The African Union summit taking place in Addis Ababa will provide an opportunity for South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki to brief leaders from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), on the failed Zimbabwe crisis talks that he mediated on their behalf. Reports say Mbeki is still making an effort to save the crucial talks that are supposed to lead to free and fair elections in Zimbabwe. Time is running out though as the polls are currently set for March 29th.

The MDC under Morgan Tsvangirai will meet on Saturday to make key decisions regarding participation in the March 29 election and will also decide on a unity deal with the Mutambara MDC. Party spokesman Nelson Chamisa said the National Council will deliberate on the two critical issues before a press conference is convened on Sunday to announce the resolutions. Mugabe set February 8 as the nomination deadline for parties contesting in the elections to submit their candidates. Chamisa denied they had been forced into a hasty meeting by Mugabe’s timetable and that the meeting had been organised some time ago.

Thousands of people in Manicaland are expected to participate in freedom marches scheduled for Mutare and Rusape on Friday, according to party officials. Pishai Muchauraya, the spokesman for the MDC in the province said both marches have been given the green light by the police.

A planned visit by a United Nations human rights expert to Equatorial Guinea has been cancelled after the Central African country's Government postponed it suddenly, citing “urgent activities.” The Special Rapporteur on the question of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Manfred Nowak, issued a statement voicing “strong regret” about the postponement and reminding the “that fact-finding missions are planned long in advance and require extensive research as well as logistical and financial resources.”

A new United Nations-backed $19 million project in Burkina Faso will help approximately 20,000 poor rural households bolster their crop production and incomes through improved irrigation. The UN International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) will provide an $11 loan to the Small-scale Irrigation and Water Management Project, which will be carried out in six provinces in the south-west of the country.

The United Nations refugee agency today evacuated most of its staff from its office in a town in eastern Chad after a series of armed attacks this week on the agency and other aid organizations operating in the troubled region. Five vehicles belonging to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), its non-governmental partners and Médecins Sans Frontières Suisse have been stolen at gunpoint in the past 72 hours, while the UNHCR compound in Guereda was entered by armed men on two nights this week.

On 27 February 2008, oikos Johannesburg organizes the Inaugural African Develoment Partnership (ADP), titled "Creating an Environment for Sustainable Development", in which the task will be finding a role for young leaders in sustainability-orientated action. The ADP is an African youth initiative that aims at strengthening the development of human capacity for leadership by bridging the gap between today's leaders and the change agents of tomorrow. The ADP's goal is to create an environment for engagement between the two generations and to establish a framework to influence behaviour and actions towards sustainability orientated practice and policies.

The finalists for OneWorld's Person of 2007 award have been announced. Justine Masika Bihamba, Rajendra Pachauri, Betty Makoni, and Vicky Tauli-Corpuz lead the field. Be inspired by their amazing efforts to protect human rights, improve lives, and yes, even save the planet. Vote today!

Much has been speculated about the causes of the ongoing civil violence in Kenya. With the perspective of more than two decades of experience in community work, my own view is that the root problems are not tribalism, and not even politics (which has only been an inciting spark), but rather, a long history of trenchant poverty and the once-simmering, now boiling desperation of a generation of Kenyan youths who have been denied basic life opportunities. The primary perpetrators of the ongoing violence and unrest are ambitious young men, aged 15 to 35, with nowhere to go thanks to a soaring unemployment rate. Their anger has seethed at the surface for a long time. The post-election fracas has merely provided an opportunity for tensions to explode, and the aggression by youth has been carried out in an effort to gain attention to their "cause," which, truth be told, is a thoroughly just one: economic opportunity, the ability to lead a life of purpose, the ability to provide for one's family.

For this reason, the solution to the crisis lies not in combating tribal enmity or perhaps even in bringing our country's political feuding leaders to a peaceful compromise. Rather, at the local level at least, we believe the solution requires addressing the deep-seated and psychologically debilitating material needs of our young people. This work has taken two main forms.

First, together with local community leaders and nationally-recognized peace activists, Ugunja Community Resource Centre has formed committees in our catchment area to address youths' concerns, to allow for the constructive rather than destructive venting of frustrations, and to discuss ways to move forward and achieve peace and justice. Thus far, these committees have been established in six constituencies: three in Siaya District and three in Kisumu, with a total of 70 committee members. In this work, UCRC adamantly stresses that the key to success is having local leaders serve as committee members, who in turn help to promote the leadership among youths that their community has lacked.

Second, UCRC has begun to directly support youths who lack income-generating opportunities and have, out of desperation, gotten involved in ongoing criminal activities. An association has been formed to provide small capital for small business revitalization. To date, the association has been a success; it meets twice-weekly, and the participants are developing business plans and capital budgets of roughly Ksh 1,000 each (USD 15). This program has already helped to decrease tensions and improve day-to-day security.

The emphatic position of UCRC is that there are no "good guys" and "bad guys" in this situation. The police, for example, have been widely villainized, but we must also show them compassion. The police have been traumatized. They were never prepared for the level of violence and chaos that has taken place. They have been enormously provoked and are totally, totally drained. They've received no time off, little to eat, no time for sleep, and have not seen their families in weeks. UCRC is working with the police in Kisumu to reduce the impulse to shoot civilians. One police officer told me, "Before you came we spent 1000 bullets, now we have not spent one."

A leading human rights advocacy group in Nigeria has declared that the reoccurring violence in Rivers State, South South of Nigeria is a culmination of years of unlawful patronage of cult groups by past governments and politicians in the state and called on President Umaru Yar’Adua to take urgent measures to arrest the situation by arresting and prosecuting the sponsors of the violence.

In a 36 -page report on the violence titled: NIGER DELTA: DECIMATED BY VIOLENCE: REPORT ON PORT HARCOUT VIOLENCE released on January, 29th in Lagos, The Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) asserted that the violence in Port Harcourt in August 2007 which claimed over a hundred lives was primarily occasioned by a bitter power struggle between two cult groups, the Outlaws led by Soboma George and the Icelanders led by Tom Ateke (both armed by past governments) over territorial control, government patronage and several lucrative extortion rackets in Port Harcourt city. Underlying the violence were several key issues including government patronage of Soboma George, a one time second in command to Ateke Tom, the struggle for power among Rivers State politicians and the widespread availability of weapons and small arms in the entire Niger Delta.

The report concludes that “So long as the federal government neglects to take drastic measures to curb the unhindered flow of arms in the Niger Delta to ensure that politicians no longer use armed groups to rig election, as security guards, and to ensure accountability for past violence in the region, the chance of renewed violence will continue to be high”.

