Further violence
According to the German Spiegel Online, Lynn Muthoni Wanyeri from the Kenyan Human Rights Commission stated that she has knowledge about militias arming themselves in at least three regions: in Nyanza Province, the Mungiki group in Nairobi and in the area around Eldoret.
It is difficult to tell how much influence the Mungikis still have in Nairobi. During the riots in the slums, they might have lost some of their controlled ground. Nevertheless, they most likely have a substantial amount of money and weapons. There were ties between Mungiki and some KANU and NARC politicians in the past. But after the governments war against Mungiki in 2007, with at least 500 people killed by the police (some sources even go as far as 8000), it is not very likely that Mungiki is fighting for any other interest besides its own.
Continuing violence in Nyanza and Eldoret could harm ODM. Kibaki’s government could try to blame it on their unwillingness to join a government of national unity. They would have the chance to keep up the police forces all over the country and they could keep up the pressure on the media. Peaceful protest marches are basically all ODM can try at this moment, but the margin of peaceful protests is thin, with tensions all over the country. And the economic crisis is working against ODM as well: With food supplies running short, people have to set priorities and it will become more difficult to organize mass demonstrations.
Kibaki made clear that he will not give in easily. If violence erupts once again, the international community will raise the pressure also on Odinga to end atrocities with a government of national unity.
There are few choices for ODM. With Kibaki hanging on to power, it is crucial to reorganize and strengthen the party structure of ODM all over Kenya. So far in many places ODM has been more an alliance for the election campaign. ODM’s MPs and leading politicians should start to organize the protest in their constituencies and recruit more party members. Only with a local structure strong enough to convince people in Eldoret, Nyanza and elsewhere, that every person killed in “ethnic clashes” makes Kibaki only stronger, ODM can keep up its pressure on the government with the support of the international community.
ODM can win on the streets of Nairobi, but can also lose its struggle in the Rift valley.
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I believe that in order to avoid such incidences where parties almost from an allegiance to people of particular ethnicity (or vice versa), parties should have an identifying ideology that cuts across all ethnic barriers. Party membership should be cultivated using this ideology and the pre-election party changing (sheep-run) that always occurs from one to another will be effectively curbed.
I think we should be a little optimistic now that there are negotiations going on and several African Presidents (retired) are here to mediate. Maybe they can let Kibaki know if thats what is worrying him, that retiring isn’t that bad at all as a Kenyan President-many benefits!!!
Comment: Tristan – 08. January 2008 @ 12:05 pm
from Reuters:
http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnL09697986.html
Kenya govt activates murder gang-activist
Wed 9 Jan 2008, 14:49 GMT
[-] Text [+]
By Barry Moody
NAIROBI, Jan 9 (Reuters) – Kenya’s embattled government has activated a murderous criminal gang to protect its supporters during a bloody confrontation over disputed elections, a leading human rights activist said on Wednesday.
Maina Kiai, head of the government-funded National Commission on Human Rights, said the Mungiki, an ethnic Kikuyu gang notorious for beheading its victims, had returned.
“They are coming out again and being used by the state. We have firm evidence of that, some of their people came to us,” he said.
Government spokesman Alfred Mutua angrily denied the claim: “If there is evidence of Mungiki, he should either table it — and he had better make sure that it is the right evidence — or just shut up.”
There have been unconfirmed reports of Mungiki attacks on other ethnic groups in Nairobi’s slums since violence erupted after the disputed re-election of President Mwai Kibaki in a Dec. 27 poll. About 500 people have died.
Many Kikuyus were killed in the Rift Valley and Nairobi’s slums as other ethnic groups vented their rage over what they say was a rigged result.
Experts have long said the Mungiki were manipulated by Kikuyu politicians. They were first established to counter violence by Kalenjin ethnic gangs during elections in the 1990s, when Daniel arap Moi, himself a Kalenjin, was president.
But last year the human rights commission said police may have executed as many as 500 men during a crackdown on the Mungiki after the gang terrorised central Kenya with a wave of brutal attacks. Police denied the charge.
Kiai said the government had offered the Mungiki protection in the future if they protected Kikuyus against supporters of opposition leader Raila Odinga, who says he won the vote.
“They are now assured of security even afterwards. They said ‘Okay we will not touch you again. We will not go for you as we did before’,” he said.
Kiai called on Western powers to revoke visas for members of the Kibaki government, senior members of the civil service and their families as well as opposition figures.
He said this was the only way to push politicians into negotiating an end to Kenya’s post-election crisis.
“Bring them back to suffer with us. Maybe then they will be forced into talking to each other,” he said. “If all visas are revoked you will see movement so fast, you won’t believe it. Many of them think ‘I have a valid visa to the UK. If things get really bad I am off.’ They need to have the same stakes as us.” (Additional reporting by Wangui Kanina; editing by Janet Lawrence)
Comment: Jannek – 09. January 2008 @ 11:29 pm