theStar
BIZARRE POLITICS AND THE KIBAKI SUCCESSION
Saturday, 18 August 2012 00:03
BY JOE ADAMA
A number of unfolding events, among them the integrity court case that has sucked in five of the main Presidential contenders and former Mungiki leader Maina Njenga's announcement that he has entered the race for State House, are either the latest frenetic sideshows on the winding path to the next Presidency or have far-reaching implications for the advent of Kenya's Fourth Republic.
You know it is Presidential transition time in Kenya when bizarre politics and strategies suddenly break out like a national rash. Kenyans rarely change their presidents. Indeed, the office has changed hands only thrice in 49 years; with Founding President Jomo Kenyatta's death in office in August 1979, when he was promptly succeeded by Vice President Danial arap Moi, and when Moi stepped down 24 years later in December 2002, to be succeeded by one-time Vice President and longest-serving Finance Minister Mwai Kibaki.
Across that same period the USA has changed presidents nine times, one of them, Gerald Ford (August 1974 to January 1976), unelected, and Britain has changed prime ministers 10 times Political wags in Central Kenya are fond of saying that if you were amazed at the manner Daniel arap Moi left State House in 2002 after his marathon 24-year-long stay there, you will be astounded at what Mwai Kibaki will leave in his wake after a two-term 10-year stint.Or, as Americans are so fond of saying, you ain't seen nothin' yet.
A Choice of Two Kikuyu Candidates
No political scientist, and certainly no one in the multimedia punditocracy, could have foreseen, even a year before, a situation in which the Moi era would be capped by a choice of two Kikuyu candidates from the shilling billionaire club, Kibaki and Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta, son of Founding President Jomo Kenyatta. It is said by those who were present at the event that it was actually Kibaki who, in October 1961, actually proposed the name Uhuru (Swahili for Freedom) for Jomo's first-born son by his third and final wife, Ngina Muhoho Kenyatta, seeing as Independence was just around the corner. Kibaki was a protege and lifelong admirer of Jomo's.
By the time they faced off in 2002 for State House, a place Uhuru used to call home, Kibaki and Uhuru had moved in the same elite circles all of the younger man's life. And yet their Presidential race was a real, almost ideological, contest in which a totally tribe-based and -biased society momentarily forgot itself and campaigned and voted as if the ethnic factor had gone on holiday.
Kenyans are unlikely to be offered such a narrow choice in a Presidential contest for the rest of the 21st Century. Another bizarre-politics event had taken place earlier that year - Raila Amolo Odinga had actually been installed as then ruling party Kanu's Secretary General, displacing Kanu hawk Joseph Kamotho!
Ten years later, with Kibaki outward-bound at State House, Uhuru and Raila are again at centre-stage in another season of truly bizarre politics. The sons, respectively, of Kenya's founding President and founding Vice-President, were this week enjoined in an extraordinary court case filed by a group of activists seeking to block them and three other giants of politics from the race to State House ostensibly on integrity and suitability grounds.
Amazingly, among the petitioners is one Augustino Neto, the man who won the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) nomination for the Ndhiwa Constituency by-election to replace former Internal Security Assistant Minister Orwa Ojode, who perished in a helicopter crash in June. He won the nomination on the very day that the PM, the VP and the second DPM were enjoined in the integrity case.
Neto is apparently named after António Agostinho Neto, the late leader of the the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) in the war for independence and Angola's first President (1975-79).
How he fares in Ndhiwa after so vigorously joining hands with a group of people who claim that Raila possesses no academic papers at all, not even primary school, will be intriguing to behold. Indeed, at this rate, a POA or even TNA candidate might well take the seat just to spite Neto! The other two Presidential candidates enjoined in the integrity litigation are Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka and Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi. They face allegations of fraud, corruption, abuse of office, nepotism and land grabbing.
The first two accused, Uhuru and Eldoret North MP William Ruto, were sued by the group because they have confirmed crimes-against-humanity cases before the International Criminal Court at The Hague that are scheduled to start barely a month after the March 4, 2013 General Election.The petitioners argue that persons facing such serious charges are ineligible for the Kenyan Presidency under the new Constitution's integrity and suitability laws and rules.
A President Hounded by The Hague
Uhuru and Ruto are clinging to the fact that though the charges against them are indeed confirmed they remain far from proven. There is also the fact that the ICC explicitly allowed them to pursue their interests, including seeking the Presidency and even scheduled the full trials for after the polls. But their political rivals and assorted foes and critics counter-argue that it would be an international shame and disgrace for a President, Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces of Kenya to be seen to be regularly shuttling to and from a crimes against humanity trial as a confirmed suspect.
An even bigger upset and threat to the Kenyan nation brand itself among the community of nations would be for a President Uhuru or a President Ruto to actually be convicted by the ICC and handed a custodial sentence.
What then?Until recently, Raila was sitting pretty, even occasionally throwing a barb or two in Uhuru and Ruto's direction, heavily implying that considering the seriousness of the charges against them - which include murder, mass rape and expulsion of populations - they belong behind bars until cleared, not in a Presidential race starting line. However, the charges brought against the PM by the activists also include an alleged role in the PEV and otherwise seek to paint him in a very bad light over a very long period indeed. The activists also seek to rope in Mudavadi as an instigator of the PEV in his then capacity of Deputy Leader of ODM.
Of the five, only Kalonzo is not accused of a role in the PEV.
None of the Presidential contenders relishes being in court under the new and fast-evolving Judiciary this near to the highest-stakes Presidential election in Kenya yet. It is an assertive Judiciary whose judges are clearly no respecters of the wielders of political power and influence in the old deferential, even sycophantic and fawning, tradition of Kenya's court system.
The candidates and their handlers are well aware that anything can happen. What's more, they are all too aware of the energies, resources and time that this kind of unprecedented litigation taking place under this kind of still evolving Judiciary can drain away from their own efforts as contenders in the campaign for the Mother of All Presidential Elections, the Kibaki Succession poll scheduled for March 4.
The cases are going to be a major test for Supreme Court President and Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, whose reforms, processes and new ways of doing things remain an unknown quantity. The Judiciary has its own issues; Mutunga's Deputy President and CJ, Nancy Baraza, recently suffered a massibve setback, being adjudged by a Presidential tribunal to be unfit to head the Judiciary, arising from her conduct during and after the Village Market affair.
Mutunga and the Bench that he leads are going to require wisdom-of-Solomon jurisprudential prowess to decide on these five extraordinary cases, decide on time and decide comprehensively. And whatever the courts decide will be epochal. If the Mutunga Court clears the PM but disbars The Hague duo, there will be an almighty rumpus. It will be called the revenge of the activist-political detainees of the 1980s against the old Kanu elite.
It will suddenly and suspiciously be recalled that the PM was instrumental in getting Mutunga to apply for the job of head of the Supreme Court. If the Court borrows a leaf from the ICC, which reduced its list of the Luis Moreno-Ocampo Kenyan Six to Four and lets Kalonzo and Musalia off the hook, but adds Raila to Uhuru and Ruto, the country could find itself looking instability squarely in the eye once again. And if the Court disqualifies all five, the shock will go completely off the political Richter Scale and reverberate around the world wherever there is a Kenyan.
Only in Kenya!
No other electoral process in recent times has been overtaken by anything remotely resembling what we are seeing unfolding in Kenya today. Nowhere else have the top five Presidential candidates been encumbered with reputation- and career-threatening court cases before a Judiciary packed with judges who are clearly determined to make a point and leave a mark virtually on the eve of the Presidential contest itself.
In the event of a blanket disqualification, Kenyans' scrutiny would finally be turned full-blast on the petitioners themselves. Who, really, are they, and what are they up to besides making history and securing their Warholian 15 minutes of fame? They are completely unknown quantities; it is also likely that they could fail even more rudimentary tests of character, reputation and track record than are prescribed in the new Constitution that they have invoked so massively.
What kind of reforms and what quality of democracy allows such total cyphers, such shadowy characters, really, to attempt to rewrite history at such a sensitive juncture just because they have the amorphous appellation "activist"? If the petitioners were instead, say, John Githongo, Okiya Omtatah, Maurice Odhiambo, President of the National Civil Society Congress, and Gladwell Otieno everyone would know where they are coming from and where they think they are going.
If Mutula bites the bullet and his Supreme Court indeed disqualifies these giants of Kenyan politics all the way to a fast-tracked final appeal, the country will enter uncharted territory. There will be those who salute the CJ for finally effecting such a clean break with the past and breaking the mould of the status quo by virtually seeking to skip a generation of leaders, three of whom - the PM and his DPMs - have distinctly dynastic tendencies.
But the handlers and millions of supporters of these three powerful personalities might not take such a bold move lying down. They could declare that Kenyans deserve better than being given a choice of third-tier "Mickey Mouse" Presidential candidates and even operationalize the little-known device in the new Constitution that requires only a million signatures to effect a constitutional reference and stop the General Election itself since there would be no time whatsoever for a national referendum to decide the matter.
Kenya would descend into constitutional crisis and grid-lock and Kibaki would continue to preside over an unprecdented abeyance. In the Prime Minister's corner, there would be no doubt that the whole thing was little more than the ultimate gambit in the now serial multi-faceted attempts to prevent Raila from stepping into the Presidency after Kibaki that have included, according to his own brother Assistant Finance Minister Oburu Oginga and first cousin Jakoyo Midiwo, MP, earlier this year, a high-level assassination plot.
Conspiracy Theory Time
Mr.Neto obviously got the Ndhiwa nomination as a reward for having put Uhuru and Ruto in their "proper place" - i.e. fighting for their candidature in a court of law before judges who are not as pliable as the Kenyan Bench used to be until very recently indeed. But what happened on the way to "fixing" Uhuru and Ruto that ended up in a dragging in of the PM himself based on allegations that, if even only halfway true, only Intelligence officers or very determined private detectives can come up with?
In the Vice President's corner, conspiracy theorizing is filling the air in late-night counter-strategy meetings. Everything and everyone is suspect. Even the idea that the enlargement of the initial cases against Uhuru and Ruto is a move that is being viewed as actually sponsored by one or two of the frontline Presidential candidates themselves, in a vast conspiracy, as a Samson Option (in the Old Testament Book of Judges, the blinded Samson brings down the temple by toppling two pillars and killing all the Philistine lords within as well as thousands of other people). There is suspicion that someone, somewhere has decided that if they cannot get to lead the Fourth Republic they will take every other viable candidate down with them.
Millions of Kenyans have yet to wrap their minds around what is unfolding and where it is heading. This is a moment of stasis. How would the removal of the five from the State House race impact the fortunes of the minor Presidential candidates, people like Martha Karua, Peter Kenneth, Raphael Tuju and John ole Kiyiapi? Or would the Fallen Five (assuming they indeed fall) be still in a position to pronounce their own "toshas" and bring into play completely new actors and forces?
As suspicion swirls throughout the political sector about where all this is leading, many analysts will be on the lookout for rogue intelligence agents and staged psychological warfare scenarios. There will be many claims and counter-claims; there will be huge allegations; there will be many a twist and a turn, but one thing is for sure: The Kibaki Succession has just entered the bizarre-politics phase.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/weekend/siasa ... uccession-
Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sat Aug 18, 2012 12:47 pm
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sat Aug 18, 2012 1:16 pm
theStar
MPs PLOT TO PARALYSE KIBUNJIA COMMISSION
Saturday, 18 August 2012 00:03
BY FRANCIS MUREITHI
Members of Parliament have mooted a plan to cripple and eventually paralyze the National Cohesion and Integration Commission ahead of the March 4 general elections. The term of the commission headed by MzalendovKibunjia is due to end on September 7.
A section of MPs who are unhappy with the commission are reportedly planning to defeat a motion to be tabled by Nominated MP Mohammed Affey in which he seeks to have the term of the current commission extended for one year effective September 8. “Noting that the full functionality of the commission is critical to sustained peaceful co-existence among communities in the build up to the general elections and as the devolved governance structure are set up, this House approves the extension of the term of the current NCIC commissioners for a period of 12 months with effect from September 8, 2012,” reads Affey’s motion.
However, the MPs want the whole process started afresh instead of extending the term for Kibunjia and his team. If they succeed, this means that the country will go to the next elections without the commission which is tasked with creating public awareness on cohesion and integration and monitoring those propagating hate speech.
If the MPs' plot succeed, the process of getting new commissioners will be long and tedious and is unlikely to be completed before Parliament goes on recess in December. This is because the Public Service Commission will have to advertise the vacancies, receive applications, short list, interview and forward the names of prospective candidates to President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga who will consult and present their nominees to Parliament for vetting.
By the time this happens,Parliament might be on recess and the vetting and appointment will have to wait for the next Parliament! Yesterday, a worried Affey said he had decided to table the motion to extend Kibunjia's term as it was imperative that the commission continued to carry out its mandate. The MPs had earlier on June 20 defeated an amendment proposed by Attorney General Githu Muigai to give President Kibaki powers to re-appoint the current commissioners. The amendment to the National Cohesion and Integration Act, 2008 was deleted from the omnibus bill Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, which contained other changes to other laws.
This means that when the commission's term ends next month, the President will not be able to re-appoint them. To complicate matters further, two weeks ago, Cabinet approved the National Cohesion and Integration (Amendment) Bill 2012 that seeks to give commissioners terms similar to those of other commissions. This bill is yet to be approved by Parliament.
