"What is happening in Kenya is not—I repeat not an ethnic conflict.", Donald Payne
Yes, those were the words Congressman Donald Payne used in his opening statement in an hearing by the Sub-Committee on Africa and Global Health. Donald Payne supported his thesis by claiming that he had visited the Jamhuri Park camp and met internally displaced people from different ethnic groups. How I wish he had visited the killing fields of Rift Valley!
Payne tore into the US Department of State for its statement that exposed ethnic cleansing in Kenya. US envoy Jendayi Frazer said what was happening in Kenya "was clear ethnic cleansing." The Department of State refused to withdraw the statement in its daily brief to the press.
The term ethnic cleansing is defined as "The systematic elimination of an ethnic group or groups from a region or society, as by deportation, forced emigration, or genocide."
That is exactly what happened in Kenya. It all started with the slaughter of and burning to death of Kenyans who are from the Kikuyu and Kisii ethnic groups. Entire villages were destroyed and resident forcifully evicted from areas where the Kalenjin and Luos were the majority. Evidence that this happened is detailed in several entries I have made in this blog - http://kenyangenocide.blogspot.com/
Former UN Secretary General Koffi Annan visited the Rift Valley in Kenya and reported that what he saw as the violence "may have been triggered by the electoral result, but it has evolved into something else where there is gross and systematic abuse of the rights of citizens."
"It is essential the facts be established and those responsible be held to account.... Let us not kid ourselves and think that this is an electoral problem. It is much broader and much deeper... We have to tackle the fundamental issues that underlie what we are witnessing today. If we do not do that, three, five years from now we may be back at this," Dr. Annan said.
Somebody should tell Payne that the Kalenjin militia has followed Kikuyu and Kisii refugees into Uganda and attempted to poison food in a refugee camp. This in my opinon is a quest to annihilate people from target ethnic groups. The Kalenjin militia burned people taking shelter in a church. They tossed little children who had escaped back into the fire. These are not actions of people who are protesting an election as Payne is implying.
The militia attacked a university in Kenya and demanded that students from target ethnic groups be handed to them for slaughter. This is a clear indication of ethnic cleansing.
It is in the public domain that Raila Odinga is using the services of American spin doctor Dick Morris (Watch video of Dick Morris addressing the press). Lobying congressmen in Washington is part of Raila's deal with Dick. It should not surprise us that Payne may have received a visit from Dick Morris and was given a script to sanitize those behind the genocide in Kenya using the US House of Representatives.
Donald Payne ignored many facts that point to ethnic cleansing in Kenya.
In an interview with the BBC, (click to listen) Jackson Kibor -a prominante Kalenjin leader- said, "We will not sit down and see one tribe lead Kenya. We will fight. This is a war. We will start a war. One tribe cannot lead 41 tribes. This is a war. Now we are fighting for power."
In response to a question if they Kalenjins would let the Kikuyu come back to their land Kibor said, "No we will not let them come back again because they are thieves. We will never let them come back. Kikuyus should be on their own. We will divide Kenya." (Click for verbertim)
If such a statement was made by somebody in the US while racial wars are taking place, the person could be charged with with hate crimes. It is a shame that congressman Payne is supporting such statements and actions.
Human Rights Watch released a report indicating that the opposition was behind ethnic cleansing in Kenya. "We have evidence that ODM politicians and local leaders actively fomented some post-election violence, and the authorities should investigate and make sure it stops now," The report said.
Raila Odinga can afford the services of lobyist Dick Morris to sanitize his name. This is a service that Kenyans who have been evicted from their homes and have had their children killed cannot afford. Residents of District 10 in New Jersey (Essex County, Hudson County and Union County) should contact Donald Payne and give him facts on the case.
Kenyan Americans in the state of New Jersey should say no to the impunity and special interests that Payne is serving. Payne should remember that a majority of Kenyan Americans in the US reside in his district. Payne cannot -without shame- deny that the slaughter of his constituents' families in Kenya.
Please contact Donald Payne
Click on link to email Payne: http://www.house.gov/payne/IMA/issue.htm
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Showing posts with label Mark Too. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mark Too. Show all posts
Friday, February 29, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Kibor: We will divide Kenya
At last Jackson Kibor arraigned for incitement despite protests to realease his led by Raila Odinga and ODM. In a report titled Kenya in Crisis, the International Crisis Group said "A powerful tribal elder was heard making statements that would have seen him prosecuted in many countries. Jackson Kibor, a prominent Nandi elder and politician in Eldoret, was unapologetic over the violence and said to the BBC that the Kalenjin have a right to kill Kikuyus. He described the violence in the Rift Valley as “a war” and said Kikuyus will never be allowed back. This chilling message from the traditional elders is widely shared by most ordinary Kalenjin."
ODM leader, Mr Raila Odinga (centre) with party members
Dr Oburu Odinga (Raila's Brother) (left) and Mr Jackson Kibor at Pentagon House yesterday.
Kibor, who was released from police custody recently, congratulated Raila on signing
Kibor, who was released from police custody recently, congratulated Raila on signing
the peace deal. Picture by Dominic Odhiambo
The Standard, March 2, 2008
(Update: The article has since been deleted from The Standards' Website)
(Update: The article has since been deleted from The Standards' Website)
In the last few days ODM leadership has openly called for the issolation of the kikuyu community into their own country. Najib Balala promised to reduce the Kikuyu to Lesotho a sentiment that was reaffirmed by a statement by ODM MPs read by Ababu Namwamba saying that the Kikuyu should be isolated into their own country. Definately a lot of violence has to be used to round up the Kikuyu and send them to the Lesotho that ODM is building for the Kikuyus. And that is where Jackson Kibor and is army come in.
