Another Rwanda in the making.

[Juje]

Kenyan death toll near 250

NAIROBI (Reuters) - A mob torched a Kenyan church on Tuesday, killing about 30 villagers cowering inside, as the death toll from ethnic riots triggered by President Mwai Kibaki's disputed re-election approached 250.

 

Fire engulfed a church near Eldoret town where hundreds of Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe had taken refuge in fear of their lives. Witnesses said charred bodies, including women and children, were strewn about the smouldering ruins.

 

"This is the first time in history that any group has attacked a church. We never expected the savagery to go so far," police spokesman Eric Kiraithe said.

 

Kibaki was sworn in on Sunday after official election results showed he had narrowly beaten opposition leader Raila Odinga. Both sides have accused the other of vote-rigging during the December 27 election which passed off peacefully.

 

The disputed result has ignited long-simmering tribal rivalries in one of Africa's most stable democracies and strongest economies.

 

World powers called for calm and urged the political opponents to "exercise restraint" and talk to each other.

 

Police and a senior security official said the blaze at the Kenya Assemblies of God Pentecostal church in western Kenya was deliberately started by a gang of youths.

 

Television pictures shot from a helicopter showed plumes of white smoke pouring from burning homesteads in the area. Young men, some toting bows and arrows, manned roadblocks.

 

Residents and a security source said the victims had sought safety at the church, about 8 km (5 miles) from Eldoret.

 

"Some youths came to the church," said a local reporter from the scene. "They fought with the boys who were guarding it, but they were overpowered and the youths set fire to the church."

 

Local media said 20 people suffered life-threatening burns.

 

The attack revived traumatic memories in east Africa of the slaughter in churches of tens of thousands of victims of Rwanda's 1994 genocide, and the mass suicide of hundreds of Ugandan cult members in a church fire in 2000.

 

Police gave a national death toll of 170 by the evening.

 

Reuters reporters around Kenya estimated it at around 250.

 

Odinga said his Orange Democratic Movement verified 160 fatalities to Monday night. With the addition of overnight killings the total would likely be about 250 or "slightly more".

 

Leading local newspaper, the Daily Nation, feared the country was on "the verge of a complete meltdown". Fuel prices shot up in Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda and Burundi, all of which get fuel and other products via Kenya's ports.

 

THOUSANDS FLEE

 

Police were out in force in the capital on New Year's Day, and Nairobi's streets were initially quieter, before violence erupted in the slums again as night fell.

 

Washington first congratulated Kibaki, then switched to expressing "concerns about irregularities".

 

Former colonial power Britain, the European Union and others pointedly avoided congratulating Kibaki.

 

They expressed concern, urged reconciliation and a probe into suspected voting irregularities.

 

"The 2007 general elections have fallen short of key international and regional standards for democratic elections," the EU observer mission said in its formal assessment.

 

Western diplomats shuttled between both sides, trying to start mediation. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called Kibaki and his opposition rival Raila Odinga.

 

"The government thinks they can wait this out, but we're not convinced," one diplomat in Nairobi told Reuters.

 

The Eldoret area where the church massacre took place is multi-ethnic but traditionally dominated by the Kalenjin tribe.

 

It suffered ethnic violence in 1992 and 1997 when hundreds of mainly Kikuyus were killed and thousands more displaced.

 

A senior security official in Rift Valley said that as many as 15,000 people were now sheltering from the violence in churches and police stations in Eldoret.

 

He blamed the opposition for incitement.

 

"We have lived together for years, we've intermarried, we have children, but now they've asked them to turn against them," the security official said. "We don't do this in Kenya. It is what happens in Yugoslavia and Sudan."

 

An Irish Catholic priest in Eldoret, Father Paul Brennan, told Reuters vigilante gangs were roaming the streets.

 

"Houses are being burned. It is too dangerous to go outside and count the dead," he said. "The churches are full. There are four to five thousand in the main cathedral."

 

Most deaths have come from police firing at protesters, witnesses say, prompting accusations from rights groups and the opposition that Kibaki had made Kenya a "police state".