Established in 1987, the CLO is one of Nigeria’s leading human rights organizations with over 4,000 members and zonal structures and offices in the six geo political zones.

The violence in Port Harcourt has become intractable with thousands of people killed, maimed or displaced since 2004. There are over 100 armed cult groups operating in Rivers State with some of the groups sponsored and funded by politicians including government functionaries. In the run up to the 2003 and 2007 general elections, politicians in Rivers state armed several cult groups to help rig the elections. Large sums of money were also distributed to these groups while their leaders were given government contracts. The aim was to win the elections at all cost.

According to the report, despite the enactment of a law in Rivers State by the State House of Assembly in 2003 banning cultism, the cult groups have continued to multiply and at the same time become more violent and daring due to the support of politicians. No prominent leader of the cult groups including their sponsors has been prosecuted. The Report singled out the former governor of Rivers State Chief Peter Odili as being responsible for arming cult groups in the state which he effectively used to rig elections and intimidate political opponents during his eight years reign.

CLO also reports that “an unprecedented wave of human rights violations was unleashed on the city of Port Harcourt and its environs by members of the Joint Task Force (JTF) and the police who were brought in to manage the violence”. Scores of people including women and girls have been arrested, tortured and killed extra judicially by the members of the security force in the guise of fighting armed groups. A young man who challenged police men extorting money from motorists in Agip Road, Port Harcourt city was told in clear terms to count himself lucky.” If you mess up, I will shoot you and tag you a militant and that will be the end of it’.

Elsewhere around the city, members of the JTF set up ubiquitous road blocks where citizens are regularly harassed and brutalized.

Titus Mann, CLO’s President said: “Violence in Rivers State and indeed in the whole of Niger Delta has reached an unacceptable level. This is the time to address the root cause of the problem.”

On assumption of office last year, President Yar’Adua pledged to accord priority to the Niger Delta problems. The government subsequently sent the Vice President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, a former governor of Bayelsa State, one of the component states of the region on a fence mending mission. However the dialogue initiated by the government has since broken down due to perceived government insincerity.

The report includes recommendation to the Federal and Rivers State governments. To end violence and human rights violations in Rivers state, CLO urge Governor Amechi of Rivers state to:

1. Stop further dealings with militant and cult groups in the state, except for the purpose of facilitating the ongoing dialogue or for disarmament purposes. The use of cult groups for such purposes as rigging election or to provide security duties should be discouraged at all times.
2. Investigate all human rights abuse committed by law enforcement agencies during peace keeping in the state and prosecute any officer indicted or found to have committed any abuse.
3. Take step to implement the various poverty reduction strategies outlined in the State development plan.
4. Publicly condemn the excessive use of force, torture and extra judicial killings by the security forces during the crises.
5. Create employment opportunities in Rivers State as a first step to tackle unemployment, youth restiveness and gangsterism in the state.
6. Ensure that all victims of the violence including those who lost their houses, means of livelihood or families are adequately compensated.

The report also called on the Federal Government to bring all those responsible for the violence including highly placed Nigerians who have armed and encouraged the cult groups to perpetrate violence.

Damian Ugwu, CLO head of Advocacy Unit said; “So long as the federal government neglects to take drastic measures to curb the unhindered flow of arms in the Niger Delta to ensure that politicians no longer use armed groups to rig election, as security guards, and to ensure accountability for past violence in the region, the chance of renewed violence will continue to be high”.

*Please send comments to or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

*For the full report, please contact the Pambazuka News Editors at

With Africa getting so little out of the commonwealth and the legacies of colonialism, Ronald Elly Wanda suggests Africans should rethink their commitment to this institution.

Since the statute of Westminster that stipulated the formation of the Commonwealth in 1931, the purposes; benefits, representations and agency as well as the so called ‘rewards’ of the union have remained issues of contestations. This year’s Commonwealth’s Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) to be held in Kampala, East Africa, rekindles this interest. In this edition, Wanda revisits the old debates and concludes that Africa needs to rethink its membership.

Every two years, fifty three heads of states belonging to a voluntary union known as the Commonwealth, (that lacks an official charter or a written constitution) gather at lavish hotels- that money can buy, in former and current British colonies, with the aim of discussing “common interests,” which often do not feature or entertain the needs of the most important person of all – the ‘common man’. As a Commonwealth citizen, the common man, (petty bourgeoisies’ and political elites asides), accounts for almost 30 percent of the total global population. Of the 1.8 billion Commonwealth residents, almost half continue to live below the poverty line, which the UN defines as living on less than a dollar a day. While at the same time, two thirds of the world’s HIV/AIDS cases and maternal deaths take place in countries subscribed to the Commonwealth, where it is also noted that more than half of the world’s 115 million children without education are to be found.

Last year, Uganda, according to the country’s foreign affairs minister, Sam Kutesa, was “blessed to be hosting the CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting) and in particular, welcoming her majesty Queen Elizabeth of England”, who is also head of the union.

In Uganda, President Yoweri Museveni’s ruling party, the National Resistance Organisation (NRMO) since coming to power in 1986 has devised a strategy to distance itself explicitly from pro-mwanainchi (citizen) policies that promote social and economically redistributive justice, each and every time it has been made aware of capital mobility. The government’s handling of CHOGM preparations is a case in illustration. NRMO leaders have reoriented party policies towards the interests of any ‘real’ or imagined mobile fraction of capital, yet again at the expense of the hardworking Ugandan mwanainchi. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sam Kutesa said that 65 billion Uganda shillings were allocated for CHOGM activities for this financial year in addition to Ush37b for completion of State House. The meeting, according the government, is expected to attract around 3,000 to 5,000 visitors to Uganda and is expected to cost the poor Ugandan tax payer around Ush102b.

It is abundantly clear, especially for those who live in Uganda that times are increasingly hard for wanainchi (the common man) in today’s Uganda which exist on the periphery of an international economy that is staggering under the afflictions of a prolonged recession- recently demonstrated by the ongoing collapse of the American mortgage industry.

Is it not surely time for us to start questioning the viability of the Commonwealth? Given the negative historical facts that it represents? The union is an amalgamation of former as well as present British colonies, and as such is representative of the British Empire. As Africans are or ought to be too aware, we suffered and continue to suffer a great deal of pain caused by the plights of; slavery, then imperialism, colonialism, globalization and now commonwealthisation. All of these planks were dedicated to the sole objective of the brutal extraction of Africa’s wealth to Britain and at the same time the erosion of the African human dignity.