If it is passed by Parliament, the process of recruitment is expected to take at least four months. Parliament has less than four months as it stands to be dissolved in mid-January 2013 if it is to keep to the elections timetable. NCIC commissioner Yassin Ahmed expressed concerns that the executive and legislature were unworried about the crucial role the commission will play as the election campaigns heat up.
The NCIC has acted as a deterrent to many politicians who are known to make inflammatory and inciteful utterances during campaign rallies. The NCIC has been at loggerheads with the MPs for its dogged pursuit and prosecution of those who have engaged in hate speech or incitement.
Key politicians the NCIC has so far charged with hate speech include Fred Kapondi (Mt Elgon), Wifred Machage (Kuria) Joshua Kutuny (Cherangany) and more recently Trade Minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere and Limuru MP Peter Mwathi. The commission also wanted Makadara MP Gideon Mbuvi charged with hate speech but did not get the approval of the Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/national/nati ... commission
MPs PLOT TO PARALYSE KIBUNJIA COMMISSION
Saturday, 18 August 2012 00:03
BY FRANCIS MUREITHI
Members of Parliament have mooted a plan to cripple and eventually paralyze the National Cohesion and Integration Commission ahead of the March 4 general elections. The term of the commission headed by MzalendovKibunjia is due to end on September 7.
A section of MPs who are unhappy with the commission are reportedly planning to defeat a motion to be tabled by Nominated MP Mohammed Affey in which he seeks to have the term of the current commission extended for one year effective September 8. “Noting that the full functionality of the commission is critical to sustained peaceful co-existence among communities in the build up to the general elections and as the devolved governance structure are set up, this House approves the extension of the term of the current NCIC commissioners for a period of 12 months with effect from September 8, 2012,” reads Affey’s motion.
However, the MPs want the whole process started afresh instead of extending the term for Kibunjia and his team. If they succeed, this means that the country will go to the next elections without the commission which is tasked with creating public awareness on cohesion and integration and monitoring those propagating hate speech.
If the MPs' plot succeed, the process of getting new commissioners will be long and tedious and is unlikely to be completed before Parliament goes on recess in December. This is because the Public Service Commission will have to advertise the vacancies, receive applications, short list, interview and forward the names of prospective candidates to President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga who will consult and present their nominees to Parliament for vetting.
By the time this happens,Parliament might be on recess and the vetting and appointment will have to wait for the next Parliament! Yesterday, a worried Affey said he had decided to table the motion to extend Kibunjia's term as it was imperative that the commission continued to carry out its mandate. The MPs had earlier on June 20 defeated an amendment proposed by Attorney General Githu Muigai to give President Kibaki powers to re-appoint the current commissioners. The amendment to the National Cohesion and Integration Act, 2008 was deleted from the omnibus bill Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, which contained other changes to other laws.
This means that when the commission's term ends next month, the President will not be able to re-appoint them. To complicate matters further, two weeks ago, Cabinet approved the National Cohesion and Integration (Amendment) Bill 2012 that seeks to give commissioners terms similar to those of other commissions. This bill is yet to be approved by Parliament.
If it is passed by Parliament, the process of recruitment is expected to take at least four months. Parliament has less than four months as it stands to be dissolved in mid-January 2013 if it is to keep to the elections timetable. NCIC commissioner Yassin Ahmed expressed concerns that the executive and legislature were unworried about the crucial role the commission will play as the election campaigns heat up.
The NCIC has acted as a deterrent to many politicians who are known to make inflammatory and inciteful utterances during campaign rallies. The NCIC has been at loggerheads with the MPs for its dogged pursuit and prosecution of those who have engaged in hate speech or incitement.
Key politicians the NCIC has so far charged with hate speech include Fred Kapondi (Mt Elgon), Wifred Machage (Kuria) Joshua Kutuny (Cherangany) and more recently Trade Minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere and Limuru MP Peter Mwathi. The commission also wanted Makadara MP Gideon Mbuvi charged with hate speech but did not get the approval of the Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/national/nati ... commission
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sat Aug 18, 2012 1:26 pm
theStar
Judicial Activism: An Unbearable Evil Or A Godsend?
Saturday, 18 August 2012 00:08
BY MWENDA NJOKA
Earlier this week, a group of lawyers including my good friend Christopher Kibe Mungai, were up in arms against what they termed— albeit in a thinly veiled way— excessive judicial activism. The lawyers—who also included Dr John Khaminwa, Jeniffer Shamallah and Charles Kanjama—came short of declaring that they had no confidence in the judiciary as presently composed and as presently predisposed to act.
But what exactly is Judicial Activism? Black’s Law Dictionary defined judicial activism as a "philosophy of judicial decision-making whereby judges allow their personal views about public policy, among other factors, to guide their decisions…” The flipside of judicial activism is Judicial Restraint, which is defined as “the philosophy of judicial decision-making whereby judges base their decisions on the doctrine of ‘stare decisis’ (relying on precedents) to maintain the status quo...”
For many years, Kenyan Judiciary has operated under the principle of Judicial Restraint and that may explain why over time, Kenyans came to lose confidence in the ability of the judiciary to deliver justice more so in situations where the proverbial Wanjiku found herself pitted against the State.
With the appointment of Willy Mutunga as Chief Justice, a great deal has changed in the Judiciary. And more so with the judges being made to go through baptism by fire before being confirmed to their positions, the least you can expect from a judiciary that has undergone through such stringent cleansing is a judiciary whose raison d’être is no longer the preservation of status quo, but rather upholding the rule of law as it sees fit.
Of course when a judiciary that used to operate as a toothless bulldog suddenly bares its legal fangs and dares to bite, many who had become comfortable with the status quo become thoroughly uncomfortable. Never mind that some of the lawyers complaining that the judiciary has become “too activist” were the same lawyers who led a campaign for judicial reforms in years gone by.
I am talking about Kibe Mungai and Dr John Khaminwa, two lawyers who often bore the brunt of a judiciary that never rose above mediocrity during the Moi years. But of course times, people and interests change. The interests of these and other lawyers complaining about ‘judicial activism’ are not necessarily being best served by the judiciary as is; hence the conflict.
Their beef with the judiciary may appear to be a raft of apparently controversial judgments that some judges have handed down in recent times, but I have a feeling this issue runs much deeper than that. First there was the case of Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) and three High Court Judges—John Mwera, Mary Kasango and Francis Tuiyott—ruling that unbanned the hitherto outlawed group.
The ruling elicited howls of protest from national security officials and some politicians. But human rights activists saw the ruling as a well-deserved victory for marginalised people of the Coast Province. Personally I share the sentiments, fears and concerns of national security agencies regarding the ruling but with some reservations.
When the matter came up for hearing in Mombasa, the Government appeared to take matters lightly and operated on the assumption that the court will rule in favour of the State when it comes to matters touching on national security; after all, haven’t courts always ruled so?
Big mistake. The courts have changed and so should the Government. Instead of sending some ill-prepared State Counsels to represent the Government in the matter, the Government should have taken the matter seriously and invested in serious lawyers who were well prepared to prove that indeed MRC was a threat to national security.
Then came the ruling, which fixed General Election date to March next year. Again, the Government—or most specifically the political establishment— appears to have been caught flat-footed. Instead of the two principles—President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga—leading from the front and providing some kind of guidance on the issue of General Elections date, they just laid back at best and at worst, took divergent positions.
What were courts supposed to do in a case where political leaders appear to abdicate their responsibilities? There was a vacuum and someone had to step in to fill it. But as earlier said, there is more than meets the eye in the crusade against ‘judicial activism’. Kibe Mungai may inadvertently have let the cat out of the bag when he told a forum at Panafric Hotel that he blames Justice Philip Waki for having opened the door that led to the suspected perpetrators of post election violence being tried at the Hague.
“The reason why we have the ICC cases in Kenya is because Waki, on the steps of Harambee House, handed the envelope with the names of suspects to Kofi Annan. If I was President Kibaki, I would have ordered the GSU to immediately arrest Waki for committing treason,” said Mungai. On that basis, it is clear what the real issues are here. They have nothing to do with delivery of justice (or lack thereof), but everything to with ICC and fear that the Judiciary—with its newfound freedom— is likely to be immune to political manipulations. That is the real issue.
Mwenda Njoka works for Zuku TV and is the founder of Africa Centre for Investigative Journalism.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/mwen ... -a-godsend
Judicial Activism: An Unbearable Evil Or A Godsend?
Saturday, 18 August 2012 00:08
BY MWENDA NJOKA
Earlier this week, a group of lawyers including my good friend Christopher Kibe Mungai, were up in arms against what they termed— albeit in a thinly veiled way— excessive judicial activism. The lawyers—who also included Dr John Khaminwa, Jeniffer Shamallah and Charles Kanjama—came short of declaring that they had no confidence in the judiciary as presently composed and as presently predisposed to act.
But what exactly is Judicial Activism? Black’s Law Dictionary defined judicial activism as a "philosophy of judicial decision-making whereby judges allow their personal views about public policy, among other factors, to guide their decisions…” The flipside of judicial activism is Judicial Restraint, which is defined as “the philosophy of judicial decision-making whereby judges base their decisions on the doctrine of ‘stare decisis’ (relying on precedents) to maintain the status quo...”
For many years, Kenyan Judiciary has operated under the principle of Judicial Restraint and that may explain why over time, Kenyans came to lose confidence in the ability of the judiciary to deliver justice more so in situations where the proverbial Wanjiku found herself pitted against the State.
With the appointment of Willy Mutunga as Chief Justice, a great deal has changed in the Judiciary. And more so with the judges being made to go through baptism by fire before being confirmed to their positions, the least you can expect from a judiciary that has undergone through such stringent cleansing is a judiciary whose raison d’être is no longer the preservation of status quo, but rather upholding the rule of law as it sees fit.
Of course when a judiciary that used to operate as a toothless bulldog suddenly bares its legal fangs and dares to bite, many who had become comfortable with the status quo become thoroughly uncomfortable. Never mind that some of the lawyers complaining that the judiciary has become “too activist” were the same lawyers who led a campaign for judicial reforms in years gone by.
I am talking about Kibe Mungai and Dr John Khaminwa, two lawyers who often bore the brunt of a judiciary that never rose above mediocrity during the Moi years. But of course times, people and interests change. The interests of these and other lawyers complaining about ‘judicial activism’ are not necessarily being best served by the judiciary as is; hence the conflict.
Their beef with the judiciary may appear to be a raft of apparently controversial judgments that some judges have handed down in recent times, but I have a feeling this issue runs much deeper than that. First there was the case of Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) and three High Court Judges—John Mwera, Mary Kasango and Francis Tuiyott—ruling that unbanned the hitherto outlawed group.
The ruling elicited howls of protest from national security officials and some politicians. But human rights activists saw the ruling as a well-deserved victory for marginalised people of the Coast Province. Personally I share the sentiments, fears and concerns of national security agencies regarding the ruling but with some reservations.
When the matter came up for hearing in Mombasa, the Government appeared to take matters lightly and operated on the assumption that the court will rule in favour of the State when it comes to matters touching on national security; after all, haven’t courts always ruled so?
Big mistake. The courts have changed and so should the Government. Instead of sending some ill-prepared State Counsels to represent the Government in the matter, the Government should have taken the matter seriously and invested in serious lawyers who were well prepared to prove that indeed MRC was a threat to national security.
Then came the ruling, which fixed General Election date to March next year. Again, the Government—or most specifically the political establishment— appears to have been caught flat-footed. Instead of the two principles—President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga—leading from the front and providing some kind of guidance on the issue of General Elections date, they just laid back at best and at worst, took divergent positions.
What were courts supposed to do in a case where political leaders appear to abdicate their responsibilities? There was a vacuum and someone had to step in to fill it. But as earlier said, there is more than meets the eye in the crusade against ‘judicial activism’. Kibe Mungai may inadvertently have let the cat out of the bag when he told a forum at Panafric Hotel that he blames Justice Philip Waki for having opened the door that led to the suspected perpetrators of post election violence being tried at the Hague.
“The reason why we have the ICC cases in Kenya is because Waki, on the steps of Harambee House, handed the envelope with the names of suspects to Kofi Annan. If I was President Kibaki, I would have ordered the GSU to immediately arrest Waki for committing treason,” said Mungai. On that basis, it is clear what the real issues are here. They have nothing to do with delivery of justice (or lack thereof), but everything to with ICC and fear that the Judiciary—with its newfound freedom— is likely to be immune to political manipulations. That is the real issue.
Mwenda Njoka works for Zuku TV and is the founder of Africa Centre for Investigative Journalism.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/mwen ... -a-godsend
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sat Aug 18, 2012 1:34 pm
theStar
Threat To CJ Mutunga Not In Order
Saturday, 18 August 2012 00:08
BY MUGAMBI KIAI
“Campaign mooted to kick out CJ” read one of the front-page stories in the Weekend Star edition of August 11-12, 2012. Here, reporter Walter Menya informed readers that a “campaign to intimidate the judiciary and eventually bring down Chief Justice Willy Mutunga was gathering pace”.
Barely three days later, under the headline: “CJ to be put to task over ‘controversial’ court rulings” we read in the August 15 2012 edition of The Star that the Chief Justice would be put on the spot at the annual Law Society of Kenya (LSK) conference. According to the LSK chair Eric Mutua, “As much as we want to believe that everything is covered in the constitution, the lawyers think the country is not mature enough to have an “activist” judiciary.