In an interview with the BBC, Jackson Kibor said, "Kikuyus should be on their own. We will divide Kenya."
Anthony Kimani with his baby saved from the burning church
The following is part of the interview. You can also listen to it by clicking here.
Note: Some people have called the interview a fabrication by me. Their doubts are understandable considering the fact that Kibor's words are outrageous. It is unbelievable that in this time and age somebody can still judge and call for the exetermination of another citizen based on the citizen's ethnic identity. Those disputing the fact that the interview was done by the BBC should note that the link comes from the bbc.co.uk domain owned by the BBC. You can access the page that contains the link to the audio by using google. Copy/paste this phrase that is in bold: site:bbc.co.uk "Eldoret from where Pascale Harter" End of phrase.
I prepared the transcript below from the audio.
Interviewer: Why target your neighbor? They didn’t rig the election.
Kibor: People have to fight the Kikuyu because Kibaki is a Kikuyu. People felt that all the Kikuyus were supporters of Kibaki so they have to fight them so that Kibaki can feel the pinch. We are 42 tribes. The other tribes are supporting ODM. The Kikuyu are the only ones supporting Kibaki. How can one tribe defeat others. That was the Kikuyu plan.
Interviewer: So targeting the Kikuyu, holding them responsible for the actions of Mwai Kibaki and his PNU Party is a political strategy for you? So when was that decided?
Kibor: It was nobody’s plan to beat the Kikuyus… no … it was a reaction. People just reacted and thy chased the Kikuyu.
Interviewer: What about now? What is the plan now? What would you tell the Kalenjin to do now?
Kibor: We will not sit down and see one tribe lead Kenya. We will fight. This is a war. We will start a war. One tribe cannot lead 41 tribes. This is a war. Now we are fighting for power.
Interviewer: Can you live in peace again? Will you as a Kalenjin leader tell your people to accept the Kikuyus coming back to their home and living here again?
Kibor: No we will not let them come back again because they are thieves. We will never let them come back.
Interviewer: Do you want to drive them out of Rift Valley, out of Western Kenya altogether?
Kibor: Correct. Correct. Kikuyus should be on their own. We will divide Kenya
Raila Odinga -a man who claims to be a Pan Africanist and a statesman- cannot see anything wrong with what Kibor said. He wants Kibor to be freed. A man who is promising to unite Kenya should he be PM is acusing the police of being overzelous. And that is why he stormed CID offices to demand Kibor's release.
Kibor's supporters are demanding his release on the grounds that he is an frail old man who doesn't deserve to spend a dail in jail. God has blessed Kibor by giving him 72 years on this earth. Some of Kibor's victims were not luck enough to see their 3rd birthday. Kibor may be a frail old man but his resolve to call for the slaughter of innocent Kenyans was not a frail. Age is supposed to make us wiser but this in not the case with Kibor.
The international community seems to be thinking that Kenya will be at peace once power is shared and ODM is rewarded with seats in the government. Not when the Kalenjin militia follows refugees to neoghboring countries to poison them; not when refugees are tossed into a river and left to down in what reminds us of River Kagera in Rwanda. The hate behind these and many other massacres cannot be erased by a PM seat. The seats that the international community is bargaining for Raila Odinga's ODM will be used to shelter people who have committed crimes against humanity.
In the West people who commit crimes against humanity are labeled terrorists and hunted down to the last man. In Kenya, the West wants us to reward criminals. In the West, staments issued by Osama Bin Laden calling for the slaughter of innocent people are taken as serious. Western governments use sophiciticated equipment to acertain authenticity of the voice. In Kenya, the opposition is calling for anhilation of the Kikuyu but the West is calling it freedom of speech!
Kass FM openly called for the Kalenjin to cut Kikuyus like grass but the station has to be kept operating lets the international comminity accuses the Kenyan government of dictatorship.
Bill Clinton said, “Genocide can occur anywhere. It is not an African phenomenon. We must have global vigilance. And never again must we be shy in the face of the evidence.”
There is evidence of a genocide but the world is shy to face it. It will take the slaughter of 1 million people for world leaders to stand in line waiting to shed their share of crocodile tears.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Balala: We reduce them to an Island like Lesotho
I was shocked to read Najib Balala's calls for renewed violence against the Kikuyu. Balala’s unfortunate rhetoric comes hours after Raila promised, “The moment it is announced that the talks collapsed, I am sure there will be an eruption countrywide,” he said. “It will be chaos.”
Najib Balala's war rhetoric below shows that voilence against innocent Kenyans reamins their only bargaining chip on the table.
First, Balala talked about his subject wanting to rule so that they could “be able to steal what they have lost in 24 years.” The 24 years he is talking about is what is known as the Nyayo era when Daniel Arap Moi –a kalenjin- ruled Kenya. He cannot be talking about President Kibaki because Kibaki was a vice president in Moi’s government for many years. This leaves us with the Kikuyu community. For the past 5 years, ODM -and Raila Odinga- has been telling Kenyans that the Kikuyus are stealing to “recoup” what thy lost in 24 years. This kind of propaganda was meant to create an environment where Kenyans vote out Kibaki because of anti-Kikuyu sentiments and not because of how he performed during his first term.