So, as today’s local imperial agents -President Museveni and his regiment entertain her majesty and “friends of Uganda” to the best of what the pearl of Africa has to offer, isn’t it high time we questioned the essence and representation of this imperialist institution? We need to look with suspicion at imperialist agents such as Museveni- the so called “darling of the west” for their real motivation in promoting anti-wanainchi and neo-liberal agenda at the expense of the common man in Uganda under the auspices of privatization, structural adjustment, market liberalization and foreign direct investment. All of which have harmed and continue to subject the common man in Uganda in abject poverty, whilst the Ugandan government posits its fictitious and impact-less 6.4 percent economic growth.

Uganda is capable of attracting foreign direct investment that has no colonial strings attached to it, China et al is one such example. That said, the rapid integration and enlargement of the East African Community ought to be a lauded affair not only for the countries concerned but for the whole of Africa, because it is the hard but necessary beginning for the unification of a sustainable Africa. From this connection, it is thus foreseeable that cultural imperialism perpetuated by Britain and culminated by its agents through its pet project the Commonwealth will be a thing of the past. For, the commonwealth has served only one primary purpose, that of presenting Britain as structurally superior and continuing the exploitation and extraction of the common man’s wealth to Britain. It is high time we valued the real common man by doing away with this demeaning institution.

*The writer is a political scientist based in London

*Please send comments to or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_01_kayodeogundamisi…
Nigerian political activist Kayode Ogundamisi finally makes it to the blogging world in his blog Kenerry Bird! In this post Kayode is critical of religion as it is played out in Nigeria, particularly the “partnership between Pastors, Imams and other religious leaders with the corrupt people in government.” To get an understanding of the relationship between religion, the religious in Nigeria and corruption he points out some interesting facts:
“We do have the highest growth in Christianity and Islam in the world nonetheless remains one of the most corrupt countries in the world.
It is high time we start probing the finances of those who hide under the banner of religion to steal and deceive the people.........
A Pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Joseph Itegbe, was on Tuesday arraigned at Tapa Magistrate’s Court in Lagos for allegedly stealing N5.7 million tithe belonging to the church.”

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_02_afrigadget.gifAfrican Gadget
African Gadget a blog about local alternative technology solutions has launched a new site and a new online project called “Grassroots Reporting”. The idea is to recruit volunteer contributors from across the continent to report on local technologies. Anyone interested should please leave a comment on the blog with your email address (which will not be published). In this way the blog will be able to spread the word about the huge range of local technologies and innovations being developed and used by Africans for Africans.
“One of the big goals here is to create a service that doesn’t just publish interesting stories about African micro-entrepreneurs, though we do plan on continuing that, but to also explore ways that we can be a conduit back to those very same people. This redesign already has our future plans for dealing with entrepreneurs built into it. Part of that is the future phases of the AfriGadget store, but we’re also looking at ways to partner with others and encourage direct investment into worthy entrepreneurs businesses.”

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_03_sociolingo.gifSociolingo
Sociolingo reports on a project from North Western University in the US which is publishing ancient African maps online. The maps date from the 16th to the 20th century. An excellent project.

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_04_theconcoction.gifThe Concoction
Concoction complains about the lack of news on Africa from all sections of the US mainstream media. 45,000 people die each month in the DRC but this is not reported instead one death of a Hollywood start is at the center of the evening news.
“You read about 45,000 people dying each month in DRC online while the death of some young actor found dead in his NY apartment dominates the evening news on major news channels - even BBC world had to say something about it. Although I liked Heath Ledger in Brokeback Mountain and it's sad he died so young..., still I can't help wondering when 45,000 people dying each month would get the same attention?”

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From Kenya,Thinkers Room asks a series of questions and posts a list of ”shattered myths” about Kenya. Here are some snippets.
Questions:
Where is the President? Mr Kibaki cannot have it both ways. If he insists he is the duly elected president then it is incumbent upon him to act accordingly. He must not only do something, he must be seen to be doing something................. Where is the Church? I’m not impressed at all by any of the churches in Kenya. The Catholic Church, The Anglican Church, the Islamic community and the Independent churches have been very lethargic indeed.
Shattered Myths:
Kenya is an oasis of peace. Is it now?........... Kenya believes in the right of law. The ODM refuses to challenge the elections in court. While I understand their reluctance,”

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_06_kumekucha.gifYou Missed This
Also from Kenya,You Missed This believes the Annan talks are “doomed to fail” due to pettiness on both sides and the fact Annan and his team really do not have any powers to influence the present stalemate.
“Even before the nominated teams begin negotiations, signs are already emerging that the Annan led mediation talks are doomed to fail. Yesterday, the talks were nearly sabotaged by Office of the President protocol officers who were insisting that Kibaki sits alone on the ‘high table’ because he is the ‘supreme presidential authority’. The ODM and Mr. Annan on the other hand, would hear none of it and in the end, Raila and Kibaki occupied the same ‘high table’ flanking Annan on both sides as equals. This was after Annan and the Speaker of the National Assembly as the convener of the meeting over-ruled the OP protocol officials. Such pettiness, emanating from the PNU side, clearly shows that they are treating their political adversaries as junior partners.”

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_07_grandioseparlor.g…Grandiose Parlor
Grandiose Parlor reports that $10 billion has been spent on Nigeria’s electricity infrastructure between 1997 and 2007. Despite this, the majority of citizens still do not have a regular electricity supply. An excellent example of corruption and mismanagement!

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_08_kameelahwrites.gifKameelah Writes
Kameelah Writes comments cynically on the Obama fever presently sweeping across America.
“As my little imagination works, Obama will continue to pander to everybody and their mama until he becomes president. At night he sneaks to chat with his daughters about the end of the Gaza Blockade . Shortly after Obama is inaugurated, Obama and I are going to meet on U street in D.C. to jointly craft his inaugural speech. In the speech he will say all the things that he was previously far to smart to publicly assert.”

http://www.pambazuka.org/images/articles/341/blogs_09_blacklooks.gifBlack Looks
Black Looks publishes a video “fire in the delta” together with the response of a group of civil society organisations to the Nigerian government’s postponement (yet again) of the end of gas flaring by the multinational oil companies.
“In 2005, the High Court declared gas flaring illegal yet both the Nigerian government and oil multinationals have ignored the court ruling. Last year the Nigerian government once again promised to stop all gas flaring on the 1st January this year - a promise that goes back nearly 40 years. Companies defying the order were to be shut down. Once again the government has shown complete disregard and insensitivity to the communities in the Niger Delta and given into pressure from Shell, Chevron, Elf etc. The date has now been set for the end of the year but no one really believes that the government will once again bow to the oil multinationals.”

