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Obama's Kenyan family 'proud'
09/01/2008 14:17 - (SA)
Kogelo, Kenya - From a village surrounded by mango and mimosa trees, Barack Obama's Kenyan relatives are closely following the US presidential candidate's fortunes and appear optimistic that his narrow loss in the New Hampshire Democratic Party primary is a temporary setback.
"He still stands a good chance," the American's uncle, 41-year-old Said Obama, said after hearing the news on the radio on Wednesday morning.
Results of the voting did not become clear until well after midnight in Kenya, with Obama finishing a close second to Hillary Clinton. "I am still fired up and ready to go," he told cheering supporters.
Said Obama was equally optimistic. "I don't think it's too much of a setback because there was a time he was trailing Hillary and if he was the kind of man who gives up, he would have given up then," he told The Associated Press.
Inside the cinderblock home of Sarah Hussein Obama, Barack Obama's grandmother, framed photos from a visit the Illinois senator made in 2006 and an earlier one in 1987 lined the walls, alongside a signed election poster from his US Senate race.
Political and ethnic violence
The village, Kogelo, has been spared the political and ethnic violence that has erupted in Kenya after last month's disputed presidential election. But it is just 90 minutes' drive from a town where torched and looted buildings bear testimony to the clashes that have left more than 500 people dead.
While the dispute is political, violence has pitted other tribes - such as the Obamas' Luo - against the Kikuyu of President Mwai Kibaki, who have long dominated politics and the economy in Kenya.
If Barack Obama were in Kenya today, he would "work with the leadership to bring them to a round table and find a solution to the problems that have been ravaging the country," his uncle said.
In fact, Obama's spokesperson Robert Gibbs confirmed the senator spoke to opposition leader Raila Odinga for about five minutes on Monday before going into a rally in New Hampshire.
Odinga, a Luo, told British Broadcasting Corporation radio that Obama's father was his uncle, and that Obama called him "in the midst of his campaigning ... to express his concern and to say that he is also going to call President Kibaki so that Kibaki agrees to find a negotiated, satisfactory solution to this problem".
Gibbs said Odinga and Obama's father are from the same tribe, though he was not aware they are related.
Obama, speaking on Tuesday in New Hampshire, said he urged that "all the leaders there, regardless of their position on the election tell their supporters to stand down, to desist with the violence and resolve in a peaceful way in accordance with Kenyan law."
Kenyan father
Obama was mostly raised in Hawaii and did not know his father well, but his presidential bid has sparked excitement in Kenya. Thousands were drawn to his appearances during his 2006 visit.
Obama's father, also named Barack Obama, won a scholarship to a university in Hawaii, where he met and married the candidate's American mother. The two separated and Obama's father returned to Kenya, where he worked as a government economist until he died in a car crash in 1982. His white-tiled grave is located in a secluded corner of the family compound.
Said Obama said his nephew "has proved to be a beacon of hope here and shown that even in difficult circumstances you can make it to the highest height of achievement with just determination and hard work."
- AP
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