The second pointer is Balala’s talk about reducing “them to an Island like Lesotho.” He cannot be talking about PNU because PNU is a party that members can join or leave on their own resolve. It is a party with members across the country represented by elected Members of Parliament. This was a direct attack on the Kikuyu people because they have unchangeable ethnic heritage. One cannot wake up one morning and decide that he is not a Kikuyu. His accent and facial features, will definitely do him in.
Looking at the map above, you can clearly see that Central Province –a region predominantly occupied by the Kikuyu- will be doubly-landlocked just like Lesotho should ODM succeed in balkanizing Kenya.
Najib Balala’s unfortunate comments have been made in the past. William Ole Ntimama (an ODM MP) once said, "I told them that because of their (the Kikuyus’) arrogance, they will be cut down to size as it happened to the Ibos of Nigeria."
The above sentiments have been repeated over and over by politicians and the outcome has always been ethnic cleansing. Some politicians have mastered the art of blaming the Kikuyu of all ills that afflict our country. This is done to rally with supporters around them (the politicians) against a common “enemy”.
The international community is yet to realize that creating powerful seats for politicians, who have openly called for, planned and financed ethnic cleansing in Kenya will not be a permanent solution to the violence. They will continue killing with impunity because their action will always be rewarded with seats in government.
Violence against innocent Kenyans should not be used as a bargaining chip to negotiate power.
Najib Balala's war rhetoric below shows that voilence against innocent Kenyans reamins their only bargaining chip on the table.
“They don’t believe this country has a crisis. They are not in a hurry. They don’t believe it is a powerhouse of Sub-Saharan Africa. They believe they want to rule and be able to steal what they have lost in 24 years,” he (Najib Balala) said.Obviously he was not referring to PNU. PNU was just euphemism for the Kikuyu community. There are two pointers to this.
The Pentagon member added; “We are pressurised by our people, if the negotiations are not working, then we change the terms of reference of the negotiations to discuss boundaries then we reduce them to an Island like Lesotho and that is the language they understand.”
First, Balala talked about his subject wanting to rule so that they could “be able to steal what they have lost in 24 years.” The 24 years he is talking about is what is known as the Nyayo era when Daniel Arap Moi –a kalenjin- ruled Kenya. He cannot be talking about President Kibaki because Kibaki was a vice president in Moi’s government for many years. This leaves us with the Kikuyu community. For the past 5 years, ODM -and Raila Odinga- has been telling Kenyans that the Kikuyus are stealing to “recoup” what thy lost in 24 years. This kind of propaganda was meant to create an environment where Kenyans vote out Kibaki because of anti-Kikuyu sentiments and not because of how he performed during his first term.
The second pointer is Balala’s talk about reducing “them to an Island like Lesotho.” He cannot be talking about PNU because PNU is a party that members can join or leave on their own resolve. It is a party with members across the country represented by elected Members of Parliament. This was a direct attack on the Kikuyu people because they have unchangeable ethnic heritage. One cannot wake up one morning and decide that he is not a Kikuyu. His accent and facial features, will definitely do him in.
Looking at the map above, you can clearly see that Central Province –a region predominantly occupied by the Kikuyu- will be doubly-landlocked just like Lesotho should ODM succeed in balkanizing Kenya.
Najib Balala’s unfortunate comments have been made in the past. William Ole Ntimama (an ODM MP) once said, "I told them that because of their (the Kikuyus’) arrogance, they will be cut down to size as it happened to the Ibos of Nigeria."
The above sentiments have been repeated over and over by politicians and the outcome has always been ethnic cleansing. Some politicians have mastered the art of blaming the Kikuyu of all ills that afflict our country. This is done to rally with supporters around them (the politicians) against a common “enemy”.
The international community is yet to realize that creating powerful seats for politicians, who have openly called for, planned and financed ethnic cleansing in Kenya will not be a permanent solution to the violence. They will continue killing with impunity because their action will always be rewarded with seats in government.
Violence against innocent Kenyans should not be used as a bargaining chip to negotiate power.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
The Eldoret Massacre
If you are Raila Odinga, the Eldoret Massacre is part of the expected results of a football match. If you are Ida Odinga, you will stand besides your husband as he uses violence as a bargaining chip. If you are Fidel Castro Odinga, you will cheer on your dad's fans seeking to burn Kenya to the ground. But if you are a Kenyan you will not see anything funny in this:
That is how cheap the life has become in Kenya. It is just a game so sit back, grab some popcorn and enjoy watching children tossed into the fire.
Those are words of a brave Raila Odinga supporter. Cold and unmoved by what they did. That was the demeanor in Rwanda. Human life had been rendered worthless.
Leaders of the Orange Democratic Movement are yet to come out and condemn the Eldoret Massacre from the bottom of their hearts. The Vocal MP for Eldoret North William Ruto is missing from the national scene and has not dared to restrain his supporters. The victims of the Kenyan Genocide are instead being blamed for their situation.
The official line from ODM has been, "Nobody wants to spill blood, but democracy has no shortcut."
In short, we have been forced to spill the blood of innocent Kenyans because there is a dictator in power.
Democracy -as per my aunderstanding- is when citizens make a choice without having to pay with their lives. There have been several reports saying that the Kikuyu, Kisii, Kamba, Embu, Meru and Kamba have been targeted because they "never voted for" Raila Odinga. I wonder what kind of democracy they are talking about.
I wonder what democracy they are talking about when they are urging their supporters not to respect the right to own property in any part of the country.
I wonder what democracy they are taling about when freedom of movement is not a right but a privilage dished out only to those tribes that are seen to be in support of Raila Odinga.
