News Roundup 17 January and Commentary
‘Killing fields’ is how ODM characterised the day. Mounting evidence grew of widespread extrajudicial killing of civilians. Far from seeing their duties as protecting citizens in their exercise of their basic democratic rights, the armed police took sides with the state against the people. Further evidence also emerges of the use of politically motivated militia, and armed gangs trying to prevent shackdwellers from reaching town. There are graphic images and video evidence of extrajudicial killings (see the links shown below).
It is interesting that when civilians are shot at, the press merely reports. But when the fire is turned upoon the press, they are immediate in issuing protests that they should not be fired upon. Fair enough. But why is that worse that the ruthless killing of civilians?
And the so-called ‘donor-community’ are wringing their hands with idle threats about cutting funding.
Scores of people have been killed today. There is widespread anger over the results of the elections and the continued political impasse. The refusal of those who have illegally formed a government and presidency to negotiate a solution means that blood in on their hands. But there is also blood on the hands of the leadership of ODM who call for mass action without making specific, achievable demands: instead, the people are led like sheep to the slaughter.
The shocking thing is that neither side show themselves fit for government. If either of the parties believed they represent the people, then it is incumbent upon them to offer political direction that is in the interest of ALL Kenyans, irrespective of their affilliation or who they voted for. But the demands made on both sides are partisan. And neither should be trusted to take power.
Is this the end of the first republic? Has the constitution that was inherited from British rule, moulded and bent to the particular wills of successive presidents - is that constititution now dead?
Can the second republic arise out of the cinders of the current crisis? If those many lives (and who knows how many - surely more than 1000 by now) are not to be lost in vain, is it not time to provide them with a fitting tribute by calling for the formation of a national convention - recalling and expanding the delegates from the Bomas, and forging the way for the Second Republic?
WIshful thinking, perhaps. But if none of those vying for power today show themselves fit for power, then is it not time for citizens to take over? The alternative is to spiral down into revenge and counter-revenge and a retreat into ethnic identity.
This evening’s round up of news follows.
Blame game as death toll in protests rise
PNU MPs and those from affiliate parties that support President Kibakis re-election said ODM leaders were to blame for the crisis
http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/nmgcontententry.asp?category_id=2&newsid=114846
Blame game as death toll in protests rise
PNU MPs and those from affiliate parties that support President Kibakis re-election said ODM leaders were to blame for the crisis
http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/nmgcontententry.asp?category_id=2&newsid=114846
Safina’s attempt to block the nomination of 12 MPs fails
An attempt by Safina to block the nomination of 12 members of Parliament has flopped.
http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/nmgcontententry.asp?category_id=2&newsid=114847
Business paralysed and schools closed as more youths protest
Business in Mwatate and Voi towns was Thursday paralysed the whole afternoon as police clashed with several hundred…
http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/nmgcontententry.asp?category_id=2&newsid=114848
Kenya ‘turned into killing field’
Opposition leader Raila Odinga says police have turned Kenya into “killing fields of the innocent”.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/7194744.stm
6 Killed in Second Day of Opposition Protests
Six people have been shot dead in the second day of clashes between the Orange Democratic Movement supporters and riot police.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170772.html
U.S. blames Kenyan politicians for latest violence
Source: Reuters By Sue Pleming WASHINGTON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - The United States on Thursday blamed Kenya’s opposition and the government for the latest violence and said they must end their post-election deadlock
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N17228028.htm
Police Under Fire Over Live Rounds
Human rights activists in Kenya have dismissed as meaningless police plans to launch an inquiry into the use of live rounds during protests against December’s controversial presidential elections.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170681.html
Elections Fail to Meet International Standards - Commonwealth
The Final Report of the Commonwealth Observer Group for the 2007 General Elections in Kenya states that the ‘Electoral Commission of Kenya has not succeeded in establishing the integrity of the tallying process, thereby bringing the validity of the election results into question’. This was despite ‘the many positive aspects of the pre-election and polling day procedures, when Kenyans came out in large numbers to vote’.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170599.html
Three killed in protests in Kenya’s Kisumu-witness
Source: Reuters (Adds details) KISUMU, Kenya, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Police in the opposition stronghold of Kisumu in western Kenya killed three people protesting against President Mwai Kibaki’s disputed election on ...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L17822442.htm
Nairobi awaits electric afternoon
[MOBILE VIDEO] There is currently a heavy police presence in the city centre of Nairobi. Most people and business are at this time contemplating closing down for the day to escape from any eventuality that might befall them as the day goes by.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/AfricaNewsUpdate/~3/218307235/10207
Kenya: Riot financiers will be sued - Police
The Kenya police now say that local sleuths are gathering evidence with an aim of charging those funding Kenyan riots that have taken an ethnic dimension especially in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret with murder.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/AfricaNewsUpdate/~3/218307237/10199
