Kenyan rivals on unity tour

2008-04-24 19:42

Eldoret, Kenya - Kenya's rival leaders urged ethnic reconciliation during a joint tour on Thursday of areas worst affected by the violence that followed their battle over disputed elections.

"We want a permanent solution so as not to see a repeat," Prime Minister Raila Odinga told a crowd gathered in the northwestern Rift Valley town of Eldoret, which saw some of the deadliest ethnic clashes earlier this year.

The region still hosts tens of thousands of people who were displaced by the ethnic violence that stemmed from December 27 presidential polls, which Odinga accused President Mwai Kibaki of stealing.

Under a power-sharing agreement brokered by former UN chief Kofi Annan, Kibaki retained the presidency while Odinga was given the post of prime minister at the head of a cabinet that included some prominent opposition figures.

"We have decided as a government that we will bring you together. We have formed a unity government... Kenyans want to live together and we have agreed to that," Kibaki told the crowd.

Security not guaranteed

The displaced, many of them farmers, argue that their security is not guaranteed if they return to their land, which they are eager to plant with the rain season in full swing.

"This was not ordinary post-election violence. When villagers spot us in our farms with the intention of settling, they scream to attract a larger crowd to harm you," said one farmer, Elias Kamau.

"Though no one has settled on my farm, I really need a policeman outside my door for me to go about my farming business and have a sound sleep at night," he added.

Many displaced and other affected communities are demanding the coalition government formed by Kibaki's and Odinga's respective political parties address the root causes of the violence to foster genuine reconciliation.

The coalition government was sworn in on April 17 after weeks of bitter negotiations between the two camps.

Some observers say the alliance and a bloated cabinet will struggle to carry out sweeping changes in the country.

- AFP