Lawyer Kibe Mungai, speaking at the National Conservative Forum at a meeting on August 10, reportedly accused “the judiciary of being excessively activist.” Three cases were cited to back this allegation of judicial activism: the High Court ruling that found the appointment of county commissioners to be unconstitutional, the ruling on the delimitation of constituency boundaries and the lifting of the ban on the Mombasa Republican Council.
It is interesting that Kibe is involved as legal counsel in two out of the three cases cited; how professionally ethical is it to use alternative platforms to make arguments that one is allowed to in court? But that, for me, is a minor point. If we are to subscribe to the view that the judiciary under the 2010 Constitution of Kenya is “subject only to this Constitution and the law and…not…subject to the control or direction of any person or authority”, why are we now turning around and seemingly “instructing” the CJ to reign in judicial officers?
We cannot have it both ways: we cannot establish an independent judiciary and then begin barracking the Chief Justice whenever that judiciary, in exercise of its constitutional mandate, delivers a ruling that we disagree with or find unpalatable. Were the CJ to intervene at such behest, this would be an abuse of office and would constitute grounds for his removal. Of course, were there to be developed a cogent argument that there is a pattern of constitutional violation by the judiciary then this would be another case altogether.
But, one suspects, this is not really about constructing a tight and well thought out case to legitimately and appropriately hold to account both the CJ and the judiciary. Rather, as Walter Menya reports, it is supposed to be “a launch pad for politicians allied to Uhuru [Kenyatta] and [William] Ruto to make concerted calls for the CJ to resign or call on President Kibaki to set up a tribunal to investigate his conduct….[it is a] precursor to a nationwide political campaign to intimidate the judiciary.”
This is sad. It is also based on very feeble and lame constitutional foundations. Worse, all this is anchored in legal quicksand. The authors of this scheme, before embarking on this perilously myopic and hopeless path, should read Article 168 of the Constitution which makes provisions around the removal from office of judges of superior courts. If they still think there are grounds to proceed, enrolment in a first year Constitutional Law class is a better option.
Notwithstanding how incurably afflicted by constitutional and legal jaundice this effort is, it will be certainly be made; for there is history. It cannot be too long ago for us to forget the bureaucratic resistance that the Committee of Experts that drafted the 2010 constitution encountered when it came to securing resources to properly and fully execute its mandate. Who was the Minister for Finance then?
It is not too long ago for us to forget the criminal insertion of a clause in the constitutional draft that would have allowed the violation of human rights under an unclearly defined interest called “national security”. Who were in charge of national security institutions at that point?It is not too long ago for us to forget the outright and cheap lies that were propagated in the name of the NO campaign in an attempt to instil public fear and revulsion to the constitutional draft.
Were we not told that under the new constitution, abortions could now be procured even from mortuary attendants? Or that certain communities especially living in the Rift Valley would be dispossessed of their land? Or that it would be illegal for certain religions to evangelize? Or that we would now live under Sharia law? Who were behind the NO campaign?
Can we forget the colourfully titled “Watermelons” of the constitutional referendum process who were green by day and red by night? Those who were openly associated with the YES campaign during the day but surreptitiously funding and offering support at night to the NO campaign? Have we forgotten who they were?
These folks have now regrouped. They have been so used to buying “justice” or simply instructing it from a pliant and malleable judiciary. Now they are genuinely running scared of the new judiciary which is exhibiting an unprecedented robustness, confidence and independence. For them, they are beginning to see an end to their careers: “One of the fast-dawning realities is that the new constitution has established mechanisms that will, if fully brought to effect, sweep out a lot of state officers on grounds of unsuitability to hold office.”
The signs for them are really bad: this is a judiciary that is willing to even let go of its own deputy Chief Justice on the grounds of gross misconduct following a reported incident involving a security guard. No longer is this the happy valley for the rich, powerful and famous; Wanjiku, the ordinary citizen, can demonstrably enjoy protection under the law.
This is the new Kenya they are particularly petrified about: the mwananchi (citizen) is slowly but surely now also becoming mwenyenchi (the sovereign). In a country so used to the “Big Man” it is no wonder that they were vehemently opposed to the 2010 Constitution; after all, under Article 1 (1) it is provided that “All Sovereign power belongs to the people of Kenya and shall be exercised only in accordance with this Constitution.” If obeisance to this is judicial activism, then so be it.
Mugambi Kiai is the Kenya Program Manager at the Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa (OSIEA). The views expressed in this article are entirely his own and do not reflect the views of OSIEA.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/muga ... t-in-order
Threat To CJ Mutunga Not In Order
Saturday, 18 August 2012 00:08
BY MUGAMBI KIAI
“Campaign mooted to kick out CJ” read one of the front-page stories in the Weekend Star edition of August 11-12, 2012. Here, reporter Walter Menya informed readers that a “campaign to intimidate the judiciary and eventually bring down Chief Justice Willy Mutunga was gathering pace”.
Barely three days later, under the headline: “CJ to be put to task over ‘controversial’ court rulings” we read in the August 15 2012 edition of The Star that the Chief Justice would be put on the spot at the annual Law Society of Kenya (LSK) conference. According to the LSK chair Eric Mutua, “As much as we want to believe that everything is covered in the constitution, the lawyers think the country is not mature enough to have an “activist” judiciary.
Lawyer Kibe Mungai, speaking at the National Conservative Forum at a meeting on August 10, reportedly accused “the judiciary of being excessively activist.” Three cases were cited to back this allegation of judicial activism: the High Court ruling that found the appointment of county commissioners to be unconstitutional, the ruling on the delimitation of constituency boundaries and the lifting of the ban on the Mombasa Republican Council.
It is interesting that Kibe is involved as legal counsel in two out of the three cases cited; how professionally ethical is it to use alternative platforms to make arguments that one is allowed to in court? But that, for me, is a minor point. If we are to subscribe to the view that the judiciary under the 2010 Constitution of Kenya is “subject only to this Constitution and the law and…not…subject to the control or direction of any person or authority”, why are we now turning around and seemingly “instructing” the CJ to reign in judicial officers?
We cannot have it both ways: we cannot establish an independent judiciary and then begin barracking the Chief Justice whenever that judiciary, in exercise of its constitutional mandate, delivers a ruling that we disagree with or find unpalatable. Were the CJ to intervene at such behest, this would be an abuse of office and would constitute grounds for his removal. Of course, were there to be developed a cogent argument that there is a pattern of constitutional violation by the judiciary then this would be another case altogether.
But, one suspects, this is not really about constructing a tight and well thought out case to legitimately and appropriately hold to account both the CJ and the judiciary. Rather, as Walter Menya reports, it is supposed to be “a launch pad for politicians allied to Uhuru [Kenyatta] and [William] Ruto to make concerted calls for the CJ to resign or call on President Kibaki to set up a tribunal to investigate his conduct….[it is a] precursor to a nationwide political campaign to intimidate the judiciary.”
This is sad. It is also based on very feeble and lame constitutional foundations. Worse, all this is anchored in legal quicksand. The authors of this scheme, before embarking on this perilously myopic and hopeless path, should read Article 168 of the Constitution which makes provisions around the removal from office of judges of superior courts. If they still think there are grounds to proceed, enrolment in a first year Constitutional Law class is a better option.
Notwithstanding how incurably afflicted by constitutional and legal jaundice this effort is, it will be certainly be made; for there is history. It cannot be too long ago for us to forget the bureaucratic resistance that the Committee of Experts that drafted the 2010 constitution encountered when it came to securing resources to properly and fully execute its mandate. Who was the Minister for Finance then?
It is not too long ago for us to forget the criminal insertion of a clause in the constitutional draft that would have allowed the violation of human rights under an unclearly defined interest called “national security”. Who were in charge of national security institutions at that point?It is not too long ago for us to forget the outright and cheap lies that were propagated in the name of the NO campaign in an attempt to instil public fear and revulsion to the constitutional draft.
Were we not told that under the new constitution, abortions could now be procured even from mortuary attendants? Or that certain communities especially living in the Rift Valley would be dispossessed of their land? Or that it would be illegal for certain religions to evangelize? Or that we would now live under Sharia law? Who were behind the NO campaign?
Can we forget the colourfully titled “Watermelons” of the constitutional referendum process who were green by day and red by night? Those who were openly associated with the YES campaign during the day but surreptitiously funding and offering support at night to the NO campaign? Have we forgotten who they were?
These folks have now regrouped. They have been so used to buying “justice” or simply instructing it from a pliant and malleable judiciary. Now they are genuinely running scared of the new judiciary which is exhibiting an unprecedented robustness, confidence and independence. For them, they are beginning to see an end to their careers: “One of the fast-dawning realities is that the new constitution has established mechanisms that will, if fully brought to effect, sweep out a lot of state officers on grounds of unsuitability to hold office.”
The signs for them are really bad: this is a judiciary that is willing to even let go of its own deputy Chief Justice on the grounds of gross misconduct following a reported incident involving a security guard. No longer is this the happy valley for the rich, powerful and famous; Wanjiku, the ordinary citizen, can demonstrably enjoy protection under the law.
This is the new Kenya they are particularly petrified about: the mwananchi (citizen) is slowly but surely now also becoming mwenyenchi (the sovereign). In a country so used to the “Big Man” it is no wonder that they were vehemently opposed to the 2010 Constitution; after all, under Article 1 (1) it is provided that “All Sovereign power belongs to the people of Kenya and shall be exercised only in accordance with this Constitution.” If obeisance to this is judicial activism, then so be it.
Mugambi Kiai is the Kenya Program Manager at the Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa (OSIEA). The views expressed in this article are entirely his own and do not reflect the views of OSIEA.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/muga ... t-in-order
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sat Aug 18, 2012 6:34 pm
Sunday Nation
Opinion
Looks like Tony Gachoka has an axe to grind ...
By MAKAU MUTUA
Posted Saturday, August 18 2012 at 19:04
In Summary
• He’s embittered against Raila. He only wants to talk after the sack. That’s not a formula for credibility
They call him a “political activist”. But the term is a meaningless tautology. It’s like calling someone a “widow woman”. That’s because a “widow” is a “woman”, I would rather they called him a “political consultant” or even a “gun for hire”.
I am talking about former government functionary Tony Gachoka.
Mr Gachoka, the estranged aide to Prime Minister Raila Odinga, has suddenly “found his conscience”.
He now claims — nearly four years after the fact — to possess evidence of Mr Odinga’s culpability in the 2008 post-election violence.
Like Miguna Miguna — another estranged Odinga aide — Mr Gachoka wants to “unburden” himself at the International Criminal Court.
Why now? Deductive reasoning shows that Mr Gachoka isn’t acting alone. I’ll tell you why.
But let’s first dispose with some preliminary matters. It seems that the Dutch Government is sceptical about Mr Gachoka.
That’s why the Dutch Embassy in Nairobi has denied him a visa to The Hague.
Apparently, the ICC hasn’t accepted Mr Gachoka’s request for a meeting. You can read between the lines. The International Criminal Court most likely thinks Mr Gachoka is a “pest”.
That means he’s vexatious and an “instrument of confusion”. In other words, he’s being used as a pawn to delegitimise the court and its cases against the Ocampo Four.
Mr Gachoka should know that Dutch Embassy officials in Nairobi are keenly aware of plots to sabotage the court process. He should have been less transparent in his machinations.
I don’t know what sort of contact Mr Gachoka has made with the International Criminal Court, or the nature of the evidence he claims to possess. Nor do I know whether the court has responded to him. But I know this — the court is a savvy institution that knows a duck when it sees one.
The culpability of the Ocampo Four will not be established by implicating others. That’s not a sound legal strategy. The burden of proof lies with the prosecution to show — beyond a reasonable doubt — that the Ocampo Four are guilty as charged.
The defence is best advised to concentrate on tearing apart the prosecution’s case.
It will not help to introduce witnesses who can be easily impeached.
Why isn’t Mr Gachoka believable? First, he talks too much. He’s made too many public statements with which he can be impeached. He’s embittered against Mr Odinga. Like Mr Miguna, he was fired. Like Mr Miguna, he only wants to talk after the sack. That’s not a formula for credibility. He has an axe to grind.
Second, he really can’t explain why he’s held on to crucial evidence for a mind-boggling four years.
Possessing — and concealing — evidence could be a criminal offence. It also shows a lack of conscience. What does he tell the victims who cry for justice?
Can he ever look them in the eye and tell them why he’s sat on “crucial evidence” for four years?
For one, I don’t believe that Mr Gachoka has any evidence at all. He most likely has “stories” to tell, but no valuable evidence. He wants to set the court on a wild goose chase so that it can dissipate its resources and energy on “leads to nowhere”. It’s clear what the strategy is here – to divert attention from the Ocampo Four. This is how he and his “masters” plan to weaken the cases against the Ocampo Four. That’s why the ICC is unlikely to give him the time of day.
Even if the court relents and sees him, it would be out of courtesy, not seriousness. Nor would he see a high-ranking official. He’s an easy read.
Mr Gachoka is the latest cog in the PNU scheme to save the Ocampo Four. He’s no different from VP Kalonzo Musyoka’s “shuttle diplomacy” to sabotage the ICC at the African Union and the United Nations.
He’s a continuation of the challenges that the PNU wing of the coalition government lodged at the ICC. He’s picked up Mr Miguna’s boast that he can take Mr Odinga to the court.
But these are wild hallucinations. The court isn’t going to open new investigations into Kenya, or issue any more indictments. That’s done. Whether or not Mr Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki were complicit in the violence is now water under the bridge. The Ocampo Four should carry their own crosses.