Raila Odinga: This kind of violence can be caused by anything. I give you and an example of a football match. You have also cases of Man U in UK fight against fans of Chelsea he he he ho ho or Asenal he he or so on.
Intervewer: But burning of churches and mass murder have more in common with the specter of Rwanda than they do a football matches.
http://www.channel4.com/player/v2/player.jsp?showId=10680
That is how cheap the life has become in Kenya. It is just a game so sit back, grab some popcorn and enjoy watching children tossed into the fire.
"The men and women had babies and small children, but they carried pangas to
defend themselves. Is someone with a panga innocent? It is not our custom to
kill women and children. We told them to come out of the church, but they
locked the door and refused to come out. So we burned them."
The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/kenya/story/0,,2234305,00.html
Those are words of a brave Raila Odinga supporter. Cold and unmoved by what they did. That was the demeanor in Rwanda. Human life had been rendered worthless.
Leaders of the Orange Democratic Movement are yet to come out and condemn the Eldoret Massacre from the bottom of their hearts. The Vocal MP for Eldoret North William Ruto is missing from the national scene and has not dared to restrain his supporters. The victims of the Kenyan Genocide are instead being blamed for their situation.
The official line from ODM has been, "Nobody wants to spill blood, but democracy has no shortcut."
In short, we have been forced to spill the blood of innocent Kenyans because there is a dictator in power.
Democracy -as per my aunderstanding- is when citizens make a choice without having to pay with their lives. There have been several reports saying that the Kikuyu, Kisii, Kamba, Embu, Meru and Kamba have been targeted because they "never voted for" Raila Odinga. I wonder what kind of democracy they are talking about.
I wonder what democracy they are talking about when they are urging their supporters not to respect the right to own property in any part of the country.
I wonder what democracy they are taling about when freedom of movement is not a right but a privilage dished out only to those tribes that are seen to be in support of Raila Odinga.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Maina Kiai where are you????
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights chair Maina Kiai is missing in action. The vocal human rights activist has always been handy in advocating for the interests of politicians as if only political interests qualify as human rights.
The Eldoret Massacre was the single most deadly event in the ongoing genocide. Women and children who had taken shelter in a church were burnt to ashes in broad daylight. The killers blocked all exits before setting the church on fire.
After a long silence about the genocide that is going on, Maina Kiai came out to defend rights of Raila Odinga's supporters to hold a protest. Newspaper reports covering the Raila protests quoted some Raila supporters confessing of slaughtering Kikuyus. The protestors promised to continue the killings until Raila Odinga is installed as president.
“Whereas we understand that the police commissioner may be concerned about the state of security in the country to issue such orders, such decrees not only contravene the law, but only serve to aggravate the situation further,” said the commission’s chairman Maina Kiai in a statement sent to newsrooms last evening.
Daily Nation, Jan 02, 2008 22:41 PM (EAT)
http://politics.nationmedia.com/inner.asp?pcat=NEWS&cat=TOP&sid=1194
Maina Kiai's selective interpretation of human rights is like spitting and the face of the victims. Didn't Maina Kiai and his organization find the lives of innocent Kenyans worth a two sentence statement?
Maina Kiai is paid by the Kenyan citizens to advocate for the rights of the down trodden. He has opted to protect the interests of politicians instead because it pays handsomely. It boosts your ego when you mingle with the high and the mighty.
Silence from the KNCHR is an endorsement of the genocide.
UPDATE 1:
After a long slilence, Maina Kiai has found his voice again. His voice coincided with the ODM SMS that has been circulating saying that Mungiki has been activated by the Government.
I am still looking for Maina Kiai's statements on the Eldoret Massacre, The burning of Burnt Forest, The Kaptein Massacre, The Mass Exodus in Rift Valley, The Siege of Baraton University, ....................................
The facts are there for the world to see. The perpetuators of the Genocide can hire the best publicists in the world; they can buy all the Human Rights organisations but they cannot burry the facts in water. The corpses of the children, women and men massacred in Rift Valley are rotting. No amount of perfume can mask stench. Even the killers are pleading that their victims corpses be removed. They can't the stench of their own mess!
This is not about a rigged election. It is about killing certain ethnic groups in RV to deny them their right to own property in the province.
UPDATE 2:
At last Maina Kiai visits Eldoret to shed crocodile tears. A man who has given the 'rigged' election as justification to the killings in RV expected a warm welcome but he received boos.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ozjdDSejbbw
Maina Kiai and his KNCHR were missing when the rights of the common citizen were being violated. He was missing when Kalenjin Militia drowned 30 Kenyan refugees in River Kapkaren. Now he shows up to fake empathy?
Let Maina Kiai enjoy his 30 pieces of silver in peace without trying to mock the victims of the criminals that he is representing.
The Eldoret Massacre was the single most deadly event in the ongoing genocide. Women and children who had taken shelter in a church were burnt to ashes in broad daylight. The killers blocked all exits before setting the church on fire.
After a long silence about the genocide that is going on, Maina Kiai came out to defend rights of Raila Odinga's supporters to hold a protest. Newspaper reports covering the Raila protests quoted some Raila supporters confessing of slaughtering Kikuyus. The protestors promised to continue the killings until Raila Odinga is installed as president.
“Whereas we understand that the police commissioner may be concerned about the state of security in the country to issue such orders, such decrees not only contravene the law, but only serve to aggravate the situation further,” said the commission’s chairman Maina Kiai in a statement sent to newsrooms last evening.