Kenya: Police kill 4 on protest day one
Police on Wednesday shot dead four people and violently dispersed opposition leaders at the start of the three-day opposition mass protests which saw businesses paralysed in Nairobi and all the major towns and cities, including Kisumu, Mombasa and Eldoret.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/AfricaNewsUpdate/~3/218307244/10189
Kenya tired of foreign missions’ threats
Kenyan government spokesman Alfred Mutua broke down during an international Press conference at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) Thursday.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/AfricaNewsUpdate/~3/218307236/10200
Kenya protest - Day One
[PHOTO GALLERY] On Wednesday the Kenyan capital and many provincial town were unrecognizable because of confrontations opposing police and the supporters of opposition leader Raila Odinga. These pictures show the atmosphere around the Uhuru Park.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/AfricaNewsUpdate/~3/218307242/10191
U.S. Body Won’t Release Exit Poll Results
A US organisation that monitored Kenya’s December 27 elections has said it will not release results of the exit polls they conducted during the voting.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170574.html
Kenyan police ‘shoot protesters’
Opposition says seven demonstrators killed during second day of nationwide protests.
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/018FA849-9548-43F9-8BC1-5E5BC6D1EC58.htm
‘Seven dead’ in Kenyan protests
Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga says police have shot dead seven people in protests in Nairobi.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/7193230.stm
Kenya police, protesters face off
Kenyan police clashed with opposition members on Thursday in a second day of unrest over President Mwai Kibaki’s disputed re-election, and the opposition said police had killed seven. In opposition strongholds in the capital, Nairobi, and the western town of Kisumu, police fired tear gas and live bullets and struck at least two people.
http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/&articleid=329903&referrer=RSS
Police Fire Tear Gas at Foreign Reporters
The Kenyan police high command must order its anti-riot police to respect the neutrality of journalists, Reporters Without Borders said today after warning shots and tear gas were deliberately fired at foreign reporters covering protests by the opposition Orange Democratic Movement yesterday in Nairobi. The press freedom organisation firmly reminds the authorities that the press must enjoy the same protection as the civilian population, and it hopes yesterday’s incident was an isolated case that will not recur.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170448.html
Four Killed and Houses Torched in Village Raid
Four people were killed and 16 houses set ablaze in an attack on Kalaha Village in Saboti, Trans Nzoia West District early Wednesday.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170403.html
Country’s Score in Human Freedoms Declines
Kenya is listed as one of the countries in the world experiencing reversals in human freedoms.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170359.html
Road to Recovery Likely to Be Long and Hard
A town that had established itself as a regional economic and commercial hub self-destructed in an orgy of violence as gangs went on the rampage under the pretext of protesting the outcome of the presidential elections.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170352.html
Kenya police teargas hospital emergency room
Source: Reuters NAIROBI, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Police chasing protesters in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret fired tear gas into the emergency wing of the main hospital there on Thursday, striking a security guard, a ...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L17771259.htm
Kenya opposition says police kills 7 protesters
Source: Reuters (adds details) NAIROBI, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Kenya’s opposition leader Raila Odinga said police shot dead seven protesters in Nairobi on Thursday and more than 1,000 people had died in unrest since ...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L17224385.htm
Kenya opposition says 1,000 dead in post-poll unrest
Source: Reuters NAIROBI, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga said on Thursday more than 1,000 people had died in unrest across the east African nation since President Mwai Kibaki’s disputed re- ...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L17803410.htm
Solve Crisis or Suffer Aid Cuts, Warn Donors
Fourteen key donors have threatened to cut aid to the Government if the political crisis is not resolved.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170345.html
Town No-Go Zone as Mass Action Fails
Kericho Town was a no-go zone Wednesday with many shops closed after heavy security was deployed.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170344.html
Evictions Crisis Worse, Says Lobby
The Government was Wednesday urged to move with speed and establish the number of people displaced in post-election violence in parts of Rift Valley, Western and Nyanza provinces.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170341.html
INTERVIEW-Kenya shows need to end tribalism-UK ex-minister
Source: Reuters By Mabvuto Banda LILONGWE, Jan 17 (Reuters) - The political violence in Kenya should be a warning to African countries to act quickly to resolve tribal divisions that have plagued other parts of the ...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L17138503.htm
VIDEO: Kenya police clash with protestors
Source: Reuters Jan. 16 - Kenyan police battle with protestors in troublespots across the country. At least two people were killed as the opposition defied a ban on rallies against President Mwai Kibaki’s disputed ...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/120056837651.htm
We Will Not Be Cowed, Vows Raila
ODM will push on with the quest for peaceful countrywide demonstrations until their demands are met, according to party leader Raila Odinga.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170219.html
Education Under Threat
The full impact of the political turmoil in education is just beginning to sink and by the look of things, the situation looks grim.