I have some advice for the Ocampo Four and their supporters. The ICC, like all courts, has a psychology. Please study the court’s thinking, and its jurisprudence, otherwise you will continue to dig a deeper hole. The ICC is watching you carefully. Shenanigans by you or your supporters are very damaging. This can’t help with either the judges, or the ICC as an institution.
Don’t approach the ICC like a Kenyan court before CJ Willy Mutunga took over.
You know the ICC recently convicted Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga. You saw how the Special Court for Sierra Leone dealt with Liberian warlord Charles Taylor. We only want to know the truth – are you, or aren’t you – guilty as charged?
The court represents the one final forum for Kenyans to bury the trauma of the post-election violence so that we can move on. I don’t believe that justice for the victims will ever be done at home unless it’s first done at The Hague.
That’s why the trials of the Ocampo Four may be Kenya’s most important event since independence in 1964. I think the truth will come out at the trials of the Ocampo Four. We will know who planned and executed the mayhem. Let the truth set us free, Mr Gachoka.
Makau Mutua is Dean and SUNY Distinguished Professor at SUNY Buffalo Law School and Chair of the KHRC.
http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Opinion/To ... index.html
Opinion
Looks like Tony Gachoka has an axe to grind ...
By MAKAU MUTUA
Posted Saturday, August 18 2012 at 19:04
In Summary
• He’s embittered against Raila. He only wants to talk after the sack. That’s not a formula for credibility
They call him a “political activist”. But the term is a meaningless tautology. It’s like calling someone a “widow woman”. That’s because a “widow” is a “woman”, I would rather they called him a “political consultant” or even a “gun for hire”.
I am talking about former government functionary Tony Gachoka.
Mr Gachoka, the estranged aide to Prime Minister Raila Odinga, has suddenly “found his conscience”.
He now claims — nearly four years after the fact — to possess evidence of Mr Odinga’s culpability in the 2008 post-election violence.
Like Miguna Miguna — another estranged Odinga aide — Mr Gachoka wants to “unburden” himself at the International Criminal Court.
Why now? Deductive reasoning shows that Mr Gachoka isn’t acting alone. I’ll tell you why.
But let’s first dispose with some preliminary matters. It seems that the Dutch Government is sceptical about Mr Gachoka.
That’s why the Dutch Embassy in Nairobi has denied him a visa to The Hague.
Apparently, the ICC hasn’t accepted Mr Gachoka’s request for a meeting. You can read between the lines. The International Criminal Court most likely thinks Mr Gachoka is a “pest”.
That means he’s vexatious and an “instrument of confusion”. In other words, he’s being used as a pawn to delegitimise the court and its cases against the Ocampo Four.
Mr Gachoka should know that Dutch Embassy officials in Nairobi are keenly aware of plots to sabotage the court process. He should have been less transparent in his machinations.
I don’t know what sort of contact Mr Gachoka has made with the International Criminal Court, or the nature of the evidence he claims to possess. Nor do I know whether the court has responded to him. But I know this — the court is a savvy institution that knows a duck when it sees one.
The culpability of the Ocampo Four will not be established by implicating others. That’s not a sound legal strategy. The burden of proof lies with the prosecution to show — beyond a reasonable doubt — that the Ocampo Four are guilty as charged.
The defence is best advised to concentrate on tearing apart the prosecution’s case.
It will not help to introduce witnesses who can be easily impeached.
Why isn’t Mr Gachoka believable? First, he talks too much. He’s made too many public statements with which he can be impeached. He’s embittered against Mr Odinga. Like Mr Miguna, he was fired. Like Mr Miguna, he only wants to talk after the sack. That’s not a formula for credibility. He has an axe to grind.
Second, he really can’t explain why he’s held on to crucial evidence for a mind-boggling four years.
Possessing — and concealing — evidence could be a criminal offence. It also shows a lack of conscience. What does he tell the victims who cry for justice?
Can he ever look them in the eye and tell them why he’s sat on “crucial evidence” for four years?
For one, I don’t believe that Mr Gachoka has any evidence at all. He most likely has “stories” to tell, but no valuable evidence. He wants to set the court on a wild goose chase so that it can dissipate its resources and energy on “leads to nowhere”. It’s clear what the strategy is here – to divert attention from the Ocampo Four. This is how he and his “masters” plan to weaken the cases against the Ocampo Four. That’s why the ICC is unlikely to give him the time of day.
Even if the court relents and sees him, it would be out of courtesy, not seriousness. Nor would he see a high-ranking official. He’s an easy read.
Mr Gachoka is the latest cog in the PNU scheme to save the Ocampo Four. He’s no different from VP Kalonzo Musyoka’s “shuttle diplomacy” to sabotage the ICC at the African Union and the United Nations.
He’s a continuation of the challenges that the PNU wing of the coalition government lodged at the ICC. He’s picked up Mr Miguna’s boast that he can take Mr Odinga to the court.
But these are wild hallucinations. The court isn’t going to open new investigations into Kenya, or issue any more indictments. That’s done. Whether or not Mr Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki were complicit in the violence is now water under the bridge. The Ocampo Four should carry their own crosses.
I have some advice for the Ocampo Four and their supporters. The ICC, like all courts, has a psychology. Please study the court’s thinking, and its jurisprudence, otherwise you will continue to dig a deeper hole. The ICC is watching you carefully. Shenanigans by you or your supporters are very damaging. This can’t help with either the judges, or the ICC as an institution.
Don’t approach the ICC like a Kenyan court before CJ Willy Mutunga took over.
You know the ICC recently convicted Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga. You saw how the Special Court for Sierra Leone dealt with Liberian warlord Charles Taylor. We only want to know the truth – are you, or aren’t you – guilty as charged?
The court represents the one final forum for Kenyans to bury the trauma of the post-election violence so that we can move on. I don’t believe that justice for the victims will ever be done at home unless it’s first done at The Hague.
That’s why the trials of the Ocampo Four may be Kenya’s most important event since independence in 1964. I think the truth will come out at the trials of the Ocampo Four. We will know who planned and executed the mayhem. Let the truth set us free, Mr Gachoka.
Makau Mutua is Dean and SUNY Distinguished Professor at SUNY Buffalo Law School and Chair of the KHRC.
http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Opinion/To ... index.html
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by Kalvin » Sat Aug 18, 2012 7:30 pm
You might want to slow down boss. You idoL has been compromised by recently unearthed evidence. So if the ICC prosecution bars "suspects", you might be out of a job.
I feel sorry for you. For real... For more than two years, you have droned the same song, same message. I bet even your computer fights you when you log on ('Oh crud!! Not that shit again!!')
Usijali, all was not for naught. At least your fingers lost weight 
I feel sorry for you. For real... For more than two years, you have droned the same song, same message. I bet even your computer fights you when you log on ('Oh crud!! Not that shit again!!')
Usijali, all was not for naught. At least your fingers lost weight All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing~Edmund Burke
You can not win over emotion with logic~"Kalvin"
Peace - a state of harmony characterized by the lack of violent conflict
You can not win over emotion with logic~"Kalvin"
Peace - a state of harmony characterized by the lack of violent conflict
-
Kalvin - Posts: 3303
- Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2010 1:05 pm
Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sat Aug 18, 2012 7:43 pm
Standard Digital
Criminal justice at ICC demands watertight witnesses protection
By Ndung’u Wainaina
The Kenya situation before the International Criminal Court (ICC) entered the trial stage. Four individuals – Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, Francis Muthaura and Joshua Sang – have been accused of bearing the greatest responsibility for crimes against humanity.
Though the court has stated its desire to pursue current cases, it should not be interpreted to mean that it cannot revisit other cases if more evidence comes up in future.
The ICC is a Government project, invited and endorsed by Parliament. The Waki Commission was a Government project. Its report and recommendations were adopted unanimously by Parliament. ICC is a Kenyan court of the last resort. MPs were categorically not vague; it was The Hague.
By voting for The Hague process, majority were thwarting justice while others feared the local tribunal net would be casted wide with likelihood of their prosecution. ICC cases are being carried out at the behest of the Government and Parliament and not of any other person or authority.
Uhuru, Ruto and Muthaura were actually serving in the various arms of the Government in 2005 when Kenya signed the Rome Statute.
Government is not party to the trial proceedings. Its role ceased with admissibility challenge appeal collapse. It is not entitled to evidence and witnesses’ disclosure. The Rome Statute does not anticipate sharing of information with an entity, which is not party to its criminal proceedings.
But there is danger. Because some of the accused have very close ties with the State and its machinery, it is likely the evidence and identity of witnesses will find way into public domain leading to elimination, intimidation or compromise. Already, a lot of information on witnesses and other intermediaries is circulating on the Internet and social media courtesy of key supporters of the accused persons. Yet the ICC and the office of Director of Public Prosecutions have done nothing about it.
It is not within the jurisdiction of Executive and Parliament to demand information regarding ICC engagement with either individual(s) or organisation(s). Regulation 97 of the ICC Registry’s Regulation is crystal clear on this matter. However, the Government is expected to fully cooperate and meet its obligations under the Rome Statute.
ICC has put Kenya political elite to accountability. As usual whenever cornered by watertight processes not easy to manipulate, capture or compromise, they retreat to ethnic mobilisation casting themselves as ‘victims being persecuted’. They spread and sell well-known fallacious propaganda “our community is being targeted and eliminated from leadership”.
This choreographed propaganda is intended to attack, bastardise and discredit the court, potential witnesses and intermediaries. Gangs for hire for certain accused persons have invaded every medium with their shameless lies and distortion.
Propaganda notwithstanding, the protection of witnesses and victims remains paramount. It overrides any right to disclosure held by the defence to the extent that it does not occasion any prejudice on the right for defence preparation. Victims’ interests are crucial in this process. It has been more than four years since the atrocities were committed and every passing day is an injustice to the victims. Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda is on record calling all to listen to suffering victims of massive crimes.
Some accused persons and their supporters are on record insidiously mocking and disparaging victims. They treat victims as atavistic savages with no rights. To them victims deserve no compassion and respect for their dignity. Political power calculus is more important than human life and dignity. Perpetrators of the violence act with a sense of impunity, secure in the belief that their actions would go unpunished.
Victims and witnesses are the cornerstone for successful investigation and prosecution. Witnesses need to have confidence in the law enforcement and prosecutorial authorities for them to come forward and assist in the cases without fear of intimidation, retribution and threats from the suspects and their supporters. Ensuring their safety and welfare sends a strong message to citizens that the justice system is effective. It demonstrates commitment to bringing criminals into the folds of the law.
A credible witness protection mechanism is an effective tool for combating local and international crimes for both prosecutors in the filing of criminal charges against criminals and the police in clearing investigations and securing successful prosecutions. Witness protection is no longer an issue at the national level alone. It demands international cooperation too. I want justice for the accused persons. But justice is meaningless if the suffering and pain of post-election violence (PEV) victims is inconsequential.
Credible national criminal proceedings for PEV serious crimes have been thwarted not because of lack of evidence or capacity but because of deceitful politics and lack of political will. It is common knowledge that the ICC considerably relied on evidence gathered by public institutions for initiating investigations.
These institutions and their reports are at the disposal of the Government. Kenya has all the evidence across all security agencies but the perpetrators are falsely ‘protected’.
ICC will only give us part of the PEV crimes story. The full truth will come out if the rest of the perpetrators are brought to justice through credible complementarity process. The Government has never genuinely accepted ‘positive complementarity’ due to the inherent fear within the top echelons of Government of ‘ripple-effect’.
Police and some politicians have in unison publicly discouraged such prosecutions. Top Government officials are notorious for making noise at the right moments and going inertia when the dust settles. The ICC process has exposed the hypocrisy of the State. It is now clear that justice, privileges and protection exist in abundance for high and mighty.
This is a doomed strategy. Remember the case of John Demjanjuk, the Nazi death camp guard convicted last year for his World War II role? Well, it took over 60 years but for Kenya, I strongly feel the gods of PEV victims will call sooner.
The writer is Executive Director, International Centre for Policy and Conflict
posting.php?mode=reply&f=3&t=10098
Criminal justice at ICC demands watertight witnesses protection
By Ndung’u Wainaina
The Kenya situation before the International Criminal Court (ICC) entered the trial stage. Four individuals – Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, Francis Muthaura and Joshua Sang – have been accused of bearing the greatest responsibility for crimes against humanity.
Though the court has stated its desire to pursue current cases, it should not be interpreted to mean that it cannot revisit other cases if more evidence comes up in future.
The ICC is a Government project, invited and endorsed by Parliament. The Waki Commission was a Government project. Its report and recommendations were adopted unanimously by Parliament. ICC is a Kenyan court of the last resort. MPs were categorically not vague; it was The Hague.
By voting for The Hague process, majority were thwarting justice while others feared the local tribunal net would be casted wide with likelihood of their prosecution. ICC cases are being carried out at the behest of the Government and Parliament and not of any other person or authority.
Uhuru, Ruto and Muthaura were actually serving in the various arms of the Government in 2005 when Kenya signed the Rome Statute.
Government is not party to the trial proceedings. Its role ceased with admissibility challenge appeal collapse. It is not entitled to evidence and witnesses’ disclosure. The Rome Statute does not anticipate sharing of information with an entity, which is not party to its criminal proceedings.