 

(Additional reporting by Nicolo Gnecchi, Duncan Miriri, Helen Nyambura-Mwaura, Patrick Muiruri, Bryson Hull, Florence Muchori, Joseph Sudah, Andrew Cawthorne; and Guled Mohamed in Kisumu, Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)

 

Source: Reuters, Jan 01, 2008

[Juje]

The situation has unfortunately rapidly deepened into tribal war.

Hadaad aragtiid in kanisaad la isku dhex dilayo arrin faraha wey ka baxdey. Illaho SWT ka badbaadi ummada Islaanka ah ee mesha ku nool.

[Paragon]

^Yeah. Sad.

 

And its no longer about Jaluos and Gikuyus; a whole swath of other tribes have joined the fray. The Kalenjins have actually committed the worst single assault against Gikuyu worshipers in an Eldoret church today. Read: they burnt almost 50 people alive in that church. Luos, Kalenjins, Kisiis, Swahilis and other tribes are on an onslaught against the Gikuyus . The Gikuyus haven't retaliated yet! But when they do...hmmm...that'd the day...the damning day! I hope they keep a cool head and let the police/army settle matters.

 

I hear many Kalenjin (and affiliated tribes) generals have resigned from the army, and that both the army and the police are split right in the middle. Moreover, Somali Police commissioner Ali who was thought to have resigned has said he is still on duty. Him and Michuki (Internal Security) are running the country and many are advising cm. Ali to resign before its too late - the fear is that him and Michuki would be court marshalled some day somehow for all the deaths under their helm.

 

PS: Things are deteriorating on the ground. Food stuffs, such as meat, are scarce! There is no or little available safaricom airtime vouchers, and is there money in the ATMs. Most Somali families (including my own) are getting out of town to Garissa and other safer cities. Mombasa is no chance.

[Peace Action]

They are fools, those murders. Peace is too good for them. Don't they see what is happening in Somalia. I hope they come to their senses before it is too late ela failed state as Somalia.

[Juje]

Originally posted by Isseh:

The Gikuyus haven't retaliated yet! But when they do...hmmm...that'd the day...the damning day!

I hope they keep a cool head and let the police/army settle matters.

Indeed, lets hope so, cause if they do that will rock places like Nairobi.

[Gabbal]

You would think Kibaki would try to come the situation as the only man who can addressee the grievances concerning his broad daylight theft. The world has left your side, your country is unproars, and you would rather let it burn? What state house will Kibaki dream of if there is no Kenya?

[Paragon]

Latest ...

 

Kenyan Pundit Blogger

January 1st, 2008

Update - Burnt Forest/Eldoret Jan 1 11:45 pm

Posted by Ory Okolloh in kenyaelection07

Just got back home still trying to parse through the news/info coming through.

 

For now it is critical to get the word out about the situation in Eldoret and Burnt Forest. This is in the aftermath of the church burning. Reports of armed men going into the forest coming through from various sources.

The conflict is more than just Kikuyu-Luo - has widened into something that I don’t even know how to describe.

 

From a KP reader:

 

“Approximately 40-50K people are holded up at the compounds of ST. PATRICKS CATHOLIC CHURCH and ARNESENS HIGH SCHOOLl, both in Burnt Forest. There is no running water, food and ELECTRICITY has been cut. THIS MEANS THAT PEOPLE CANNOT RECHARGE THIER CELL PHONES and soon we’ll not be able to contact them. Also, due to the chaos/anarchy in these compounds, means that people, especially women are not any safer than if they were out in the chaos. There has been reports of rapes and molestations. I’ve also heard that the Eldoret highway has been closed by thugs an d that there is no transportion, hence people cannot leave this area. My family in that area feels very helpless and we can only ask that we spread the world and try and get some security in the area.”

 

I’m wondering whether the military and the police are? Are they standing by watching while these incidents are going on? Hearing reports that the ignored calls for help when the church was being burnt? Does anyone have an idea what the government is doing in response as far as providing security to individuals in this area? And this is being alarmist but I’m beginning to wonder whether the government wants to fan the flames (remember Likoni clashes?).

 

Other news sources:

 

- I really really have to commend Al Jazeera for their coverage of this situation. I hope someone picks this up as a story about alternative media and coverage of Africa, and a story about Al Jazeera is redefining GLOBAL coverage. They are millions of steps ahead of CNN and BBC with less resources. From a good source, I hear that they are posting stories directly to Youtube so please check there for new stories as well.