May Voice of Reason Rescue Country
When two bulls fight, goes the old saying; it is the grass that suffers. The grass here is the ordinary people of Kenya who have been reduced to expendable cannon fodder as the rich and powerful duel for political supremacy.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170193.html
Kenya police shoot amid protests
Kenya’s police fire into the air to disperse opposition supporters on the second day of poll protests.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/7193230.stm
Clashes as Kenya marches go on
Kenya’s police fire into the air to disperse opposition supporters on the second day of poll protests.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/7193230.stm
KENYA: Drug resistance risk as displaced HIV patients skip ARV doses
NAIROBI Thursday, January 17, 2008 (IRIN) - After a fortnight of political violence during which an estimated 250,000 Kenyans were displaced, health workers are scrambling to ensure that HIV-positive people on life-prolonging anti-retroviral (ARV) therapy continue to receive their drugs and adequate food supplies.
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=76288
Members Hug and Laugh as Citizens Fight on the Streets
Kenyans watching the televised proceedings of the first business of the 10th Parliament on Tuesday and the early hours of Wednesday must have been struck by the contrast between the easy camaraderie among MPs on both sides of the House and the tense political climate that has dominated the country for the past few weeks.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170170.html
Row in Parties as Safina Moves to Court
Differences over picking of nominated MPs heightened Wednesday even as Safina moved to court seeking to reverse a decision by Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) denying it a slot in the 10th Parliament.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170134.html
Kenyan neighbours still feel pinch of crisis
Fuel and basic commodity shortages in landlocked countries neighbouring Kenya, which is wracked by political unrest, have eased but traders are hoarding supplies and prices have risen steeply. Kenya is the gateway to several other eastern African nations such as Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Southern Sudan.
http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/&articleid=329879&referrer=RSS
South Africa Favours Pressure on Kenya
SA’s response to the crisis in Kenya would be guided by the findings of the Africa Forum mediation team headed by former Mozambican president Joachim Chissano, Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad said yesterday.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200801170081.html
Police in Kenya’s Kisumu shoot one, fire in air
Source: Reuters (Adds details) KISUMU, Kenya, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Riot police shot in the air and struck at least one man as they battled youths who set up blazing roadblocks and gathered in a second day of ...
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L17713198.htm
Justice be our shield and defender
Proof that Kenyan GSU are using live rounds to kill demonstrators. A protestor is shot dead in cold blood, another narrowly escapes death and is kicked brutally when he is down. Human Rights Watch has criticised the apparent “shoot to kill” policy by demanding that Kenyan police follow the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, which state that law enforcement officers must apply non-violent methods when at all possible, leaving force as a last resort and only in proportion to the offence committed.
http://kenyanemergency.wordpress.com/2008/01/17/demonstrator-shot-in-the-back/
The dilemma for Kenya’s donors
Should donors continue lending to the new government, which many Kenyans regard as illegitimate?
http://rss1.mediafed.com/feed/newstatesman/contents/?link=cd7ea9f413507a2381a59b18e6bda1a9
Kenyan police shooting opposition protesters ‘indiscriminately’, says witness
Witnesses accuse police of ‘indiscriminate’ shooting as violence breaks out again.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/kenya/story/0,,2242178,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=12
Kenyan police ‘kill seven protesters’
Opposition says seven shot dead in protests against president
http://www.guardian.co.uk/kenya/story/0,,2242178,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=12
Kibera’s fears of ethnic politics
As Kenya’s opposition once again calls for election protests, residents of the Kibera slum question if peace can return.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/7190263.stm
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