But there is danger. Because some of the accused have very close ties with the State and its machinery, it is likely the evidence and identity of witnesses will find way into public domain leading to elimination, intimidation or compromise. Already, a lot of information on witnesses and other intermediaries is circulating on the Internet and social media courtesy of key supporters of the accused persons. Yet the ICC and the office of Director of Public Prosecutions have done nothing about it.
It is not within the jurisdiction of Executive and Parliament to demand information regarding ICC engagement with either individual(s) or organisation(s). Regulation 97 of the ICC Registry’s Regulation is crystal clear on this matter. However, the Government is expected to fully cooperate and meet its obligations under the Rome Statute.
ICC has put Kenya political elite to accountability. As usual whenever cornered by watertight processes not easy to manipulate, capture or compromise, they retreat to ethnic mobilisation casting themselves as ‘victims being persecuted’. They spread and sell well-known fallacious propaganda “our community is being targeted and eliminated from leadership”.
This choreographed propaganda is intended to attack, bastardise and discredit the court, potential witnesses and intermediaries. Gangs for hire for certain accused persons have invaded every medium with their shameless lies and distortion.
Propaganda notwithstanding, the protection of witnesses and victims remains paramount. It overrides any right to disclosure held by the defence to the extent that it does not occasion any prejudice on the right for defence preparation. Victims’ interests are crucial in this process. It has been more than four years since the atrocities were committed and every passing day is an injustice to the victims. Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda is on record calling all to listen to suffering victims of massive crimes.
Some accused persons and their supporters are on record insidiously mocking and disparaging victims. They treat victims as atavistic savages with no rights. To them victims deserve no compassion and respect for their dignity. Political power calculus is more important than human life and dignity. Perpetrators of the violence act with a sense of impunity, secure in the belief that their actions would go unpunished.
Victims and witnesses are the cornerstone for successful investigation and prosecution. Witnesses need to have confidence in the law enforcement and prosecutorial authorities for them to come forward and assist in the cases without fear of intimidation, retribution and threats from the suspects and their supporters. Ensuring their safety and welfare sends a strong message to citizens that the justice system is effective. It demonstrates commitment to bringing criminals into the folds of the law.
A credible witness protection mechanism is an effective tool for combating local and international crimes for both prosecutors in the filing of criminal charges against criminals and the police in clearing investigations and securing successful prosecutions. Witness protection is no longer an issue at the national level alone. It demands international cooperation too. I want justice for the accused persons. But justice is meaningless if the suffering and pain of post-election violence (PEV) victims is inconsequential.
Credible national criminal proceedings for PEV serious crimes have been thwarted not because of lack of evidence or capacity but because of deceitful politics and lack of political will. It is common knowledge that the ICC considerably relied on evidence gathered by public institutions for initiating investigations.
These institutions and their reports are at the disposal of the Government. Kenya has all the evidence across all security agencies but the perpetrators are falsely ‘protected’.
ICC will only give us part of the PEV crimes story. The full truth will come out if the rest of the perpetrators are brought to justice through credible complementarity process. The Government has never genuinely accepted ‘positive complementarity’ due to the inherent fear within the top echelons of Government of ‘ripple-effect’.
Police and some politicians have in unison publicly discouraged such prosecutions. Top Government officials are notorious for making noise at the right moments and going inertia when the dust settles. The ICC process has exposed the hypocrisy of the State. It is now clear that justice, privileges and protection exist in abundance for high and mighty.
This is a doomed strategy. Remember the case of John Demjanjuk, the Nazi death camp guard convicted last year for his World War II role? Well, it took over 60 years but for Kenya, I strongly feel the gods of PEV victims will call sooner.
The writer is Executive Director, International Centre for Policy and Conflict
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sat Aug 18, 2012 7:57 pm
theguardian
Young Kenyans shun tribalism over fears of post-election violence
Many citizens are tiring of divisive rhetoric used by politicians on campaign trail and seek to avoid a repeat of 2007 ethnic unrest
Clar Ni Chonghaile in Nairobi
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 14 August 2012 08.03 EDT
Like many Kenyans, Eko Dydda's tribal origins used to be obvious from his name. But after witnessing the ethnic violence that followed the country's last election, the gospel rapper decided to change his name to remove any reference to his tribe.
The 26-year-old, who was named best male artist at Kenya's 2012 Groove awards, says many young Kenyans support his battle against tribalism. He warns that time is running out ahead of the country's next election in March.
"I tell (my fans) 'let's not be tribal, but let's be Tribe-All because we are the Tribe-All generation," he says.
Dydda, who grew up in the Mathare slum in Nairobi, was nearly a casualty of the violence that broke out after President Mwai Kibaki, a Kikuyu, was declared the winner of the 2007 election and the prime minister Raila Odinga, a Luo, cried foul.
"Things were crazy … I saw the ugly of the ugly," Dydda said. A gang from his tribe, armed with a panga (machete), stopped him in Mathare and demanded he speak their language to prove that he was one of them. But Dydda only spoke Sheng, the mixture of Swahili and English, which is the language of the ghettos.
Luckily, an older man appeared and told the gang that Dydda was one of them. "It was a wake-up call," Dydda said.
The rapper, known for his stammer-and-stagger style, now preaches tolerance at his concerts and hosts a conversation under the hashtag #Ghetto_Parliament on Twitter. "(I changed my name) because I wanted to belong to the country Kenya and not a specific tribe," he said.
Four Kenyans, including presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta, are facing trial at the international criminal court for their alleged role in the poll violence. About 1,200 people were killed and hundreds of thousands were displaced.
Many young Kenyans, from graffiti artists, to singers and civil society activists, say they are tired of a political system built on tribal loyalties and endemic corruption. But already, analysts says, some politicians are using the divisive rhetoric of "us against them" on the campaign trail.
"[Political] mobilisation is still … being done around individuals and these individuals are talking to their ethnic base first," said Ndung'u Wainaina, executive director of the International Centre for Policy and Conflict.
In July Kenya's National Cohesion and Integration Commission, brought a case against three Kikuyu musicians, charging them with inciting violence against people of the Luo tribe in political songs. The singers denied the charges.
Joy Mdivo, the head of a Christian NGO, the East African Centre for Law and Justice, believes Kenyans do not want to fight again but the tensions are still there. "We are a new generation. Yes, your tribe is important to you because that is your heritage … but it doesn't define you," she said.
While calls for change resonate in Nairobi, it is hard to gauge the hunger for a new political dynamic outside the cosmopolitan capital.
Wainaina said rural communities would support change if they thought it would improve their access to jobs, services and political representation, but warned that the ethnically based divisions were easily manipulated.
"Issues of resource allocation and accessibility, representation, accountability and participation are at the heart of these communities but (the lack of) an enabling environment, including access to critical information, remains a major hindrance," he added.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/au ... sfeed=true
Young Kenyans shun tribalism over fears of post-election violence
Many citizens are tiring of divisive rhetoric used by politicians on campaign trail and seek to avoid a repeat of 2007 ethnic unrest
Clar Ni Chonghaile in Nairobi
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 14 August 2012 08.03 EDT
Like many Kenyans, Eko Dydda's tribal origins used to be obvious from his name. But after witnessing the ethnic violence that followed the country's last election, the gospel rapper decided to change his name to remove any reference to his tribe.
The 26-year-old, who was named best male artist at Kenya's 2012 Groove awards, says many young Kenyans support his battle against tribalism. He warns that time is running out ahead of the country's next election in March.
"I tell (my fans) 'let's not be tribal, but let's be Tribe-All because we are the Tribe-All generation," he says.
Dydda, who grew up in the Mathare slum in Nairobi, was nearly a casualty of the violence that broke out after President Mwai Kibaki, a Kikuyu, was declared the winner of the 2007 election and the prime minister Raila Odinga, a Luo, cried foul.
"Things were crazy … I saw the ugly of the ugly," Dydda said. A gang from his tribe, armed with a panga (machete), stopped him in Mathare and demanded he speak their language to prove that he was one of them. But Dydda only spoke Sheng, the mixture of Swahili and English, which is the language of the ghettos.
Luckily, an older man appeared and told the gang that Dydda was one of them. "It was a wake-up call," Dydda said.
The rapper, known for his stammer-and-stagger style, now preaches tolerance at his concerts and hosts a conversation under the hashtag #Ghetto_Parliament on Twitter. "(I changed my name) because I wanted to belong to the country Kenya and not a specific tribe," he said.
Four Kenyans, including presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta, are facing trial at the international criminal court for their alleged role in the poll violence. About 1,200 people were killed and hundreds of thousands were displaced.
Many young Kenyans, from graffiti artists, to singers and civil society activists, say they are tired of a political system built on tribal loyalties and endemic corruption. But already, analysts says, some politicians are using the divisive rhetoric of "us against them" on the campaign trail.
"[Political] mobilisation is still … being done around individuals and these individuals are talking to their ethnic base first," said Ndung'u Wainaina, executive director of the International Centre for Policy and Conflict.
In July Kenya's National Cohesion and Integration Commission, brought a case against three Kikuyu musicians, charging them with inciting violence against people of the Luo tribe in political songs. The singers denied the charges.
Joy Mdivo, the head of a Christian NGO, the East African Centre for Law and Justice, believes Kenyans do not want to fight again but the tensions are still there. "We are a new generation. Yes, your tribe is important to you because that is your heritage … but it doesn't define you," she said.
While calls for change resonate in Nairobi, it is hard to gauge the hunger for a new political dynamic outside the cosmopolitan capital.
Wainaina said rural communities would support change if they thought it would improve their access to jobs, services and political representation, but warned that the ethnically based divisions were easily manipulated.
"Issues of resource allocation and accessibility, representation, accountability and participation are at the heart of these communities but (the lack of) an enabling environment, including access to critical information, remains a major hindrance," he added.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/au ... sfeed=true
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sun Aug 19, 2012 2:34 am
World Politics Review
By Lesley Anne Warner, on 17 Aug 2012, Briefing
An ongoing standoff in Kenya’s Coast province between the central government and the secessionist Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) could make the region a flashpoint for next year’s elections.
Formed in 1999 to address the region’s marginalization, the MRC was designated by the government as an organized criminal group in 2010. Claiming this action unconstitutional, the MRC filed a case with the High Court in Mombasa, which last month ruled in the MRC’s favor. Nevertheless, the MRC has maintained its threats to boycott and otherwise disrupt Kenya’s March 2013 presidential and parliamentary elections if its demands are not met.
The polls will be the first since disputed elections in December 2007 led to ethnically motivated violence that resulted in more than 1,200 deaths and 600,000 displaced persons. Moreover, as the first polls under Kenya’s 2010 constitution (.pdf), the elections will help test whether or not the promise of devolution enshrined in the new constitution provides the necessary mechanisms to remedy political marginalization and economic inequality.
Among other reforms, the new constitution includes a bill of rights, devolves political power to local governments, places checks and balances on the president’s power and sets up a National Land Commission to pave the way for land reform. Accordingly, Kenya’s central government and local politicians assert that the new constitution presents the best framework through which local grievances can be addressed. Yet, the constitution has yet to be fully implemented, due possibly to a lack of capacity or political will. Furthermore, lacking trust in Kenya’s political class, the MRC does not believe that its grievances can be addressed within the constraints of Kenya’s system of governance, even with increased local political representation.
The MRC’s grievances include a lack of employment opportunities in the region, a system of land tenure that favors nonindigenous settlers from “upcountry,” and the harassment of MRC members by Kenyan security forces. Citing the inability of the Kenyan state to respond to the region’s concerns, the MRC seeks independence for a 10-mile wide strip of land along Kenya’s coast, an objective reflected in their slogan “Pwani si Kenya,” or “The Coast is not part of Kenya.” To avoid conferring legitimacy on the electoral process and to maintain its claim to independence, the group has ruled out participating in the March 2013 elections.
For many reasons, the Kenyan government hopes to keep the situation in Coast province from spiraling out of control. The Coast region is vital to Kenya’s economy, and the port of Mombasa makes Kenya’s coast a major transportation hub in East Africa. Disruption of trade in Coast could also have second-order effects on the economies of the landlocked countries of East and Central Africa that depend on Kenya for access to global markets. In addition, actual or perceived instability in Coast has an impact on the amount of revenue the government brings in from the country’s lucrative tourism industry. This sector has taken several hits over the past five years as a result of the post-election violence in 2007-2008, the global financial crisis and, most recently, grenade attacks and cross-border kidnappings originating from Somalia.
Given Kenya’s role as a troop-contributing country for the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the Coast is also important for reasons of regional security. Bases in Coast are likely facilitating the Kenyan navy’s support of Kenyan ground operations in southern Somalia, a role that will only take on greater importance as the long-anticipated assault on the Somali port city of Kismayo becomes a reality over the coming weeks. Perhaps more important, however, would be the impact that violence in Coast -- or anywhere in Kenya -- would have on the country’s ability and willingness to continue contributing troops to AMISOM.
In the past, two issues have obstructed negotiations between the MRC and the Kenyan government. First, the government refused to open a dialogue with an illegal group, and the MRC likewise opposed the government’s ban on the movement’s political mobilization. Second, the MRC’s threats to boycott the elections and calls for secession are seen by some members of the government as inciting violence and challenging the country’s territorial integrity. The former issue has now been eliminated by last month’s High Court ruling, leaving both the government and the MRC at a crossroads.