Daily Nation, Jan 02, 2008 22:41 PM (EAT)
http://politics.nationmedia.com/inner.asp?pcat=NEWS&cat=TOP&sid=1194
Maina Kiai's selective interpretation of human rights is like spitting and the face of the victims. Didn't Maina Kiai and his organization find the lives of innocent Kenyans worth a two sentence statement?
Maina Kiai is paid by the Kenyan citizens to advocate for the rights of the down trodden. He has opted to protect the interests of politicians instead because it pays handsomely. It boosts your ego when you mingle with the high and the mighty.
Silence from the KNCHR is an endorsement of the genocide.
---------------------------------------------------------
UPDATE 1:
After a long slilence, Maina Kiai has found his voice again. His voice coincided with the ODM SMS that has been circulating saying that Mungiki has been activated by the Government.
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.
http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnL09697986.html
I am still looking for Maina Kiai's statements on the Eldoret Massacre, The burning of Burnt Forest, The Kaptein Massacre, The Mass Exodus in Rift Valley, The Siege of Baraton University, ....................................
The facts are there for the world to see. The perpetuators of the Genocide can hire the best publicists in the world; they can buy all the Human Rights organisations but they cannot burry the facts in water. The corpses of the children, women and men massacred in Rift Valley are rotting. No amount of perfume can mask stench. Even the killers are pleading that their victims corpses be removed. They can't the stench of their own mess!
This is not about a rigged election. It is about killing certain ethnic groups in RV to deny them their right to own property in the province.
----------------------------------------------
UPDATE 2:
At last Maina Kiai visits Eldoret to shed crocodile tears. A man who has given the 'rigged' election as justification to the killings in RV expected a warm welcome but he received boos.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ozjdDSejbbw
Maina Kiai and his KNCHR were missing when the rights of the common citizen were being violated. He was missing when Kalenjin Militia drowned 30 Kenyan refugees in River Kapkaren. Now he shows up to fake empathy?
Let Maina Kiai enjoy his 30 pieces of silver in peace without trying to mock the victims of the criminals that he is representing.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
The truth about the Kenyan Genocide
The international press and the international community are pre-occupied with the results of the recently concluded elections in Kenya while genocide goes on unabated. Innocent children are hacked to death yet everybody is talking about the election results! It is sad to note that we are quick to give justification of the killings while ignoring the historical events that have put us in this predicament.
The opposition is accusing President Mwai Kibaki's party of rigging the election by inflating the results. On the other hand the president's party is accusing the opposition of locking out its (the ruling party's) agents from its strongholds then allowing multiple voting by compromising election officials. A close look at the election results shows that there was an unrealistically high turnout of voters in Eastern Province and Central Province where the president is rated favorably. There was also a very high turnout of voters in opposition strongholds in Rift Valley and Nyanza Provinces. This makes it difficult to tell who the real winner is in that poll that was said to be too close to call in pre-election surveys.
So how did the results lead to violence?
Even before the elections were held, there was propaganda circulating in Kenya pitting the Kikuyu tribe against the rest of Kenyans. Lists of Kikuyu government employees were circulated to create the notion that only Kikuyus were occupying top jobs. Those lists contained names of people from the Embu and Meru communities that live in the area around Mt. Kenya.
Kikuyu, Meru (composed of Meru, Mbeere, Tharaka) and Embu make up 24%, 6% and 3% of the Kenyan population respectively. People from these tribes are lumped together as GEMA and make up over 30% of the Kenyan population. One would expect a people who make up 30% of the population to have a noticeable presence in the job market and in the economy.
As a response to the propaganda, Government spokesman Dr. Mutua issued a 2000-name list of government appointees, that showed a balanced job distribution among tribes and districts. If anything, Kikuyus had a lower proportion than their ratio of the population. By then, the damage had been done , and the perception of Gema domination in government jobs stuck.
Then we propaganda saying that Central Province contributed the least in taxes yet it was allocated the most amount of money for development. This was first revealed in an op-ed by Barrack Muluka (The Standard, Saturday July 29, 2006 and Saturday July 22, 2006)http://www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143956003http://www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143955681&date=22/7/2006
Kenya is a unitary state that is mainly funded by income tax and sales tax. From what I understand the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) doesn't keep tally on what each province contributes. Such a figure will be hard to come by because businesses are registered in Nairobi and remit their income tax to KRA in Nairobi no matter what part of the country the companies are doing business. Also a significant number of people working in Nairobi City live in Central
province. This means that if we were to look at income tax collected from Nairobi, it will also include residents of Central Province.
Those talking about distribution of wealth present the case as though the distribution should be between tribes. The reality on the ground is that Kenya has a few rich people (made of elites from all tribes) and a majority of poor people. The elites pushing the tribal agenda deflect the issue of equitable distribution of wealth from being a class issue and make it a tribal issue.
A majority of Kenyans living in the slums is made up of people form the Kikuyu tribe. The area around Mt. Kenya where the so-called Gema tribes come from is densely populated forcing it inhabitants to seek land and jobs outside their ancestral lands. Today, the Kikuyu and the Kisii ( another bantu tribe from a densely populated region in Nyanza Province) can be found in all part of Kenya. A majority of Kenyan immigrants in the USA and the UK can trace their lineage to the Kikuyu and Kisii tribes.
In Kenya where tribes are supposed to own regions, migration creates a lot of tension. A Kikuyu doing business in Kisumu is not viewed as just another Kenyan who is working hard to earn his bread but as an alien coming in to dominate the local people. This tension mixed with politics has in the past resulted in tribal cleansing.
Just before the elections were held, members of the Kikuyu and Kisii communities were evicted from Ziwa Market in Eldoret by the Kalenjins who are the major ethinic group in Eldoret. These peoples were accused of dominating the business sector.