 

- Alertnet for breaking news.

 

- Mental Acrobatics should have a post up pretty soon about various initiatives to try and stop the situation from spiraling out of control.

[NASSIR]

Isseh, this quite resemles the once dominant class of IGBO vs the rest of ethnic coalition in Nigeria in the years 1967-1970 when military officers of IGBO overthrew the government at the time in a counter-coup.

 

I don't think the west would be able to convince Kibaki to give up his office and more ethnic clashes as such bitter resentment of the Kikuyu's domination in Kenya resurfaces.

 

Expect more pogroms to happen in the major cities of Kenya.

[QabiilDiid]

The question is..will they taste 0.00000005% of what the Somali people have been going through so that their democracy might be solidified..

Is the torch being passed to Nairobi?

[General Duke]

Its alarming 250+ dead in a day or two. This without even major weapons being involved.

[Skipper]

This problems or political disaster is caused by tribalism, a problem Asia, Europe or America has never had. So i allways wondered why is there many different tribes? I am convinced that had their not been different tribes in somalia then the civil war would never have happened in the first place. This is exactly hwta is happening Kenya right now. So my quesion is why is there tribes in Africa and not Europe?

[General Duke]

Skipper, there are tribes in Europe who have fought each other in the past, however the governmental systems of those nation are much more entrenched and mature compared to the African nations.

 

An example of their tribalisam can be highlighted in the Balkan conflicts. You had Croats, Serbs, Slovenians, Bosnian Muslims and Albanians in kosovo neighbours for decades under Tito's Yuguslavia turn on each other. Now we have Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo were there was one country.

 

The Nazi war against the Jews and the Slav's is another form of Tribalisam or as they term it ethnic conflict.

 

Thus this is not an African problem it manifests itself in every corner of the world.

[Paragon]

Latest....

Kenyan Pundit

January 1st, 2008

Post-media blackout update Jan 2 12:15 am

Posted by Ory Okolloh in Uncategorized

- Kivuitu admits to acting under pressure. The story was apparently up on the Standard website, but is no longer available there (haven’t verified this). Just in case, save the text somewhere. How was he compromised? Why couldn’t he have resigned?

 

- Why a full recount won’t be possible (from a journalist source): “I asked at the EU EOM press briefing this morning if a complete recount were at all possible, and they said no - a lot of the ballot boxes have been tampered with. The only thing that would be possible is a retally - i.e. take the documented constituency tally and count up again for the national figure. However, obviously this is not going to deal with issues like significant differences between presidential and parliamentary votes in individual constituencies, EU observers being turned away from different polling stations, and extremely high voter turnout. So even if the government agreed to a a retally (unlikely, obviously), this could resolve some issues, but by far not all - so in the end, any solution would have to be political.”

 

- No power in Kisumu, so people can’t charge cellphones and let guys know how they are doing.

 

- Comment of the day: Yes. It is extremely important for both Kibaki and Raila to place the citizens and the country before their own power-hungry egos. This is insane. The whole country is being destroyed. For what? Who cares who is president. As a foreigner who has no tribal association here I have absolutely no respect for either of these politicians. They are both the same, not worth a single lost life. Both men are bad for Kenya. You need a real leader with real ideas. These fools are not worth the violence.”

[NASSIR]

Originally posted by Skipper:

This problems or political disaster is caused by tribalism, a problem Asia, Europe or America has never had. ?

You don't have an iota of knowledge in the ethnic conflicts around the world. This is an ethnic conflict whose root cause traces to the days of colonialism. It means the interest of dominant nation in a multinational nation such as Kenya.

 

They all have the same defining feature. For instance, in Bosnia, Kosovo, Croatia, it was all ethnic conflict that pit one ethnic group against the other. Almost hundreds of thousands of innocent people were massacred, raped, and uprooted.

[Skipper]

As you suggested there Camiir i might not have knowledge about ethnic groups around the world but what i do know is that tribalsm is no longer an issue in Europe, it was an issue once but not anymore. Look at Ireland, its a religious conflict and not tribalism.