Though the attorney general intends to appeal the ruling, the decision actually provides an opening for the government to recalibrate its approach to the MRC. By ruling against the executive branch, Kenya’s judiciary demonstrated that it is indeed possible for a group to use the legal system to seek recourse against the central government. The government could use the momentum created by this decision as a springboard for renewed engagement with the population of the Coast. While many Coast residents do not favor secession, the MRC’s grievances do resonate with marginalized populations in the region (.pdf).
On the other hand, the government could choose to ignore the MRC or pursue efforts to ban the group’s activities anew. However, this approach may create increasing pressure for the MRC to use violence to achieve its objectives. There have already been unsubstantiated reports that the MRC has an armed wing that was undertaking military training in the Mulungunipa forest in the southern part of Coast province. Moreover, there is also a question of how monolithic the MRC’s commitment to nonviolent political mobilization is, and whether the group’s leadership would be able to prevent group members from embracing violent tactics. Meanwhile, there have been indications (.pdf) that nonindigenous settler populations in Coast are arming themselves in case tensions with the indigenous community -- or between the government and the MRC -- turn violent.
Thus, while the High Court’s ruling could potentially present an avenue for negotiations between the government and the MRC, there are also factors at play that could lead to violence in Coast province as elections draw near. As it stands now, the MRC is not a threat to stability, in Kenya or beyond. But with the wrong approach, it could become one.
Lesley Anne Warner is an Africa analyst at CNA’s Center for Strategic Studies and blogs on African politics and security at Lesley on Africa. The views expressed here are her own and do not reflect the official positions of any organization with which she is affiliated.
Photo: Port of Mombassa, Kenya, May 19, 2008 (photo by Flickr user kijana, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license).
http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/arti ... -elections
By Lesley Anne Warner, on 17 Aug 2012, Briefing
An ongoing standoff in Kenya’s Coast province between the central government and the secessionist Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) could make the region a flashpoint for next year’s elections.
Formed in 1999 to address the region’s marginalization, the MRC was designated by the government as an organized criminal group in 2010. Claiming this action unconstitutional, the MRC filed a case with the High Court in Mombasa, which last month ruled in the MRC’s favor. Nevertheless, the MRC has maintained its threats to boycott and otherwise disrupt Kenya’s March 2013 presidential and parliamentary elections if its demands are not met.
The polls will be the first since disputed elections in December 2007 led to ethnically motivated violence that resulted in more than 1,200 deaths and 600,000 displaced persons. Moreover, as the first polls under Kenya’s 2010 constitution (.pdf), the elections will help test whether or not the promise of devolution enshrined in the new constitution provides the necessary mechanisms to remedy political marginalization and economic inequality.
Among other reforms, the new constitution includes a bill of rights, devolves political power to local governments, places checks and balances on the president’s power and sets up a National Land Commission to pave the way for land reform. Accordingly, Kenya’s central government and local politicians assert that the new constitution presents the best framework through which local grievances can be addressed. Yet, the constitution has yet to be fully implemented, due possibly to a lack of capacity or political will. Furthermore, lacking trust in Kenya’s political class, the MRC does not believe that its grievances can be addressed within the constraints of Kenya’s system of governance, even with increased local political representation.
The MRC’s grievances include a lack of employment opportunities in the region, a system of land tenure that favors nonindigenous settlers from “upcountry,” and the harassment of MRC members by Kenyan security forces. Citing the inability of the Kenyan state to respond to the region’s concerns, the MRC seeks independence for a 10-mile wide strip of land along Kenya’s coast, an objective reflected in their slogan “Pwani si Kenya,” or “The Coast is not part of Kenya.” To avoid conferring legitimacy on the electoral process and to maintain its claim to independence, the group has ruled out participating in the March 2013 elections.
For many reasons, the Kenyan government hopes to keep the situation in Coast province from spiraling out of control. The Coast region is vital to Kenya’s economy, and the port of Mombasa makes Kenya’s coast a major transportation hub in East Africa. Disruption of trade in Coast could also have second-order effects on the economies of the landlocked countries of East and Central Africa that depend on Kenya for access to global markets. In addition, actual or perceived instability in Coast has an impact on the amount of revenue the government brings in from the country’s lucrative tourism industry. This sector has taken several hits over the past five years as a result of the post-election violence in 2007-2008, the global financial crisis and, most recently, grenade attacks and cross-border kidnappings originating from Somalia.
Given Kenya’s role as a troop-contributing country for the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the Coast is also important for reasons of regional security. Bases in Coast are likely facilitating the Kenyan navy’s support of Kenyan ground operations in southern Somalia, a role that will only take on greater importance as the long-anticipated assault on the Somali port city of Kismayo becomes a reality over the coming weeks. Perhaps more important, however, would be the impact that violence in Coast -- or anywhere in Kenya -- would have on the country’s ability and willingness to continue contributing troops to AMISOM.
In the past, two issues have obstructed negotiations between the MRC and the Kenyan government. First, the government refused to open a dialogue with an illegal group, and the MRC likewise opposed the government’s ban on the movement’s political mobilization. Second, the MRC’s threats to boycott the elections and calls for secession are seen by some members of the government as inciting violence and challenging the country’s territorial integrity. The former issue has now been eliminated by last month’s High Court ruling, leaving both the government and the MRC at a crossroads.
Though the attorney general intends to appeal the ruling, the decision actually provides an opening for the government to recalibrate its approach to the MRC. By ruling against the executive branch, Kenya’s judiciary demonstrated that it is indeed possible for a group to use the legal system to seek recourse against the central government. The government could use the momentum created by this decision as a springboard for renewed engagement with the population of the Coast. While many Coast residents do not favor secession, the MRC’s grievances do resonate with marginalized populations in the region (.pdf).
On the other hand, the government could choose to ignore the MRC or pursue efforts to ban the group’s activities anew. However, this approach may create increasing pressure for the MRC to use violence to achieve its objectives. There have already been unsubstantiated reports that the MRC has an armed wing that was undertaking military training in the Mulungunipa forest in the southern part of Coast province. Moreover, there is also a question of how monolithic the MRC’s commitment to nonviolent political mobilization is, and whether the group’s leadership would be able to prevent group members from embracing violent tactics. Meanwhile, there have been indications (.pdf) that nonindigenous settler populations in Coast are arming themselves in case tensions with the indigenous community -- or between the government and the MRC -- turn violent.
Thus, while the High Court’s ruling could potentially present an avenue for negotiations between the government and the MRC, there are also factors at play that could lead to violence in Coast province as elections draw near. As it stands now, the MRC is not a threat to stability, in Kenya or beyond. But with the wrong approach, it could become one.
Lesley Anne Warner is an Africa analyst at CNA’s Center for Strategic Studies and blogs on African politics and security at Lesley on Africa. The views expressed here are her own and do not reflect the official positions of any organization with which she is affiliated.
Photo: Port of Mombassa, Kenya, May 19, 2008 (photo by Flickr user kijana, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license).
http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/arti ... -elections
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Sun Aug 19, 2012 9:08 pm
Standard Digital News
ICC:Uhuru loses again
Updated 3 hrs 35 mins ago
By Alex Ndegwa
Mr Uhuru Kenyatta has lost a fresh bid to determine whether three witnesses whose testimony he discredited and believes secured confirmation of charges against him will testify during trial.
The International Criminal Court judges rejected the Deputy Prime Minister’s application to order the Prosecutor to confirm to his defence whether it would rely on witnesses coded 4, 11 and 12 at trial.
Uhuru suffered the latest setback as the countdown to the trial beckons in two weeks when the first submissions by the parties establishing undisputed facts of the case are due.
The three protected witnesses, whose identities ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda disclosed to Uhuru on August 1, have been the subject of vicious sparring between the prosecution and Uhuru’s defence.
Uhuru has sought to brand witnesses 4, 11 and 12 as liars, claiming they initially attempted to extort money from him and only turned to the prosecution when he refused to bribe them.
However, the DPM who claims they tried to extort from him and went to ICC when he refused to yield, is free to table evidence, including visual, audio and written word to prove to the court that this actually true.
Trial Chamber V judges agreed with the prosecution that the request was an attempt to obtain information earlier than stipulated in the schedule for the trial due to start on April 11 next year.
Uhuru’s lawyer, Steven Kay, told judges during confirmation of charges hearing last September the prosecution anchored its case against Uhuru on what was claimed by the three protected witnesses. “However, two of them, numbers 11 and 12, were first interviewed by the defence team in 2011 and gave a fully exculpatory account to that now relied upon by the prosecution,” he said.
Kay then told Pre-Trial Chamber II judges their versions “utterly contradicts the account that they have tried to advance in this court”.
“Those protected witnesses, numbers 11 and 12, then attempted to extort money from my defence team and offered to pervert the course of justice, but they were thrown out of our offices,” he said.
Kay added: “In pursuit of money, which has been their sole motivation, they discovered the ICC prosecutor offered better packages than we did. So that is where they went to provide a lying and utterly false account.”
The third protected witness, Uhuru argues, has an account motivated apparently “by his desire for a life abroad and living in luxury.”
It is against this background that Uhuru’s lawyers in July requested specific relief in respect of prosecution witnesses 4, 11 and 12.
The lawyers petitioned the Chamber to order the Prosecutor to confirm to the defence whether it intends to rely on the three prosecution witnesses at trial.
But the prosecution in a response filed on August 2 urged the judges to dismiss the application.
The prosecution argued confirmation of whether it intends to call them would amount to a reconsideration of the Chamber’s decision on schedule of trial. “The Chamber agrees with the prosecution that an order to the prosecution to confirm whether it intends to rely on these three witnesses at trial would be inconsistent with the schedule decision,” states the court ruling issued on August 16.
The judges had in July issued a schedule leading up to trial in which they set a number of deadlines.
Among them was a January 9 deadline for the prosecution to file the list of witnesses to be relied on at trial.
Trial Chamber V judges Kuniko Ozaki, presiding judge, Christine Van den Wyngaert and Chile Eboe-Osuji ruled granting Uhuru’s request would amount to varying the schedule decision.
The judges noted nothing obstructed the defence from investigating the credibility of the three witnesses. “Notably, the ability of the defence to conduct a thorough investigation in respect of the credibility of the witnesses is not affected by whether the prosecution intends to rely on these witnesses at trial. The first request is therefore dismissed,” the judges ruled.
The dismissal added to previous losses by the accused, including in March when ICC judges rejected an appeal by Uhuru alongside three other accused to appeal their committal to trial.
Uhuru had challenged the reliance on anonymous witnesses and indirect evidence from unreliable sources.
The DPM had attacked evidence in relation to the allegation by one prosecution witness of a meeting at State House with members of proscribed Mungiki Sect.
Previously the ICC Appeals Division had rejected an application by the accused to suspend trial pending determination of their appeal on jurisdiction.
Recently, the judges also rejected the request for an interim order prohibiting the prosecution from contacting potential defence witnesses until the Chamber ruled on the protocol of doing so.
Also dismissed was an application for an order to the prosecution for disclosure of a log of contacts with potential defence witnesses. The judges, however, ruled that did not prejudice the application being resubmitted in future.
However in the latest ruling, the judges allowed the third request permitting the defence to use confidential identity information in their investigations with regard to the three witnesses.
Said the judges: “The defence should be allowed to disclose that information for the purpose of investigations in respect of the three witnesses under the restrictions laid out in the Draft Protocol.”
Another application to compel the prosecution to reveal the identities of witnesses 11 and 12 had been overtaken by events. The prosecution disclosed their identities on August 1.
The judges directed the parties to co-operate in the disclosure of evidence and only seek the Chamber’s intervention when they disagreed on an issue.
The decision on a trial schedule was to ensure the expeditious conduct of the trial and to facilitate preparation of the parties.
On September 3 the prosecution and defence teams are expected to make first joint filing on agreed facts.
The prosecution is also to file the provisional list of witnesses and evidence it intends to rely on at trial by October16.
Completion of all disclosure by the prosecution including incriminatory material in the form of witness statements and any other material is due by 9 January next year.
Also to be filed by the same date is a pre-trial brief, which refers to a document by the prosecution explaining its case with reference to the evidence it intends to rely on at trial.
The last filing on March 12 next year is the disclosure to the defence of the identities of witnesses not under the ICC protection programme but whose security concerns the prosecution cited to secure delayed disclosure.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... oses-again
ICC:Uhuru loses again
Updated 3 hrs 35 mins ago
By Alex Ndegwa
Mr Uhuru Kenyatta has lost a fresh bid to determine whether three witnesses whose testimony he discredited and believes secured confirmation of charges against him will testify during trial.
The International Criminal Court judges rejected the Deputy Prime Minister’s application to order the Prosecutor to confirm to his defence whether it would rely on witnesses coded 4, 11 and 12 at trial.
Uhuru suffered the latest setback as the countdown to the trial beckons in two weeks when the first submissions by the parties establishing undisputed facts of the case are due.
The three protected witnesses, whose identities ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda disclosed to Uhuru on August 1, have been the subject of vicious sparring between the prosecution and Uhuru’s defence.
Uhuru has sought to brand witnesses 4, 11 and 12 as liars, claiming they initially attempted to extort money from him and only turned to the prosecution when he refused to bribe them.
However, the DPM who claims they tried to extort from him and went to ICC when he refused to yield, is free to table evidence, including visual, audio and written word to prove to the court that this actually true.
Trial Chamber V judges agreed with the prosecution that the request was an attempt to obtain information earlier than stipulated in the schedule for the trial due to start on April 11 next year.