Politicians who seek to control their tribes have used ethic identity (an equivalent of ultra-nationalism as in Germany and Russia). These politicians promise their tribesmen that they will establish Majimbo (Federalism) as a way to ensure that the Kikuyu and other "aliens" don't "dominate" over them. To a significant population of Kenyans (mainly in Coast Province and Rift Valley) Majimbo means that Kenyans will go back to their ancestral land and leave behind their property.
The right to own property in any part of Kenya by any Kenyan citizen is a farce. A significant number of Kenyans believe that tribes own regions and those seeking to invest in those regions are temporary visitors who can be ejected at any time. Ejection and murder of "aliens" has happened in the recent past and is always seen as a justified way of dealing with competition.
The following quote points this out:
"They said although ODM pentagon member William Ruto urged residents to observe peace when he visited the area, a politician from the area met youths and held a meeting at Maemba running into midnight, where he supplied them with torches and gumboots.
The politician is reported to have said that those who had bought land in the area had rendered the indigenous people landless and consequently homeless."
http://allafrica.com/stories/200710292039.html
Just before the election, Hilary Ngw'eno -a Samia ( Luhya sub-tribe) veteran journalist- wrote a series of "historical" articles in the Daily Nation on the role of the Gema (Kikuyu) mafia in the late President Kenyatta administration. It is now apparent that Ngw'eno was pushing the Kikuyu vs. non-Kikuyu Kenyans agenda even further. His articles were supposed to remind Kenyans of the "evil" Kikuyus and their conspiracy to control Kenya. President Kenyatta and Raila Odinga's father parted ways politically because Oginga Odinga was pro-communism while Kenyatta was pro-capitalism. People who want to rouse ethnic animosity often leave this fact out and argue that Kikuyus pushed Luos out of the Kenyatta government.
Another fact being falsely peddled by the media is that Kikuyus have been in power since independence. The truth is that these last five years of Kibak's presidency are the first time a Kikuyu has been in power in the last thirty years. Before then President Moi, a Kalenjin, was in power for 24 years, where he ruled with a dictatorial iron fist before the worldwide push for multi-party democracy helped push him out of power. Indeed, there was only one previous Kikuyu president, Jomo Kenyatta, who reigned for only 14 years after independence.
Yet another lie that was peddled to the other non-Kikuyu tribes by Raila,and subsequently picked up by the press, is that Kikuyus hate Luos and will never let Luo into power. This is not true. The articles by Ng'weno clearly recalled that in the pre and post independence days,Raila's father , Jaramogi Odinga, had a countrywide following that included Kikuyus.
ODM and Raila Odinga's role in the current ethnic cleansing
The background above is what has brought us up to this situation. Raila Odinga exploited the above sentiments to gain support of xenophobic opinion leaders from Rift Valley and Coast provinces. Raila Odinga has never been for Majimbo but he changed his stand a few weeks to election to get the support of William Ruto (hails from the Kalenjin group of tribes), Najib Balala (Coast Province), and William Ole Ntimama (led the 1992 and 1997 ethnic cleansing).
The election results are just an excuse used to execute a preconceived genocide. It is a shame then when Raila Odinga justifies acts of genocide by claiming that those engaging in the crimes are "peacefully" protesting against a rigged election. He has asked the president to step down if he wants the killings stop.
Today I read a chilling report on the Los Angeles Times on the systematic genocide going on in Kenya. Even more chilling was the video of a man being slashed to death. It reminded me of Rwanda and not Kenya -a country where we once lived in peace, love and unity. The newspater quotes a Raila supporter saying:
"We are slaughtering them and we will keep on slaughtering them," said one young protester, Gabriel Okelo, who got up at six and walked nine miles from the outskirts of the city to march in support of Odinga.
As the political violence worsens, tribal fighting and tit-for-tat killings have been going on in Nairobi's slums and in other towns.
Okelo said he killed two people with a machete for the first time Wednesday because "When you are angry, it's easy. If they refuse our president, Raila Odinga to address the rally, it will happen again. We shall slaughter the Kikuyus. It will go on and on and on, in all parts of the country."
By Robyn Dixon, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer 7:19 AM PST, January 3, 2008
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-kenya4jan04,0,4416543.story?coll=la-home-world
When the violence started the media made an initial mistake of not correctly identifying the perpetrators. The people who were shot in Kisumu (Odinga's home and stronghold) were shot by security forces because they were engaging in looting.The media missed the fact that before the looting, these ODM/Luo activists had first killed Kikuyu businessmen resident in the city. The more affluent Asians had already left before the elections or by air as soon as tensions started.
It is only with the church massacre in Eldoret that the media has realised that it is defenseless Kikuyus who are being killed by Luos and Kalenjins supporting Raila Odinga. It is also worth noting that the violence in the big towns is restricted to the slum areas. These are the people who had been promised heaven by Raila,who had also demonised Kibaki as the reason these poor people were stuck in poverty. Political analysts had easily pointed that he was promising more than he could deliver, but he did so selfishly to get their votes.
The following quote from Reuters doesn't show a people who are protesting the election results but a people who are out to commit genocide.
"As black smoke billowed overhead, one crowd waved machetes and yelled "Death to Kikuyus". Young boys swigged looted beer.
"We have just started. We will loot all Kikuyu shops and kill them on sight," said Richard Ondigi, 23, a driver.
http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN934960.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/01/01/wkenya301.xml
There are many reports like these.
