.
The Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation team which he is facilitating will be working on possibilities of coming up with a whole package whose key pillars will be land and constitutional reforms as well as ways and means to fight poverty.
Child abuse and cheap labour at IDP camps
The woes of families displaced by the recent wave of violence in Nakuru and its surroundings have assumed a new, but sad twist.The Standard learnt that the camps scattered across the town have become sources of cheap labour and marriages targeting minors. Underage girls were being lured out of the camps with a promise of well paying jobs, but end up as house girls or victims of arranged marriages.
An officer in charge of Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDPs) camps, Mr Jesse Njoroge, confirmed that they have rescued 31 underage girls from early marriages and cheap labour. “Some desperate parents even confessed receiving money from people in exchange for their daughters,” said Njoroge. Some of the girls, he said, were offered accommodation by ‘Good Samaritans’ only to end up as house helps.
Crisis as IDPs arrive in Kisumu
Kisumu is facing a fresh humanitarian crisis after hundreds of displaced people arrived at the lakeside town shortly after midnight.The 800 passengers, who were transported by a fleet of buses, were yesterday hosted at the St Stephen’s Cathedral Church compound in Milimani estate. The victims said a similar number of people were on their way to the town. Many were due to travel to far-flung districts in Nyanza while the rest were headed to Western and Rift Valley provinces. “We left them boarding buses in Naivasha and hope that they will arrive safely because the roads are not safe. They are barricaded with boulders and bonfires,” a victim, Ms Rose Atieno, said. Hungry babies wailed as their mothers requested well-wishers to bring them milk.
Groups call to protect people in Kenya, not corporate flower farms
Public interest organizations in Canada, Europe, Kenya, and the UnitedStates have called on the international community to help the people suffering from violence in the LakeNaivasha region of Kenya, not the global industrial flower farms that exploit the lake and its people. The groups released a new report highlighting the destructive practices of the flower farms that dominate the region. “The farms surround Lake Naivasha. They deplete its waters and poison them with pesticides,” said Maude Barlow, national chairperson of the Council of Canadians. “They are sowing the seeds of economic and environmental devastation that, unless stopped, inevitably will yield a harvest of poverty, water deprivation, and violence.”
Vernacular radio blamed for fuelling hatred
Vernacular radio stations that air comments referring to communities as “baboons,” “weeds”, or “animals of the west” are being singled out as a partial cause to the ethnic bloodletting in Kenya. The messages are rarely direct calls to violence but are laced with cultural references that are given legitimacy when a station broadcasts them, says Strategic Research executive director Caesar Handa, who has been monitoring the airwaves after the election.
Annan’s rapid diplomacy confounds sceptics
Can former United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan, Africa’s most decorated diplomat, deliver a resolution to the Kenya crisis? After a few days of sittings, all indications are that the mediation talks to end the post-election conflict have started on a positive note. Initially, hopes were dashed when it emerged that the protagonists had chosen a number of hardliners to the parley — including ODM strongman William Ruto and Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Martha Karua from the PNU side. Pundits predicted a protracted affair characterised by intransigence and hostile manoeuvring by the representatives of President Mwai Kibaki and his rival, opposition leader Raila Odinga.
Mystery of bodies dumped in mortuary
Mystery surrounds the dumping of six mutilated bodies in a mortuary. According to sources at the Central Provincial General Hospital mortuary in Nyeri, the police from Kiganjo, a few kilometres from the town, took the bodies to the mortuary last weekend.They were marked unknown. Three of the bodies were burnt, while the others had deep wounds inflicted with sharp objects. The source said mortuary administrators were waiting for approval from the Hospital Superintendent, Dr Victor Muyembe, before they could dispose of the bodies.
On his part, the doctor said he was waiting for a report from the police about the unidentified bodies. But Nyeri OCPD, Mr Limbitu Kirunya, denied that the police had dumped bodies at the mortuary. “You will excuse me for now because I am not aware of what you are talking about,” said the OCPD, before hanging up the telephone.
East African Standard
Ranneberger explains US stance on crisis
The United States has identified high profile personalities — both in Government and Opposition — who will be slapped with a visa ban soon on suspicions of fanning violence, The Standard has learnt. The ambassador to Kenya, Mr Michael Ranneberger, said the US Government would “shortly” contact the affected individuals who would face visa restrictions alongside their families. The envoy, however, declined to divulge the names of the individuals during an exclusive interview with The Standard at his Nairobi residence, on Monday. Should the US make good its threat, it would be joining Canada, which has since announced it would deny visas to individuals who undermine democracy and sabotage ongoing mediation efforts.
Shortages as fleeing families crowd camps
Camps for internally displaced people in the North Rift region are faced with food and shelter shortages, and possible health hazards as the numbers seeking assistance increase. The seven camps sheltering more than 100,000 victims of violence spawned by the disputed presidential election results have recorded an increased number of people seeking refuge in the last three days over fears of fresh attacks.
Annan team agrees on steps to end poll crisis
Government and ODM mediators have agreed on major steps aimed at resolving the political crisis caused by the disputed Presidential election. Among the key issues was the setting up of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, encourage and help displaced people to settle back in their homes or other areas and have safe passage and security throughout. Others were to encourage the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights investigation team and to ensure freedom of expression, press and peaceful assembly. The truth commission should have as its members local and international jurists, the team, meeting under the chairmanship of former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan announced.
Government lifts ban on live broadcasts
The Government has lifted the ban on live coverage of political events. In a statement signed by Information and Communications permanent secretary on Monday, the Government said that the ban had been lifted with immediate effect. PS Bitange Ndemo said that the ban was lifted by Internal Security minister George Saitoti following the improvement of security in the country.
PNU rejects Ramaphosa as negotiator
The Government has rejected South African businessman Cyril Ramaphosa as a mediator in talks to end the month-long political crisis. But the talks continued under former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan. The Government, represented by ministers Martha Karua (Justice and Constitutional Affairs) and Sam Ongeri (Education), and Mbooni MP Mutula Kilonzo, argued that Mr Ramaphosa was a close ally and business associate of ODM leader Raila Odinga. PNU also said Mr Ramaphosa helped fund Mr Odinga’s presidential bid in last year’s General Election, a claim he denied.