Uhuru’s lawyer, Steven Kay, told judges during confirmation of charges hearing last September the prosecution anchored its case against Uhuru on what was claimed by the three protected witnesses. “However, two of them, numbers 11 and 12, were first interviewed by the defence team in 2011 and gave a fully exculpatory account to that now relied upon by the prosecution,” he said.
Kay then told Pre-Trial Chamber II judges their versions “utterly contradicts the account that they have tried to advance in this court”.
“Those protected witnesses, numbers 11 and 12, then attempted to extort money from my defence team and offered to pervert the course of justice, but they were thrown out of our offices,” he said.
Kay added: “In pursuit of money, which has been their sole motivation, they discovered the ICC prosecutor offered better packages than we did. So that is where they went to provide a lying and utterly false account.”
The third protected witness, Uhuru argues, has an account motivated apparently “by his desire for a life abroad and living in luxury.”
It is against this background that Uhuru’s lawyers in July requested specific relief in respect of prosecution witnesses 4, 11 and 12.
The lawyers petitioned the Chamber to order the Prosecutor to confirm to the defence whether it intends to rely on the three prosecution witnesses at trial.
But the prosecution in a response filed on August 2 urged the judges to dismiss the application.
The prosecution argued confirmation of whether it intends to call them would amount to a reconsideration of the Chamber’s decision on schedule of trial. “The Chamber agrees with the prosecution that an order to the prosecution to confirm whether it intends to rely on these three witnesses at trial would be inconsistent with the schedule decision,” states the court ruling issued on August 16.
The judges had in July issued a schedule leading up to trial in which they set a number of deadlines.
Among them was a January 9 deadline for the prosecution to file the list of witnesses to be relied on at trial.
Trial Chamber V judges Kuniko Ozaki, presiding judge, Christine Van den Wyngaert and Chile Eboe-Osuji ruled granting Uhuru’s request would amount to varying the schedule decision.
The judges noted nothing obstructed the defence from investigating the credibility of the three witnesses. “Notably, the ability of the defence to conduct a thorough investigation in respect of the credibility of the witnesses is not affected by whether the prosecution intends to rely on these witnesses at trial. The first request is therefore dismissed,” the judges ruled.
The dismissal added to previous losses by the accused, including in March when ICC judges rejected an appeal by Uhuru alongside three other accused to appeal their committal to trial.
Uhuru had challenged the reliance on anonymous witnesses and indirect evidence from unreliable sources.
The DPM had attacked evidence in relation to the allegation by one prosecution witness of a meeting at State House with members of proscribed Mungiki Sect.
Previously the ICC Appeals Division had rejected an application by the accused to suspend trial pending determination of their appeal on jurisdiction.
Recently, the judges also rejected the request for an interim order prohibiting the prosecution from contacting potential defence witnesses until the Chamber ruled on the protocol of doing so.
Also dismissed was an application for an order to the prosecution for disclosure of a log of contacts with potential defence witnesses. The judges, however, ruled that did not prejudice the application being resubmitted in future.
However in the latest ruling, the judges allowed the third request permitting the defence to use confidential identity information in their investigations with regard to the three witnesses.
Said the judges: “The defence should be allowed to disclose that information for the purpose of investigations in respect of the three witnesses under the restrictions laid out in the Draft Protocol.”
Another application to compel the prosecution to reveal the identities of witnesses 11 and 12 had been overtaken by events. The prosecution disclosed their identities on August 1.
The judges directed the parties to co-operate in the disclosure of evidence and only seek the Chamber’s intervention when they disagreed on an issue.
The decision on a trial schedule was to ensure the expeditious conduct of the trial and to facilitate preparation of the parties.
On September 3 the prosecution and defence teams are expected to make first joint filing on agreed facts.
The prosecution is also to file the provisional list of witnesses and evidence it intends to rely on at trial by October16.
Completion of all disclosure by the prosecution including incriminatory material in the form of witness statements and any other material is due by 9 January next year.
Also to be filed by the same date is a pre-trial brief, which refers to a document by the prosecution explaining its case with reference to the evidence it intends to rely on at trial.
The last filing on March 12 next year is the disclosure to the defence of the identities of witnesses not under the ICC protection programme but whose security concerns the prosecution cited to secure delayed disclosure.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... oses-again
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Mon Aug 20, 2012 11:10 am
Standard Digital News
Germany wants ICC suspects barred
Updated 6 hrs 56 mins ago
By Antony Gitonga
Germany has expressed concern over the move by two ICC suspects to vie for presidency.
Visiting German Minister for Economic Co-operation and Development Mr Dirk Niebel said Kenya would be in a hard place if one of the suspects were to be elected and later found guilty.
In an apparent reference to Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto, he said that all post election violence suspects must be charged in order for the victims to get justice. Niebel said that the country should not give room for impunity.
“Though the suspects are innocent until proven guilty, Kenya could face difficulties if one of the suspects was elected and later found guilty for crimes committed during the trial,” he said.
He called for full investigations into the violence that rocked the country after the controversial 2007 elections. Niebel said that German government fully supported ICC adding that Kenyans did not want to see a reoccurrence of the PEV.
Dismissed cases
He called on the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) to make sure that its report on the elections was out before the upcoming general elections so that the outcomes could be addressed by the public.
Niebel called for a free and fair election adding that his country would donate €1,000,000 towards the exercise.
On IDPs, the minister expressed his concern that they were yet to be resettled which was a necessary step.
Niebel was addressing the press in Lake Naivasha Country club after touring Karagita and Kiandege villages in Naivasha which were hardest hit by the PEV.
German ambassador to Kenya Margit Hellwig-Boette also showed concern over the move to dismiss hundreds of PEV cases.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... cts-barred
Germany wants ICC suspects barred
Updated 6 hrs 56 mins ago
By Antony Gitonga
Germany has expressed concern over the move by two ICC suspects to vie for presidency.
Visiting German Minister for Economic Co-operation and Development Mr Dirk Niebel said Kenya would be in a hard place if one of the suspects were to be elected and later found guilty.
In an apparent reference to Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto, he said that all post election violence suspects must be charged in order for the victims to get justice. Niebel said that the country should not give room for impunity.
“Though the suspects are innocent until proven guilty, Kenya could face difficulties if one of the suspects was elected and later found guilty for crimes committed during the trial,” he said.
He called for full investigations into the violence that rocked the country after the controversial 2007 elections. Niebel said that German government fully supported ICC adding that Kenyans did not want to see a reoccurrence of the PEV.
Dismissed cases
He called on the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) to make sure that its report on the elections was out before the upcoming general elections so that the outcomes could be addressed by the public.
Niebel called for a free and fair election adding that his country would donate €1,000,000 towards the exercise.
On IDPs, the minister expressed his concern that they were yet to be resettled which was a necessary step.
Niebel was addressing the press in Lake Naivasha Country club after touring Karagita and Kiandege villages in Naivasha which were hardest hit by the PEV.
German ambassador to Kenya Margit Hellwig-Boette also showed concern over the move to dismiss hundreds of PEV cases.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... cts-barred
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Mon Aug 20, 2012 11:15 am
Ventures
Kenyan Businesses, Insurers Weigh Risks Of Potential Election Violence
Posted on August 20, 2012 07:00 am under Business, Strategies & Solutions
VENTURES AFRICA – As Kenya moves towards another election, the country’s businesses, ravaged by last time’s post-election violence to a cost of millions of US dollars, have been offered a window of protection for the next run out, in the form of civil strife insurance to cover lost sales and destroyed assets.
In 2008, many businesses were wiped out completely, after their operations were halted by the violence, leaving them with massive losses in revenue across violence that spanned for two months hitting small and big businesses alike.
It emerged that although most businesses had insured against fire, no business was insured against violence or civil strife, because no insurer in the country provided such a cover.
Kenya’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a body tasked with promoting business opportunities in the country, estimated that some $2 billion was lost within the first month of the violence. The tourism sector was hit swiftly and savagely, closing down hotels and taking out thousands of jobs as tourist numbers dipped due to travel advisories. Agitators who barricaded vital road cramped movement of almost all goods from the port to the rest of the country.
Data shows that an average 4,000 light vehicles,1,250 trucks and 400 buses carrying more than 10m tonnes of cargo to Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi use the Mombasa to Nairobi highway daily. But at the height of the violence an estimated 40 illegal roadblocks barred the way, meaning no vehicles could move, with some of the vehicles attempting to use the highway going up in flames, and goods being looted on the way.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), many small businesses – which employ 75 per cent of the work force – were looted, burnt or closed as owners fled. In Nairobi’s Kibera slums, home to more than 1 million urban poor, 800 business stalls were razed, six schools destroyed, 900 houses torched and thousands displaced. In other Nairobi neighbourhoods, gangs burned and looted the homes of 3,920 people and some 228 small business kiosks and stalls.
Kisumu another major town in Kenya, which was one of the worst affected, lost 80 per cent of its businesses. Three major sugar enterprises which employ 40,000 directly and indirectly support the livelihoods of another 450,000, curtailed production after cane fields and equipment were destroyed. Large tea producers saw their tea fields burned to the ground in attacks that took out years of established assets.
It was a plethora of destruction that sent both the insurance companies and the business owners back to the drawing board.
“We realized that we needed to do something about it and provide our clients with a broader choice and protect them against any such loss in future,” said Joseph Kamiri, marketing manager at UAP insurance in Kenya.
UAP was one of the companies that responded swiftly at the time, paying out to its clients who had insured against fire and suffered huge losses. “That was out of goodwill and we wanted to give our clients a sense of security in future,” said Kamiri.
http://www.ventures-africa.com/2012/08/ ... -violence/
Kenyan Businesses, Insurers Weigh Risks Of Potential Election Violence
Posted on August 20, 2012 07:00 am under Business, Strategies & Solutions
VENTURES AFRICA – As Kenya moves towards another election, the country’s businesses, ravaged by last time’s post-election violence to a cost of millions of US dollars, have been offered a window of protection for the next run out, in the form of civil strife insurance to cover lost sales and destroyed assets.
In 2008, many businesses were wiped out completely, after their operations were halted by the violence, leaving them with massive losses in revenue across violence that spanned for two months hitting small and big businesses alike.
It emerged that although most businesses had insured against fire, no business was insured against violence or civil strife, because no insurer in the country provided such a cover.
Kenya’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a body tasked with promoting business opportunities in the country, estimated that some $2 billion was lost within the first month of the violence. The tourism sector was hit swiftly and savagely, closing down hotels and taking out thousands of jobs as tourist numbers dipped due to travel advisories. Agitators who barricaded vital road cramped movement of almost all goods from the port to the rest of the country.
Data shows that an average 4,000 light vehicles,1,250 trucks and 400 buses carrying more than 10m tonnes of cargo to Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi use the Mombasa to Nairobi highway daily. But at the height of the violence an estimated 40 illegal roadblocks barred the way, meaning no vehicles could move, with some of the vehicles attempting to use the highway going up in flames, and goods being looted on the way.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), many small businesses – which employ 75 per cent of the work force – were looted, burnt or closed as owners fled. In Nairobi’s Kibera slums, home to more than 1 million urban poor, 800 business stalls were razed, six schools destroyed, 900 houses torched and thousands displaced. In other Nairobi neighbourhoods, gangs burned and looted the homes of 3,920 people and some 228 small business kiosks and stalls.
Kisumu another major town in Kenya, which was one of the worst affected, lost 80 per cent of its businesses. Three major sugar enterprises which employ 40,000 directly and indirectly support the livelihoods of another 450,000, curtailed production after cane fields and equipment were destroyed. Large tea producers saw their tea fields burned to the ground in attacks that took out years of established assets.
It was a plethora of destruction that sent both the insurance companies and the business owners back to the drawing board.
“We realized that we needed to do something about it and provide our clients with a broader choice and protect them against any such loss in future,” said Joseph Kamiri, marketing manager at UAP insurance in Kenya.
UAP was one of the companies that responded swiftly at the time, paying out to its clients who had insured against fire and suffered huge losses. “That was out of goodwill and we wanted to give our clients a sense of security in future,” said Kamiri.
http://www.ventures-africa.com/2012/08/ ... -violence/
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Tue Aug 21, 2012 9:38 am
theStar
A Decade Later, ICC Faces An Uphill Task
Tuesday, 21 August 2012 13:23
BY ELISE KEPPLER
When the International Criminal Court began operating a decade ago last July, controversy over its work should have been anticipated. After all, the court has an unprecedented authority to bring to trial government leaders and others allegedly responsible for the gravest crimes — genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Many governments in Africa were active in the establishment of the ICC and became ICC members. But nowhere has the ICC’s work been more debated and criticized than in Africa. Claims that the court unfairly targets Africans have abounded in the wake of ICC arrest warrants for President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan and the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi when he was still in power.
An increasing docket of African situations under ICC investigation has given fodder to the claims. The critics often ignore the reality that most of the investigations before the ICC came about as a result of a request from an African government or a United Nations Security Council referral, and not at the initiative of the ICC prosecutor.
The criticisms also ignore the thousands of African victims served by the court’s efforts — from Democratic Republic of Congo to Darfur to Kenya. At the same time, the ICC’s operations have exposed significant challenges to seeing justice done for the worst crimes, especially in promoting accountability regardless of politics.
One major impediment is that some of the most powerful nations have not joined the court. Moreover, several of these — namely the United States, Russia, and China — have veto authority at the UN Security Council, the only body that can refer situations to the court if crimes are committed in countries that are not ICC members.
