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Annan embarks on final push
27/02/2008 11:39 - (SA)
Nairobi - Former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan embarked on a final push to squeeze a compromise from Kenya's feuding president and opposition leader on Wednesday.
Annan, who had been mediating in the crisis, had set up direct meetings with the men to crack through a stalemate that had kept the East African country in limbo between a power-sharing government and violent ethnic fracturing.
Two months since Kenya's disputed presidential vote, Annan suspended month-long talks between the two political parties on Tuesday, saying he would personally appeal to their leaders to strike a deal because talks were "turning around in circles".
Meanwhile, the opposition had renewed threats for mass rallies on Thursday if no tangible progress had been made by then. Past rallies turned violent as police pushed back crowds.
Annan suspends talks
President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga claimed that they rightly won Kenya's December 27 presidential election. Local and international observers had said the results were manipulated, making it unclear who won.
Annan said he suspended the talks in order "to speed up action," because the negotiating teams "were discussing issues that the parties seemed incapable of solving." He was scheduled to meet with Kibaki and Odinga separately on Wednesday, according to party spokesperson.
Post-election violence had largely subsided in recent weeks, but attacks that killed more than 1 000 people and forced 600 000 from their homes had left the country on edge and worried about the potential for more turmoil.
Much of the violence had been ethnic, between supporters of Kibaki, a Kikuyu, and groups who backed Odinga, a Luo. The bloodshed had tarnished the reputation of a country once seen as a beacon of stability in Africa.
Kikwete appeals for a deal
International pressure on both sides had been mounting. United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who visited Kenya earlier this month to urge progress, said Washington's relations with any future Kenyan administration is at stake.
"I want to emphasise that the future of our relationship with both sides and their legitimacy hinges on their co-operation to achieve this political solution," Rice said in a statement, without elaborating.
The US was disappointed that talks had had to be suspended, and would review the "full range of options" it might take, US State Department spokesperson Tom Casey said. He declined to discuss any specifics.
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, the current head of the African Union, flew into Nairobi to add to international appeals for a deal. He also was scheduled to meet with Kibaki and Odinga on Wednesday.
Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetangula criticised the implied threats from foreign powers like the US, saying the international community was welcome to make suggestions "but not to impose solutions".
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