* Sokari Ekine blogs at Black Looks http://www.blacklooks.org and http://www.africanwomenblogs.com

The African Editors’ Forum (TAEF) is a body of Editors and senior editorial executives from all over Africa. Our members have fresh and fond memories of Nairobi and the hospitality of Kenyan Editors and other journalists who hosted us during our biannual conference held in Nairobi at the beginning of November 2007.

We witnessed from close by as the preparations for the elections and the campaign were underway while we were there. We left Kenya buoyed by the mood of expectation and the enthusiasm palpable in the streets as motorcade after motorcade of campaigners blaring their messages made their way through the streets.

We knew that a new Africa was afoot, one based on regular mandate-seeking from the electorate but, even more importantly, one based on a citizenry staying engaged with the politics that determine who presides over government.

Since December 27, we have witnessed as the dream turned into an unending nightmare. Journalists, our primary concern, have become victims of the violence that has engulfed Kenya as people bicker about who the winner is.

But how could journalists escape the ferocious slide to anarchy that has now gripped Kenya? People killed in churches, a child thrown into a burning church, 19 people barricaded into a house burnt to death, an opposition party MP killed. The list is endless.

As Editors our responsibility is to reflect the reality on the ground, and our Kenyan brothers and sisters have been doing an excellent job in telling the unfolding story. But it is a story we should not tell, because it should not be happening. The barbarism that has emerged in Naivasha and Nakuru and the slums of Nairobi, and the militias that are now the new law, are an indictment to both President Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga.

As an organisation representing Editors in Kenya and elsewhere, the behaviour of the marauding squads of killers tarnish our name as Africans and we stand to say, for all to hear: NOT IN OUR NAME!

We believe both Kibaki and Odinga should exercise leadership and bring the mayhem to an end. And if they cannot, they should step aside and allow a new interim structure to emerge that would calm the situation and bring Kenya back from the abyss it is in.

We call on both of them to recommit to respecting the rights of their own people to do what they are professionally trained to do, in all fields, whether medicine, law, human rights, media etc, without being accused of belonging one political group or another. In particular, we call for the immediate lifting of the restriction on live broadcasting, which was imposed on December 30.

Lastly, as the African Union Heads of State and Government summit takes place in Addis Ababa, and fully understanding the need for diplomatic niceties to be observed, we call on the leadership gathered in Ethiopia to realize that murders most foul are being committed not far from where they meet.

Africa expects to see leadership displayed there that would enhance the efforts by the Kofi Annan mission and we call on the summit to make its voice heard about wanton abuses of human rights by Kenyan authorities.

Above all, we call on the AU to reiterate its long-standing position of freedom of the media and in particular the rights of journalists to do their work in situations of conflict without hindrance.

TAEF and its members remain committed to tell the African story in its glory and its goriness as evidenced by the unfolding situation in Kenya. No amount of intimidation and abuse is going to stop us from reporting the truth as we see it, as that would amount to censorship.

TAEF salutes the Kenya media fraternity for their steadfast stance to report without fear or favour and exhorts them to remain committed to the highest forms of journalism.

Mathatha Tsedu, Chairperson, TAE

I am writing this message in a desperate cry... a cry for the people who I love, who are me. Many of yours might live a comfortable life in peace in which you don't have to worry about your future, let alone the future of your family. You have a safe roof above your head and you like all your neighbors. Or maybe not all, but no one ever told you and you never felt the need to kill your neighbor.

Unfortunately this is not the case for many people living in Kenya... all longing for a good future, a future in which their children could grow up, a future in which the world is one... a future in which all could sleep at night, without having to worry about their children...

This is the moment I would like to ask you to act… to leave alone your daily problems, to start thinking... this is the moment we can tell our children, that we have said, enough is enough...we love the world, we live here, and we love the people of Kenya... please act!!!! Please help us... please don't let another Rwanda happen!

A World Bank report has applauded Uganda for embracing new technologies in her development process. The report 'Global Economic Prospects 2008: Technology Diffusion in the Developing World' examines the state of technology in developing countries and the pace with which it has advanced since the early 1990s. "The report reveals both encouraging and cautionary trends," the bank said in a statement issued recently.

This week's AU Monitor brings you updates and analyses from the 10th Ordinary Session of the African Union, where President John Agyekum Kufuor ends his term as Chairman of the African Union this week. President Kufuor is acknowledged for his many accomplishments and the progress that the AU has made during his tenure.

Lybian leader Mouammar Kaddafi is hosting a five-nation mini summit for African leaders ahead of the upcoming AU Summit. Also in preparation for the Summit, the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) of the AU member states opened its session, where participants will focus on important issues, including budgetary issues, contributions from member states and the problem of staff hiring for the Commission.

In other AU news, Sholain Govender provides in-depth reflections on the past, present, and future of the African Union. Also, Ousseynou Guèye reports on the audit of the African Union, noting that it reveals serious inadequacies of the organization that prevent it from reaching its goals. Lastly, Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), Professor Alpha Oumar Konare urged AU Foreign Ministers to insure implementation of principles adopted by Member States, including democracy, good governance, and gender equality. Chairperson Konare also showed concern about non-indifference, insisting that member countries assist one another during times of crises.

In peace and security news, the capability of the joint UN-African Union Peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) has been thrown into question, following an attack earlier this month. Currently the mission is vulnerable to such attacks due to lack of proper equipment, particularly helicopters. Further, during a recent meeting of the AU Executive Council, Senegal expressed concern that the crises in Kenya was not on the agenda and asked the council to "breaks its silence on the issue".

In women's news, Solidarity for African Women's Rights (SOAWR) held its Review and Agenda Setting Meeting recently under the theme: "Building an Accountable African Union: Perspectives of the African Women's Movement". Also, the AU has commissioned a new report to study the role of female child soldiers in conflicts in Africa. Litha Musyimi-Ogana, Director of AU's Gender Development Directorate stated that "We need an African solution to the crisis and women have proved to be the best in post-conflict reconstruction and reconciliation". Lastly, Ethiopian lawyer Meaza Ashenafi says that African governments have failed to domesticate gender equality laws into national policies and notes that "Irregularities in adapting and implementing various laws and agreements regarding women's rights and gender equality in Africa is a threat to the proposed union government of Africa."

Finally, Hiruy Amanuel analyses the phrase "ethnic politics", stating that appealing to ethnicity is sub-national, narrow and even dangerous", and can inhibit attempts at Pan-African unity.

What does dug earth care at all about ethnicity?
A Mwangi fits a six-foot hole
as snugly as Owuor.

And tell me, where's the corpse that anyone
can teargas with success?
Or did you do it to augment the tears of mourners,
out of kindness?

