What is Happening in Kenya
09-02-2008
Question:
What is Kenya’s position in the realm of international politics? Who is behind
President Mwai Kibaki? What has the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for
African Affairs Jendayi E. Frazier brought to the two sides of the conflict in
Kenya, Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga, in terms of solutions? Is the conflict
related to America’s plans for the Horn of Africa?
Answer:
The Kenyan crisis began when the opposition forces, represented by the Orange
Democratic Movement led by Raila Odinga, accused the electoral commission of
slackness in counting the votes in order to falsify the results in favour of his
rival, President Mwai Kibaki, who is also the leader of the Party of National
Unity (PNU). Those accusations by Raila Odinga led his supporters to take to the
streets to protest against the rigging and to demand the announcement of the
real results. Hence, those demonstrations were the start of the bloody
confrontations between the security services and the supporters of the
opposition. However, the crisis only erupted when the electoral commission
announced the victory of President Mwai Kibaki in a manner that corroborated the
opposition’s version of events, as they were counted in the absence of the
international observers.
President Mwai Kibaki made matters worse by taking the oath as President just
one hour after the results had been announced. This was soon followed by the
message of congratulation from the White House, in a bid to lend legitimacy to
Kibaki’s win. The Department of State Spokesperson Tom Casey said: “We
congratulate Kenyan voters for conducting their vote in an orderly and dignified
manner” He also urged all the candidates in the Kenyan presidential elections to
accept the final results and their supporters to uphold law and order.
Although the European Union was strongly present in the Kenyan electoral
process, its reaction to the vote-rigging was tame, though some of the European
officials’ statements corroborated the opposition’s claims and embarrassed the
Kenyan rulers before the international community.
America
played a major role in complicating the political crisis in Kenya further by
hastily supporting Mwai Kibaki for a second term in office and by exerting
pressure on the African Union and Europe not to intervene promptly in the
struggle between the government and the opposition. However, the large number of
deaths after the deployment of the army in the streets to quell the protests of
the opposition has forced America to retract her endorsement of the elections
results. Hence, she instructed Nobel Prize winner and Head of the Peace
Foundation in South Africa Bishop Desmond Tutu to travel to Kenya to mediate
between Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga. The U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for
African Affairs Jendayi E. Frazier arrived in Nairobi the following day (7
January 2008) and immediately met with Kibaki and Odinga; however, she failed to
reconcile between the two disputing parties. America is currently exhorting Kofi
Annan to undertake a new mediatory role between Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga in
a bid to keep Kibaki in office.
These moves came after America had realised that the situation in Kenya was
drifting towards civil disobedience, thus threatening the stability that
America’s plans rely upon. This became conspicuous when the leader of the
opposition Raila Odinga rejected the offer of Mwai Kibaki to form a government
of national unity. Odinga told a press conference in Nairobi that the opposition
was not interested in such offer because Kibaki did not have the right to make
any offer because he lost the elections. He added that he would be willing to
share power with his rival Kibaki provided his victory in the presidential
elections were acknowledged and provided the deal were concluded within the
framework of an international mediation. He added: “I think the winner must at
any cost accommodate the loser.” In an interview with CNN aired on 14 January
2008, Raila Odinga said: “I will tell him, because he is my friend, that my
friend, you lost an election, you need to leave a legacy in this country, you
have been around for a very long time, please leave a legacy of a gentleman who
lost an election and agreed to quit gracefully.” Odinga added: “We are ready to
talk but not at any cost. We will explore whether we have a lasting solution to
this crisis or not.”
The crisis
in Kenya is still stagnant while America is pushing towards the scenario of a
government of national unity, which will keep Mwai Kibaki in power and allow the
opposition to save face through an extensive participation in government,
coupled with a parliamentary majority. Hence, Jendayi E. Frazier has requested
from President Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga to “admit” the flaws of the recent
elections. She also urged them to conduct unconditional dialogue in order to put
an end to the crisis that preceded the elections.
This indicates that America wants a government of national unity, not a recount
of the votes or a re-election, because this would lead to Raila Odinga seizing
the reins of power and America wants to prevent him from doing so because of his
stance in the Kenyan parliament where he voted against the “terrorism” law,
which Mwai Kibaki wanted to pass on behalf of America.
This is the reality of the crisis in Kenya. As for the position of this country
in the realm of international politics and its strategic importance vis-à-vis
the American plans, this is reflected in its strategic geographic position in
East Africa, especially its eastern borders with Somalia and its north-west
borders with Sudan. Hence, political stability and security in Kenya are of
paramount importance to the American polices towards the Horn of Africa. It is
Kenya who hosted the peace talks between the rival factions in Sudan and in
Somalia since 2002; it is also Kenya who assisted America last year in defeating
the forces of the Shari’ah Courts in Somalia. This is why America offered
financial and logistical aid to Kenya, in its quality as one of the most
important states in East Africa. America bore the cost of dredging the Mombassa
seaport on the Indian Ocean so that it may accommodate large US vessels that can
monitor developments and events, not just in East Africa, but also in the south
coast of the Arab and Asian region.
The Kenyan rulers want to turn their country into a tool in the American plans
for the Horn of Africa in order to gain America’s support in annexing the Somali
Province of Al-Nafd and the Sudanese Llemi Triangle. Al-Nafd province has been
under Kenyan control since 1941, when Britain annexed it and made it part of its
colony in Kenya. This is why the Kenyan foreign policy, just like the Ethiopian
foreign policy, is based on maintaining what has been annexed from Somalia, be
it through what is concluded with a weak Somali government or through embroiling
Somalia in domestic chaos. As for the Llemi triangle, it is an area rich in
minerals which Britain annexed during her occupation of Sudan.
Hence, America has found in Kenya the ally she was looking for. Kenya has opened
its lands, airspace and seaports for the American forces, so that America may
wage her war against Islam and the Muslims in East Africa under the pretext of
fighting “terrorism”. America deems Kenya as a focal state, just like South
Africa and Nigeria. Kenya, according to some observers is a prime candidate to
host the American Military Command AFRICOM, which currently operates from
Stuttgart in Germany. This is why America does not want Kenya to plunge into
chaos, because this will distract its rulers from executing the American plans
for Somalia, Sudan and assisting in the war on “terror”, as well as hosting the
various peace talks.
Submitted by a Mujahid