In an action reminiscent of the Rwanda, Kalenjin Raiders who are supporting Raila Odinga and the local MP William Ruto (promised to be Prime Minister- a post that currently does not exist in the constitution) torched a church killing more than 50 Kenyans mainly from the Kikuyu tribe.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/02/world/africa/02kenya.html?hp
Raila is yet to talk about the Eldoret massacre. He has denied a instigating a genocide saying, "The security forces are shooting people on sight. It is Kibaki that should be blamed."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/kenya/story/0,,2233890,00.html
The opposition is accusing President Mwai Kibaki's party of rigging the election by inflating the results. On the other hand the president's party is accusing the opposition of locking out its (the ruling party's) agents from its strongholds then allowing multiple voting by compromising election officials. A close look at the election results shows that there was an unrealistically high turnout of voters in Eastern Province and Central Province where the president is rated favorably. There was also a very high turnout of voters in opposition strongholds in Rift Valley and Nyanza Provinces. This makes it difficult to tell who the real winner is in that poll that was said to be too close to call in pre-election surveys.
So how did the results lead to violence?
Even before the elections were held, there was propaganda circulating in Kenya pitting the Kikuyu tribe against the rest of Kenyans. Lists of Kikuyu government employees were circulated to create the notion that only Kikuyus were occupying top jobs. Those lists contained names of people from the Embu and Meru communities that live in the area around Mt. Kenya.
Kikuyu, Meru (composed of Meru, Mbeere, Tharaka) and Embu make up 24%, 6% and 3% of the Kenyan population respectively. People from these tribes are lumped together as GEMA and make up over 30% of the Kenyan population. One would expect a people who make up 30% of the population to have a noticeable presence in the job market and in the economy.
As a response to the propaganda, Government spokesman Dr. Mutua issued a 2000-name list of government appointees, that showed a balanced job distribution among tribes and districts. If anything, Kikuyus had a lower proportion than their ratio of the population. By then, the damage had been done , and the perception of Gema domination in government jobs stuck.
Then we propaganda saying that Central Province contributed the least in taxes yet it was allocated the most amount of money for development. This was first revealed in an op-ed by Barrack Muluka (The Standard, Saturday July 29, 2006 and Saturday July 22, 2006)http://www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143956003http://www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143955681&date=22/7/2006
Kenya is a unitary state that is mainly funded by income tax and sales tax. From what I understand the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) doesn't keep tally on what each province contributes. Such a figure will be hard to come by because businesses are registered in Nairobi and remit their income tax to KRA in Nairobi no matter what part of the country the companies are doing business. Also a significant number of people working in Nairobi City live in Central
province. This means that if we were to look at income tax collected from Nairobi, it will also include residents of Central Province.Those talking about distribution of wealth present the case as though the distribution should be between tribes. The reality on the ground is that Kenya has a few rich people (made of elites from all tribes) and a majority of poor people. The elites pushing the tribal agenda deflect the issue of equitable distribution of wealth from being a class issue and make it a tribal issue.
A majority of Kenyans living in the slums is made up of people form the Kikuyu tribe. The area around Mt. Kenya where the so-called Gema tribes come from is densely populated forcing it inhabitants to seek land and jobs outside their ancestral lands. Today, the Kikuyu and the Kisii ( another bantu tribe from a densely populated region in Nyanza Province) can be found in all part of Kenya. A majority of Kenyan immigrants in the USA and the UK can trace their lineage to the Kikuyu and Kisii tribes.In Kenya where tribes are supposed to own regions, migration creates a lot of tension. A Kikuyu doing business in Kisumu is not viewed as just another Kenyan who is working hard to earn his bread but as an alien coming in to dominate the local people
. This tension mixed with politics has in the past resulted in tribal cleansing.Just before the elections were held, members of the Kikuyu and Kisii communities were evicted from Ziwa Market in Eldoret by the Kalenjins who are the major ethinic group in Eldoret. These peoples were accused of dominating the business sector.
Politicians who seek to control their tribes have used ethic identity (an equivalent of ultra-nationalism as in Germany and Russia). These politicians promise their tribesmen that they will establish Majimbo (Federalism) as a way to ensure that the Kikuyu and other "aliens" don't "dominate" over them. To a significant population of Kenyans (mainly in Coast Province and Rift Valley) Majimbo means that Kenyans will go back to their ancestral land and leave behind their property.
The right to own property in any part of Kenya by any Kenyan citizen is a farce. A significant number of Kenyans believe that tribes own regions and those seeking to invest in those regions are temporary visitors who can be ejected at any time. Ejection and murder of "aliens" has happened in the recent past and is always seen as a justified way of dealing with competition.
The following quote points this out:
"They said although ODM pentagon member William Ruto urged residents to observe peace when he visited the area, a politician from the area met youths and held a meeting at Maemba running into midnight, where he supplied them with torches and gumboots.
The politician is reported to have said that those who had bought land in the area had rendered the indigenous people landless and consequently homeless."
http://allafrica.com/stories/200710292039.html
Just before the election, Hilary Ngw'eno -a Samia ( Luhya sub-tribe) veteran journalist- wrote a series of "historical" articles in the Daily Nation on the role of the Gema (Kikuyu) mafia in the late President Kenyatta administration. It is now apparent that Ngw'eno was pushing the Kikuyu vs. non-Kikuyu Kenyans agenda even further. His articles were supposed to remind Kenyans of the "evil" Kikuyus and their conspiracy to control Kenya. President Kenyatta and Raila Odinga's father parted ways politically because Oginga Odinga was pro-communism while Kenyatta was pro-capitalism. People who want to rouse ethnic animosity often leave this fact out and argue that Kikuyus pushed Luos out of the Kenyatta government.