Can you tell a foe from how he skins a cow
or peels a spud
or guts a fish?
Are these enough to skin his hide?
Perhaps it's speech, the way she shrubs?
And who's the carrier, his mother or his dad?
Can we locate the gene for Enemy?
Today, can we condone the fact
Kikamba's only got one word for 'enemy',
'Masai'?

Reflect: that family you killed,
it had as little land as you.
Or did you see the old machete used to cut you?
Dented, rusty, cheap, like yours.
Reflect on this.

This warped deflection of your anger
isn't justice:
it's a coffinful of shit.

*Stephen Derwent Partington is a Kenyan poet.

* Please send comments to or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

Karambu Ringera, one of the few women to run for electoral office in the Kenya elections, gives a powerful vivid eye-witness account of the violence and the displacement.

Issues

When I left Nairobi for Nakuru to visit the internally displaced people's (IDP) camp, my aim was to be there for 2 days only. I arrived there on Wednesday January 23, little knowing that the events of that night would lock me in Nakuru for five days! On the night of January 23, all hell broke loose in Nakuru town. It was sad, scary and out of this world. I hardly recognized my country anymore. For three days, Kikuyus living in the Rift Valley were being evicted from their homes. The Nakuru violence was a spill over from Eldoret where many Kikuyus amng other ethnic groups had been evicted from their homes and their homes and property burnt. The week before, there had been similar clashes in Kisumu, once again targeting people from the Mount Kenya Region. The violence spread to Kericho, Burnt Forest, Elburgon, and areas surrounding Nakuru town. It was believed that Kalejins were in the forefront of these latter (Rift Valley) evictions and so, when loadfuls of Kikuyus landed into the Nakuru Show Ground (NSG) where these IDP were settled and attended to by the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS), Kikuyus in Nakuru felt they needed to do something about it. To see lorry after lorry of people being dropped at the NSG left many angry.

What was more devastating were the stories of anarchy – burnt homes, slaughtered loved family members, raped mothers and daughters, as destroyed property. The Kikuyus organized themselves and on the night of 23rd they struck at Ponda Mali a few blocks from where I spent that first night. In the morning, a few dead bodies were found but more fundamentally, houses were burnt – this time mainly Luo and Kalejin houses. By Thursday, these attacks were spread to more residential areas around Nakuru town such as Ronda, Mwariki, Kaptembwa, Githima, Freearea, Lakeview, Lanet, Karatina, Kiti, pangani, Flamingo, and Mawanga) – a second IDP's camp was opened at the Nakuru Stadium for Luos and Kalejins. A 7pm to 7am curfew was also set up – the speed with which this curfew was set up saved Nakuru from more blood shed than had already been spilt. On Friday, a friend and I walked to the areas surrounded Langalanga residential area to see what had transpired the night before because we heard was a lot of gunshot sounds. We hardly slept that night because we did not want to be attacked or for the block to be set a fire while we were asleep. The newspapers said that 5 people had been killed but that day we found at least 12 bodies lying uncollected – some had been eaten by dogs overnight. Most bodies had deep cuts – some on the head, some with throats slashed, others with cut off limbs – it was ghastly!! Later in the day, a police Landrover was loaded full of bodies of dead people.

It came for a second round – we estimated over 40 people killed in just…… On Saturday, Nakuru town was a no go zone both day and night. Police and army personnel were all over the town. A helicopter was being use to comb the area and spot trouble points and dispatch soldiers there speedily. The roads were blocked and some people were attacking certain groups of people as early as 5pm. We all were advised to stay indoors. Sunday was more calm were I was although we kept hearing gunshots in the surrounding estates. I had to do what I had initially set out to do in Nakuru – visit the IDP's camp at the Nakuru Show Ground. I went there on Wednesday to arrange to go and hold peace talks with the people at the camp. I intended to work with the counseling groups as my entry point. When the coordinator of the counseling program asked me to explain my approach, I explained that I used a participatory approach where people speak from their experiences. I planned on using the circle model and three statements guide the dialogue. The three statements are: Peace for me is; Peace for me would be; and In the name of peace I commit to… (participants state a concrete action they will undertake) .

The women were asked to use these statements to guide their sharing. We used a talking piece (a piece of stick). Initially I had asked for about 20-25 people. I got 30 women. However about 15 of them had come the day before and had not been debriefed – so they had to leave the circle. Women who had not been debriefed were required to do so before doing any other form of talking to people about their experiences. We held the circle with the 15 or so women left. The main concerns for the women were their children's education; lack of enough food; and where they would go since they did not want to go back to their old places.

The camp

While waiting for the women to gather, I heard a child crying outside. He was crying with a lot of emotion – a child of about 6 years old. I walked over to him and started coaxing him to stop crying while at the same time asking him why he was crying. He was standing alone and I thought he had lost his mother or whoever was with him. After some time, he stopped crying – almost – and then I was approached by a pregnant woman who had stood at a distance watching us. She told me that she had pinched the child for running away from school. The school was across the main road outside the camp. The mother was angry with the boy for crossing the dangerous road (cars were driving by all the time) alone. She also wanted him to stay in school because other kids were there. I told the mother to be patient with the child for after all he had seen, he may have been afraid that when he comes from school he might fond the mother gone. The kid never told us why he ran away for school, even though I tried to ask him. All he did was cry. We tried to get his older brother to take him to school and stay with him there the rest of the day. I do not know whether the mother was able to enforce this because soon after, a KRCS personnel came and took away the mother and the child to talk to them.

The women we visited with started telling us what life was like at the camp. They said that they had a mug of porridge in the morning, no lunch, and very little dinner. The food at dinner was so little – "it is meant to keep the soul alive" – one old lady told me. The food is so little that even children do not get satisfied – so mothers normally shared out their own food to the children. Girls were known to exchange food for sex too. There was lots of sexual activity as evidenced by the number of used condoms found lying around the camp every morning – the KRCS medical team dishes out condoms at the camps. The disturbing part was the rapes that were happening at the camps. The women told us that at night men would scream to make people start running away in panic. Then they would time women and girls, catch them and rape them. So, women were being told to watch over their girls. Women were also being advised not to go to the toilets at night.

On Friday we were sitting in circle sharing when we heard gunshots. The women panicked and one of them worriedly asked "have they come for us here?" This made me realize how scared these people really were. Their fear was deep. I was sad that I could not be of any help in trying to alleviate it. We ourselves from the outside were sitting on edge not knowing whether we would be safe or not going back home. All I could do was encourage them, hope with them that things would change, and assure them that they were safe in the camp because it was guarded. This sense of security was short lived. On Saturday afternoon there was a panic stampede that took place because a run-away prisoner jumped in to the camp in white underwear, the dress code of the attackers of the people in their farms. The IDP thought the attackers had come for them right in the camp. The person who was the man screamed that the attackers had followed them into the camp and there was a stampede that caused the breaking of the NSG periphery fence – fracturing the delicate sense of security they may have felt in this place.

A lot of food and clothes had been donated to the KRCS for these IDP in the camps around Kenya. We saw many lorries loaded with stuff come to the camp. The KRCS also had an office in Nakuru town where they stored these things. The surprising thing was that the people told us they never received any good clothes. They got third rate stuff – the KRCS staff in the store selected clothes for themselves before letting the IDP get into the store to select – the women informed us.

The people also said that the store people let about 30 people to get into the small store and they gave the people only few minutes to select clothes. This meant that one had no time to select good stuff – so they ended up with old t-shirts and skirts. One woman who had brought in a selection of very good clothes found someone selling one of her dresses in the local market! In view of this, when the women told me that they need underwear and pads, I decided not to hand these to the KRCS office as I had done on Wednesday when I first went to the camp. Counseling is being done in the camps by many people. However when I asked whether there were any people talking about peacebuilding I was told "no one had thought of that."

I found my niche. So, I set up to come on Thursday January 24 to start the peace dialogue. Lack of information on where women can get help for educational needs of their children or for material needs is alarmingly much in the camp. At Nakuru many women came to ask me for assistance – where to take their kids for schooling; how they can leave the camp and reach their relatives; how they could earn a living – several girls were looking for househelp jobs (to be employed in people's homes) – and so on. One man approached me with a letter which had a female handwriting seeking assistance for relocation. Since I am from far (Meru – Nakuru is about 9 hours by car from Meru) and did not have the capacity to help, I told the women that they have to speak with the KRCS personnel in their camp so they can ask the questions they were putting to me. I know that the organization is meant to assist people the camps in various ways. So, I insisted that they talk to these people.

The Peace Circle Dialogue

We sat in a circle and I introduced myself, asked someone to open with prayers, after which I asked everyone to introduce themselves and say where they were from. We started off with 30 women, 15 eventually went for debriefing (they had arrived at the camp the night before), two of 15 were called to go to the hospital to check on one of them who had given birth to a baby (they said to me smiling: "we have been blessed with a new life even here"), and two others left for other business. In the end, we had about 10 women who stayed throughout the 2 and a half hour session. I introduced the peace dialogue idea and why we were doing it. I gave the three statements that were going to guide our dialogue, looked for a talking piece and then I began the process.

What emerged was very interesting. Each woman gave her story – most spoke about their history. Some gave incidents before the clashes (current displacement) as what gave them no peace, incidents that were exacerbated by the violence. Most were painful family issues – including wives being told to go where they came from because they were from a different ethnic group – being forced to leave with ones children because the children had the blood of the unwanted ethnic group. On the second day, the women were less personal and our discussions were more on what others had suffered. I was told of an elderly lady who was gang raped and then ripped open because the gangsters wanted to "see where they had been." The woman died. One woman came to me for assistance for her son who is beginning high school. She said to me, "one of the children has been taken to an orphanage. Now I need a place for my son who is attending a day school, but see where he is coming back every end of day. Please take him with you and help him get into a boarding school." At that moment I wished the community home we are building for AIDS orphans and other children in crisis was complete.

I would have taken this boy to stay there while we looked for a boarding school for him. I took the lady's contact so that when I got a school for the boy, I would call them. I have already asked the IPI Program Director to check out a school for this child whose name is Isaac Geita. His mom's name is Margaret Wambui. The women who followed the three statements guiding our peace dialogue had this to say about their view of peaceful being or otherwise and what they committed to do for peace. (i) I have peace when: Peaceful moments cited by these women included when they pray, read the Bible, and when they are able to provide food, shelter and health to their families, including being able to educate their children. (ii) Peace for me is: Some of the answers I got include: End of conflict and violence; all the children in this camp going back to school. Help for those infected by HIV/AIDS, widows, single mothers, and orphans. The women said that education is the only hope for their children considering all their property was gone and the parents were in no position to support them now that they had lost everything. (iii) In the name of peace I commit to: The women committed to praying for peace; supporting those who were in need like orphans; encourages each other to keep hope in God. The women felt that if they kept their hope in God, He would deliver them and prosper them wherever they are.

Conclusion

Before people massacre others, they dehumanize and demonize the enemy. While walking around Ponda Mali, area in Nakuru to see the results of the violence, we came across many bodies of dead people that lay all over the place. Two young people were walking past one body and they said "it is fat!!" They did not see this as a person – he had become an object, hence "IT.". Down the path we found another body and this time, a woman sold her tomatoes unbothered by the presence of a dead body near where she was selling. I wondered at this lack of … fear, respect… what did I expect them to feel for these departed ones – perceived as 'the enemy' by them?

It was sad to witness the disgrace we have come to as a nation – we have become so removed from our humanity – we have failed to see we were the 'other' we were butchering. To fail to 'see' that our humanity is inescapably intertwined with that of those whose lives we have cut short, is to fail to 'recognize' how inhuman we have become. I desire to participate in healing the broken cord that joins me to my sister and brother, no matter their ethnic origin; reconcile the severed human spirit broken by our fractured humanity.

Way Forward

Part of my reason for being in Kenya is to work for peace in Africa. Little did I know I would be doing this for my beloved country. I have already put in place a peace training program under Institute for Nonviolence and Peace (INPEACE) (INPEACE was launched in 2005 at the Women's Congress held in Nairobi that year). I intend to continue the peace dialogues in the IDP's camps that I started in Nakuru. I also intend to do a training for leaders, who will hopefully share what they learn with their constituents. Then I will start systematic trainings for civil society, with a focus to women and youth. I am already meeting with people and organizations willing to partner with IPI's INPEACE to run the trainings. The plan is to begin with trainings for women and youth in the camps and leaders and follow up with longer term programs for civil society and learning institutions. I also hope to continue helping with material and informational assistance to women and young girls in camps.

For those interested in supporting women and girls materially, IPI has been collecting clothes and food stuffs and taking to various collection points in Meru. However, from the experience of what the women in Nakuru told me, IPI will be distributing the stuff directly to women in their tents within the camps like we did the last time we donated underwear and pads to women and girls at Nakuru.

*Dr. Karambu Ringera was one of the few women who ran for elected office. She was the North Imenti Parliamentary Aspirant.

*Please send comments to or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

Thank you for having me on your show this morning.