Another fact being falsely peddled by the media is that Kikuyus have been in power since independence. The truth is that these last five years of Kibak's presidency are the first time a Kikuyu has been in power in the last thirty years. Before then President Moi, a Kalenjin, was in power for 24 years, where he ruled with a dictatorial iron fist before the worldwide push for multi-party democracy helped push him out of power. Indeed, there was only one previous Kikuyu president, Jomo Kenyatta, who reigned for only 14 years after independence.
Yet another lie that was peddled to the other non-Kikuyu tribes by Raila,and subsequently picked up by the press, is that Kikuyus hate Luos and will never let Luo into power. This is not true. The articles by Ng'weno clearly recalled that in the pre and post independence days,Raila's father , Jaramogi Odinga, had a countrywide following that included Kikuyus.
ODM and Raila Odinga's role in the current ethnic cleansing
The background above is what has brought us up to this situation. Raila Odinga exploited the above sentiments to gain support of xenophobic opinion leaders from Rift Valley and Coast provinces. Raila Odinga has never been for Majimbo but he changed his stand a few weeks to election to get the support of William Ruto (hails from the Kalenjin group of tribes), Najib Balala (Coast Province), and William Ole Ntimama (led the 1992 and 1997 ethnic cleansing).
The election results are just an excuse used to execute a preconceived genocide. It is a shame then when Raila Odinga justifies acts of genocide by claiming that those engaging in the crimes are "peacefully" protesting against a rigged election. He has asked the president to step down if he wants the killings stop.
Today I read a chilling report on the Los Angeles Times on the systematic genocide going on in Kenya. Even more chilling was the video of a man being slashed to death. It reminded me of Rwanda and not Kenya -a country where we once lived in peace, love and unity. The newspater quotes a Raila supporter saying:
"We are slaughtering them and we will keep on slaughtering them," said one young protester, Gabriel Okelo, who got up at six and walked nine miles from the outskirts of the city to march in support of Odinga.
As the political violence worsens, tribal fighting and tit-for-tat killings have been going on in Nairobi's slums and in other towns.
Okelo said he killed two people with a machete for the first time Wednesday because "When you are angry, it's easy. If they refuse our president, Raila Odinga to address the rally, it will happen again. We shall slaughter the Kikuyus. It will go on and on and on, in all parts of the country."
By Robyn Dixon, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer 7:19 AM PST, January 3, 2008
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-kenya4jan04,0,4416543.story?coll=la-home-world
When the violence started the media made an initial mistake of not correctly identifying the perpetrators. The people who were shot in Kisumu (Odinga's home and stronghold) were shot by security forces because they were engaging in looting.The media missed the fact that before the looting, these ODM/Luo activists had first killed Kikuyu businessmen resident in the city. The more affluent Asians had already left before the elections or by air as soon as tensions started.
It is only with the church massacre in Eldoret that the media has realised that it is defenseless Kikuyus who are being killed by Luos and Kalenjins supporting Raila Odinga. It is also worth noting that the violence in the big towns is restricted to the slum areas. These are the people who had been promised heaven by Raila,who had also demonised Kibaki as the reason these poor people were stuck in poverty. Political analysts had easily pointed that he was promising more than he could deliver, but he did so selfishly to get their votes.
The following quote from Reuters doesn't show a people who are protesting the election results but a people who are out to commit genocide.
"As black smoke billowed overhead, one crowd waved machetes and yelled "Death to Kikuyus". Young boys swigged looted beer.
"We have just started. We will loot all Kikuyu shops and kill them on sight," said Richard Ondigi, 23, a driver.
http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN934960.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/01/01/wkenya301.xml
There are many reports like these.
In an action reminiscent of the Rwanda, Kalenjin Raiders who are supporting Raila Odinga and the local MP William Ruto (promised to be Prime Minister- a post that currently does not exist in the constitution) torched a church killing more than 50 Kenyans mainly from the Kikuyu tribe.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/02/world/africa/02kenya.html?hp
Raila is yet to talk about the Eldoret massacre. He has denied a instigating a genocide saying, "The security forces are shooting people on sight. It is Kibaki that should be blamed."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/kenya/story/0,,2233890,00.html
The propaganda on Raila Odinga's website seeking to create chaos within the army. Similar rumors were circulated within the armed forces. (click to enlarge)
Until yesterday, the Raila campaign website carried rumors that the Army and Police chiefs had quit. This information has been on the site for more than 3 days. The site had also carried rumors that the Electoral Commission chief had been killed. All this was meant to rally Raila Odinga's supporters and create anarchy. (I can provide saved HTML web pages).
In light of the military precision that the raids in Rift Valley were carried out, one can't help but wonder why the government had taken no action when Raila Odinga's photo inspecting a guard of honor , albeit un-armed, in Nakuru a few months ago. Inspection of guards of honor has traditionaly been the preserve of the disciplined forces not civilians.These are possibly the dogs of war that were let lose in Rift Valley.(Photo was carried by the Daily Nation)
Raila Odinga, William Ruto and Najib Balala have the power to order their supporters to stop the genocide but they are not ready to. They think that the killings will earn them political capital but that is not going to be the case.
The international community needs to look carefully at the historical data that led us to this.
We should not excuse those committing the genocide by simply pointing out at the election results. In Kenya we have a saying that loosely translates: "the raging river that you see was once made up of streams."
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