I have been following the situation in Kenya closely, and I am deeply concerned by the news and photographs I have seen. I want you to know that my thoughts and prayers - and those of my family - are with all of the victims of the violence, and with all Kenyans who have been displaced from their homes.

Urgent action must be taken to stop this spiral of violence, and to help resolve the current political crisis. Kenya has long been known as a multi-ethnic society. The steps you have taken toward multi-party democracy in recent years have set a proud example for east Africa.

I have personally been touched by your generous, democratic spirit through my ties to my own family, and during my travels to Kenya -most recently as a United States Senator in 2006. This Kenyan spirit rises above ethnic groups or political parties, and was on display in Kenya's recent election, when you turned out to vote in record numbers, and in a peaceful and orderly way.

But recent troubling events in Kenya bear no resemblance to the Kenya I know and carry with me. The senseless and tragic violence poses an urgent and dangerous threat to Kenyans, Kenyan democracy, and stability and economic development in a vital region.

Most troubling are new indications that the violence is being organized, planned and coordinated.

Clearly, Kenya has reached a defining moment. There is no doubt that there were serious flaws in the vote tabulation. There is also no doubt that actions taken by both sides in the aftermath of the election have deepened the political impasse.

Now is not the time to throw Kenyan democracy and national unity away. Now is the time for all parties to renounce violence.

Now is the time for Kenya's leaders to rise above party affiliation and past divisions for the sake of peace. President Kibaki, Raila Odinga, and all of Kenya's leaders - political, civic, business, and religious -- have a responsibility to calm tensions, to come together unconditionally, and to pursue a political process to address peacefully the controversies that divide them.

This crisis and terrible violence must end. A negotiated solution must be peaceful and political, and should take account of past failures and prevent future conflict.

The rule of law and the rights of the Kenyan people - including freedom of the media and the freedom of peaceful assembly - must be restored.

Recent efforts by African Eminent Persons, like Kofi Annan, have yielded very modest progress, and there is no reason President Kibaki and Mr. Odinga should refuse to sit down unconditionally. To refuse to do so ignores the will of Kenyans and the urging of the united international community. While only Kenyans can resolve this crisis, I urge you to welcome the assistance of your concerned friends in working through this difficult time.

The deep frustrations that are felt on allsides of the Kenyan divide are understandable. There is no doubt that much more work remains to be done for Kenya to become a more equitable and democratic society.

But Kenya has come too far to throw away decades of progress in a storm of violence and political unrest. We must not look back years from now and wonder how and why things were permitted to go so horribly wrong. Kenya, its African friends, and the United States must now be determined pursuers of peace - and this determined pursuit must start today with individual Kenyans refusing to resort to violence, and Kenyan leaders accepting thei responsibility to turn away from confrontation by coming together.

Kenya's long democratic journey has at times been difficult. But at critical moments, Kenyans have chosen unity and progress over division and disaster. The way forward is not through violence. To all of Kenya's people, I urge you to renounce the violence that is tearing your great country apart and deepening suffering. I urge you to follow a path of peace.

* Sen. Barack Obama delivered this statement on Capital-FM at 7:45 a.m. January 29, 2008

* Please send comments to or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

Reflections arising from the report on the AACC solidarity visit led by Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Introduction

Following the post election violence that rocked the Republic of Kenya after President Kibaki was declared the winner of the December 2007 elections, the All Africa Conference of Churches, with headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, sought to contribute to the calming of the situation and the resolution of the problem by inviting a team of eminent African Church leaders led by Archbishop Desmond Tutu to come and offer solidarity to the people of Kenya and help profile the cause of peace to the nation. The Archbishop was accompanied by the President of the All Africa Conference of Churches the Rt. Rev. Nyansako ni Nku, the Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa and former General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches Dr. Brigalia H. Bam and the General Secretary of the All Africa Conference of Churches, the Rev. Dr. H. Mvume Dandala.

The information gathered during this visit indicated something of the complexity of the problem, as well as the fact that finding a solution, both on a short term and on a long term basis will need to take into consideration a number of factors such as:
- The Historical background
- The tension defined
- The expressions of the violence
- The Role of the Church
- The Role of the media
- Possible Ways forward

It is with these in mind that the AACC offers the reflections contained herein.

Background

Whilst the visit was short, the AACC heard clearly the voices of many to the effect that only Kenyans could intervene in this situation. Any form of ‘international mediation or intervention’ was looked at askance. Whilst the National Council of Churches of Kenya opened its welcoming arms to the visit, the delegation sensed that not all the churches were fully convinced of the merits of the solidarity visit of the Archbishop even though these were expressed in respectful ways. On the other hand messages of appreciation from ordinary Kenyans were frequently received by the AACC, often couched with expressions of hope that the visit would help bring peace. The sense of the AACC
is that these doubts about the efficacy of the visit were driven either by
- the sense of patriotic pride that hurts from anything that may be perceived as suggesting that the Kenyans are not able to resolve this problem on their own;
- the uncertainty of what an even handed approach might lead to, or
- the firm belief that there are indeed Kenyans who can be able to facilitate an adequate response to the crisis.

Most disturbing is the often mutely expressed statement by some Kenyans that “this is not the first time that Kenyans have experienced this kind of crisis, and just as they have resolved the past similar crises, so will they resolve this one as well”. This attitude feels indifferent to the loss of life of even one Kenyan. It is not worthy of any nation that values the lives of all its citizens.

On the other hand it is possible that the conviction that it will take a Kenyan mediator to intervene effectively may be born of recognition that the communities at conflict have historical, long standing voiced and unvoiced and often nuanced concerns that an outsider may not easily be sensitive to. Participation in an ecumenical prayer service for church leaders at All Saints Anglican Cathedral on Sunday January 6th, 2007 gave one a glimpse of such concerns. The issues at stake may range from perceived unfair resource sharing, ethnic distrust and many other such issues that may have compounded themselves into modern Kenyan politics. What is obvious is that these stretch from beyond colonial times to modern Kenyan governance with all the complications that were subsequent to colonial domination. The regularity with which these issues are referred to by the Kenyan community should make it possible for the Kenyan society to overcome them. But the question is whether these are confronted with such honesty in the corridors of power where they should be dealt with.

The AACC is of the mind that there is therefore need for such historical facts to be understood as part of the process to the resolution of the impasse, both on a short and on a long term basis. Whether this is done by an international or local mediation body is a moot point. The critical factor is the independence of the mediation body, together with the rigour and sense of fairness that such a body would bring. Such a body must assist the country to find speedily a workable resolution to the immediate impasse, thus creating space for a longer term solution that will lay the foundations for the healing of the country and the strengthening of the overall sense of common nationhood among all the peoples of Kenya.

But for now the question is what is it that the AACC team heard as to the nature of the reigning crisis?

The tension defined

While the conflict erupted as a consequence of disputed presidential electoral results, the communities at conflict have a historical and long standing and often unvoiced concerns, dating back to independence days when many Kenyans felt that their expectations were not met. The independent government inherited colonial structures and failed to address the injustices and inequalities that had characterised the nation because people had different persuasions. And therefore, over the years, it has appeared that the president of the day brings his community closer to power to benefit from national resources more than other communities.

Violence

The various parties have differing views as to the nature of the violence that has been evident. Some see it as a political tool, pre-meditated and deliberately unleashed with an element of ethnic cleansing in its make up. Claims were made that some of the perpetrators of the violence were paid to do so.

Others see it as a spontaneous and unorganised natural reaction to what they see as vicious day light robbery at the polls which the voters could not stomach.

The delegation wondered if there was adequate political will to stop the violence and find a solution that is acceptable to all. The PNU and the ODM both appear unshaken in their conviction that the other party is responsible and has the capacity to stop the violence. If preventing the deaths and the destruction of property was paramount in the thinking of all the parties, it must be obvious that the leaders of all the parties should have come out together at least to denounce the violence in full view of the nation and offer assurance that an equitable solution was being sought. Such a joint condemnation of violence should have been made regardless of the cause, whether pre-meditated, spontaneous, ethnic or otherwise. This agenda item is still outstanding.

The Role of the Church

Reports from the church leaders spoken to indicate that the church is appalled by the violence, and had in fact, at the time of the arrival of the delegation, already started to take steps to respond to the crisis. But the church leaders did not try to hide the fact that there was a lot of division even amongst themselves. Some church leaders, if not most, were perceived to have aligned themselves with specific party positions, thus robbing the church of an authoritative, collective and independent moral voice that could champion the cause of peace and unity for the nation in spite of the different political views. The churches, according to the NCCK, are clear in that the healing of the nation must go hand in hand with the healing of the church.
The initiatives of the church had not yet gained a high media profile at the time of the solidarity visit. But a common front for an effective ministry to the nation through the National Alliance of Churches had been forged. The Alliance has four major task forces, viz:

1. The political
2. The humanitarian
3. Communication, and
4. The Spiritual.

Through these the church is poised for a significant ministry impact to the nation. The church leaders have a responsibility to:
- Encourage and enable the political leaders to come together to call for the end to violence and speak for the preservation of life.
- Encourage the leaders to ensure that there is space for alternative voices to be heard without this descending into a conflagration of violence.
- Impress strongly on the political leaders to embrace alternative ways of resolving conflict to violence.

While the question of the source of violence cannot be ignored for an effective response to be developed, it is essential that this should not be allowed to create a stalemate as it is likely to. The churches themselves are not of one view on this matter. As the visit report indicates the gulf is big between the parties as to the causes of the violence. The church can and should assist for common positions to counter and forestall violence to be developed and embraced by all.

The delegation noted that there is suspicion of the usage of church language among the various parties. The ODM alleged that some of their leaders have been referred to as “devil worshippers” and that in spite of the fact that those leaders are Christians their churches did not assist them to clear their names before the nation. On the other hand it may be inferred that in expressing concern that ‘the churches must support a constitutionally elected government’ the government (PNU) was calling for the public support of the church in this crisis. It simply is essential that the church does not try to hedge its bets but instead clarify its message. Such a message has to be based on that which will heal the nation and purify the institutions of national governance so that the faith of the people in these is restored. This in itself will go a long way in redeeming the church thus restoring its moral authority which this situation has sought to compromise.

The role of the Media

At the time of the solidarity visit some measures were in place to limit the work of the media. This is regrettable. The churches cannot afford to overlook it. The role of the media in this crisis may need reflection with the view that the confidence of the populace on the media should be nurtured as an essential element in the work of healing the nation. Questions were raised with the delegation as to whether the media may have fuelled (wittingly or unwittingly) the crisis during the period preceding the elections.

The role of the media in the formation of national attitudes can never be overemphasised. The media’s role is more than merely reporting what is happening. It has to stimulate creative thinking in the nation about the values that the nation cherishes and raise questions where any section of society seeks to undermine or demonstrates disregard of the common good and the institutions that seek to serve the common good.

- The media must be used to bring people together instead of inflaming them.
- It should use history to heal and build people instead of dividing them.
- It must demystify myths about ethnic practices instead of perpetuating them

It is in this light that the role of the media in this crisis should be examined. Reasons behind the limitations that were imposed on the media in the course of this crisis could either be that the media used its freedom irresponsibly, or that those with authority did not like what they saw of themselves in the mirror that is the media. Since the media is a prime catalyst for exchanging ideas in a free society it is essential that its freedom is guaranteed with instruments of protest against it in place where its objectivity is suspect. The alternative is a perception that totalitarian seeds are being sown. The Republic of Kenya, a bastion of peace and developing democracy in Africa, cannot afford to lower its guard on this score.

Possible Resolution Scenarios for consideration by the Church

The AACC believes that there is an important role for the churches of Kenya to play in helping towards the resolution of this impasse. Primarily the church should assist the key leaders of the various parties to accept joint responsibility for diffusing the crisis.

1. Top in the process should be agreed strategies to stop the violence. The political leaders must mobilise all their people to desist from violent activities and in fact declare violence the enemy of the nation.
2. The leaders must reinforce the right to freedom of expression. Police and rally marshals should be deployed under the command of the police to protect demonstrators, passers by and property. They must seek to ensure that no one abuses the right to freedom of speech as a licence to kill, injure or loot property.
3. The Kenyan Law and Order Enforcement agencies, especially the police, should be encouraged to desist from using excessive force during such demonstrations.
4. Church leaders must help engender a spirit of cooperation among the opposing political parties that will allow a structure that is accommodative to lead the administration of the country.
5. Church leaders must accompany such a structure with processes that will limit the chances of reneging on positions agreed to. They must help create and nurture space for mistrust to be reduced.
6. On a longer term basis Church leaders should help both the political leaders and the general population to identify those institutional structural deficiencies that made this crisis possible, such as the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) in order to pave the way for the strengthening of such structures, thus laying the foundations for a more secure and dependable electoral system.
7. On a long term basis Church leaders have to assist put in place processes that will contribute towards the enhancement of a common sense of Nationhood that transcends ethnicity so that the sharing of resources and access to justice is not only equitable, but seen to be so by the nation at large.
8. Church leaders must prioritise the healing of the church as they themselves have acknowledged this need.

* Please send comments to or comment online at http://www.pambazuka.org/