At the heart of this problem is the need for governments to promote justice consistently, not only when it is politically convenient. Crimes against humanity and war crimes being committed in Syria should be punished, for example. The Security Council would have to refer the situation to the court for investigation since Syria is not an ICC member, and has not asked the ICC to get involved.
But China and Russia have thus far opposed strong Security Council action on Syria. Governments need to press for more consistent application of the rule of law, especially by Security Council members. This is a critical to ensure justice and to promote the legitimacy and credibility of all efforts for accountability.
But the ICC also needs increasing cooperation and support from countries. With all of its limitations, the ICC remains an essential alternative to impunity when domestic courts are unwilling or unable to prosecute the most serious crimes. It gives hope for justice when other avenues are closed and particularly when government leaders themselves are implicated.
Some African officials are pressing for a regional African Court that can prosecute genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. As a practical matter, however, this initiative remains far off at best. There are also questions how such an effort could be adequately supported financially and insulated from the influence of government backers.
As the ICC begins its next ten years, African member states of the ICC — more than half the continent and including Tanzania — should raise their voices more consistently and strongly at African Union meetings and public debates to support the court. The new Malawi government took a very important step in June by indicating it could not host the African Union summit if it meant welcoming President al-Bashir onto its territory given that he is an ICC suspect for crimes in Darfur.
More governments should build on the Malawi precedent. They should join states such as Botswana and South Africa, which have more regularly signaled that efforts to undercut the ICC’s ability to take suspects into custody are not acceptable. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the former South African Home Affairs Minister, who was elected as the new AU Commission Chair at the July African Union Summit, will be an important player.
In her first public comments on the ICC this month, she stated the AU’s position to date vis-à-vis the court’s investigation in Darfur without expressing her views. Going forward, she will have many opportunities to positively influence the AU-ICC relationship. Enabling the ICC to open an AU liaison office, which has been supported by many African states, would be a valuable first step to enhance understanding between the two institutions.
Ensuring the AU does not obstruct efforts to promote justice for the worst crimes should be a longer-term goal. African media can also play an important role in painting a more accurate picture of the ICC. Human rights activists throughout the continent have repeatedly pounded on the doors of the African Union and national capitals on the need for stronger African backing for the court, but their efforts need more coverage and editorial support by Africa’s newspapers.
The victims of grave abuses put themselves at risk by telling their stories. Describing the energy and bravery of the court’s African supporters is no less newsworthy than African leaders’ attacks on the court. Finally, the ICC’s opponents should take a harder look at what they hope to gain by seeking to undercut the institution, as opposed to working to make it stronger and more effective. More and better justice—not access to impunity for abuse—is what is needed.
Elise Keppler is senior counsel with the International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch.
http://the-star.co.ke/opinions/others/9 ... phill-task
A Decade Later, ICC Faces An Uphill Task
Tuesday, 21 August 2012 13:23
BY ELISE KEPPLER
When the International Criminal Court began operating a decade ago last July, controversy over its work should have been anticipated. After all, the court has an unprecedented authority to bring to trial government leaders and others allegedly responsible for the gravest crimes — genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Many governments in Africa were active in the establishment of the ICC and became ICC members. But nowhere has the ICC’s work been more debated and criticized than in Africa. Claims that the court unfairly targets Africans have abounded in the wake of ICC arrest warrants for President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan and the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi when he was still in power.
An increasing docket of African situations under ICC investigation has given fodder to the claims. The critics often ignore the reality that most of the investigations before the ICC came about as a result of a request from an African government or a United Nations Security Council referral, and not at the initiative of the ICC prosecutor.
The criticisms also ignore the thousands of African victims served by the court’s efforts — from Democratic Republic of Congo to Darfur to Kenya. At the same time, the ICC’s operations have exposed significant challenges to seeing justice done for the worst crimes, especially in promoting accountability regardless of politics.
One major impediment is that some of the most powerful nations have not joined the court. Moreover, several of these — namely the United States, Russia, and China — have veto authority at the UN Security Council, the only body that can refer situations to the court if crimes are committed in countries that are not ICC members.
At the heart of this problem is the need for governments to promote justice consistently, not only when it is politically convenient. Crimes against humanity and war crimes being committed in Syria should be punished, for example. The Security Council would have to refer the situation to the court for investigation since Syria is not an ICC member, and has not asked the ICC to get involved.
But China and Russia have thus far opposed strong Security Council action on Syria. Governments need to press for more consistent application of the rule of law, especially by Security Council members. This is a critical to ensure justice and to promote the legitimacy and credibility of all efforts for accountability.
But the ICC also needs increasing cooperation and support from countries. With all of its limitations, the ICC remains an essential alternative to impunity when domestic courts are unwilling or unable to prosecute the most serious crimes. It gives hope for justice when other avenues are closed and particularly when government leaders themselves are implicated.
Some African officials are pressing for a regional African Court that can prosecute genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. As a practical matter, however, this initiative remains far off at best. There are also questions how such an effort could be adequately supported financially and insulated from the influence of government backers.
As the ICC begins its next ten years, African member states of the ICC — more than half the continent and including Tanzania — should raise their voices more consistently and strongly at African Union meetings and public debates to support the court. The new Malawi government took a very important step in June by indicating it could not host the African Union summit if it meant welcoming President al-Bashir onto its territory given that he is an ICC suspect for crimes in Darfur.
More governments should build on the Malawi precedent. They should join states such as Botswana and South Africa, which have more regularly signaled that efforts to undercut the ICC’s ability to take suspects into custody are not acceptable. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the former South African Home Affairs Minister, who was elected as the new AU Commission Chair at the July African Union Summit, will be an important player.
In her first public comments on the ICC this month, she stated the AU’s position to date vis-à-vis the court’s investigation in Darfur without expressing her views. Going forward, she will have many opportunities to positively influence the AU-ICC relationship. Enabling the ICC to open an AU liaison office, which has been supported by many African states, would be a valuable first step to enhance understanding between the two institutions.
Ensuring the AU does not obstruct efforts to promote justice for the worst crimes should be a longer-term goal. African media can also play an important role in painting a more accurate picture of the ICC. Human rights activists throughout the continent have repeatedly pounded on the doors of the African Union and national capitals on the need for stronger African backing for the court, but their efforts need more coverage and editorial support by Africa’s newspapers.
The victims of grave abuses put themselves at risk by telling their stories. Describing the energy and bravery of the court’s African supporters is no less newsworthy than African leaders’ attacks on the court. Finally, the ICC’s opponents should take a harder look at what they hope to gain by seeking to undercut the institution, as opposed to working to make it stronger and more effective. More and better justice—not access to impunity for abuse—is what is needed.
Elise Keppler is senior counsel with the International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch.
http://the-star.co.ke/opinions/others/9 ... phill-task
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Tue Aug 21, 2012 9:45 am
theStar
Judiciary Is Now The Pillar Of Integrity
Tuesday, 21 August 2012 13:23
BY SHAKILA ABDALLA
If the new Kenya Constitution is anything to go by , then the country could become a model only next to developed democracies including South Africa in the continent where a State President, Thabo Mbeki was removed by his party, the African National Congress (ANC) and eventually lost the leadership of the country.
The chapter on Leadership and Integrity is specific on how state officers should conduct themselves in the exercise of their functions. In chapter six , the constitution prescribes deterrent measures that include amongst others removal of leaders from office, severe disciplinary action or a ban from holding a public office for life.
Leaders deemed to be men and women of integrity swore an oath to defend the constitution in times of crisis or otherwise. We cannot now afford to go against our vows and break the same laws because some clauses don’t suit us or our present circumstances. Can we match other nations in the observation of the rule of law? The answer is both yes and no.
Yes, because majority of Kenyans want a departure from the abusive old order. No, because the new constitution seals loopholes on corruption and other official malpractices. It is unfortunate at this time and age, a fresh war has erupted in the country between reformists and conformists.
The question is, are we anywhere near becoming a model in governance and if so, what complimentary roles should political parties and civil society organisations play in ensuring the comprehensive implementation of the spirit and letter of the constitution. Political parties must declare their position on this issue.
Unfortunately, none of the parties have any position on the implementation of the constitution. The conspiracy to water down the Integrity clause to spare sacred cows is a case in point and pointing out failures of the system is another taboo. Thank God for the judiciary which is truly blind and recognises that nobody is above the law and all crimes will be punished in accordance with the law.
The judiciary is, despite many hurdles, attempting to live up to the expectations of the new constitution. Deputy Chief Justice Nancy Baraza is the latest casualty of the no nonsense law that promises to consign the lords of impunity to oblivion. In the recent past, however, ministers and public servants have been compelled either through censure motions or public pressure to step aside when their conduct is deemed unbecoming or adversely mentioned in financial scandals.
Those found innocent by investigation teams or courts got back their jobs. Industrialization Minister, Henry Kosgey is one such prominent figure in the government who had undergone humiliating scrutiny but he never grumbled or blamed rivals.
He is back on his desk after the International Criminal Court (ICC) absolved of crimes against humanity allegedly committed at the height of post election violence. Similarly, the Nairobi Law Courts acquitted him of abuse of office. Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) chair, Bethuel Kiplagat is also back at the Commission after a tribunal set to investigate his role in the Wagalla massacre found no clue about his involvement in the incident.
Previously, the politically correct violated the law with impunity and escaped justice because they were covered by the executive. Ask former President Daniel arap Moi who until his retirement was above the law. Members of the public have of late summoned courage after Moi left office and filed cases against the former head of State who had immunity under the old constitution. The complainants have at last gotten justice which they could not get in the judiciary whose members were appointees of the chief executive.
Shakila Abdalla is the ODM-K Nominated MP.
http://the-star.co.ke/opinions/others/9 ... -integrity
Judiciary Is Now The Pillar Of Integrity
Tuesday, 21 August 2012 13:23
BY SHAKILA ABDALLA
If the new Kenya Constitution is anything to go by , then the country could become a model only next to developed democracies including South Africa in the continent where a State President, Thabo Mbeki was removed by his party, the African National Congress (ANC) and eventually lost the leadership of the country.
The chapter on Leadership and Integrity is specific on how state officers should conduct themselves in the exercise of their functions. In chapter six , the constitution prescribes deterrent measures that include amongst others removal of leaders from office, severe disciplinary action or a ban from holding a public office for life.
Leaders deemed to be men and women of integrity swore an oath to defend the constitution in times of crisis or otherwise. We cannot now afford to go against our vows and break the same laws because some clauses don’t suit us or our present circumstances. Can we match other nations in the observation of the rule of law? The answer is both yes and no.
Yes, because majority of Kenyans want a departure from the abusive old order. No, because the new constitution seals loopholes on corruption and other official malpractices. It is unfortunate at this time and age, a fresh war has erupted in the country between reformists and conformists.
The question is, are we anywhere near becoming a model in governance and if so, what complimentary roles should political parties and civil society organisations play in ensuring the comprehensive implementation of the spirit and letter of the constitution. Political parties must declare their position on this issue.
Unfortunately, none of the parties have any position on the implementation of the constitution. The conspiracy to water down the Integrity clause to spare sacred cows is a case in point and pointing out failures of the system is another taboo. Thank God for the judiciary which is truly blind and recognises that nobody is above the law and all crimes will be punished in accordance with the law.
The judiciary is, despite many hurdles, attempting to live up to the expectations of the new constitution. Deputy Chief Justice Nancy Baraza is the latest casualty of the no nonsense law that promises to consign the lords of impunity to oblivion. In the recent past, however, ministers and public servants have been compelled either through censure motions or public pressure to step aside when their conduct is deemed unbecoming or adversely mentioned in financial scandals.
Those found innocent by investigation teams or courts got back their jobs. Industrialization Minister, Henry Kosgey is one such prominent figure in the government who had undergone humiliating scrutiny but he never grumbled or blamed rivals.
He is back on his desk after the International Criminal Court (ICC) absolved of crimes against humanity allegedly committed at the height of post election violence. Similarly, the Nairobi Law Courts acquitted him of abuse of office. Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) chair, Bethuel Kiplagat is also back at the Commission after a tribunal set to investigate his role in the Wagalla massacre found no clue about his involvement in the incident.
Previously, the politically correct violated the law with impunity and escaped justice because they were covered by the executive. Ask former President Daniel arap Moi who until his retirement was above the law. Members of the public have of late summoned courage after Moi left office and filed cases against the former head of State who had immunity under the old constitution. The complainants have at last gotten justice which they could not get in the judiciary whose members were appointees of the chief executive.
Shakila Abdalla is the ODM-K Nominated MP.
http://the-star.co.ke/opinions/others/9 ... -integrity
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Tue Aug 21, 2012 9:54 am
allAfrica.com
The Star (Nairobi)
Kenya: 1,200 IDPs Threaten to Invade Farm in Eldoret
By Mathews Ndanyi, 20 August 2012
More than 1,200 IDP families in Eldoret have threatened to invade a farm that the government promised to buy for them early this year.
The 200-acre Kuinet Farm had been earmarked for the resettlement of the 2007/08 post-election violence victims but the government has not paid for it, more than six month since the land was identified.
The IDPs, who have been waiting to be resettled for the last four years, are currently living at the Naka, Kamwingi/Ngwataniro and Yamumbi camps on the outskirts of Eldoret town. The chairmen for the camps, Solomon Kariuki (Naka), Edward Kimani (Kamwingi/Ngwataniro) and Simon Mwangi (Yamumbi), have threatened to lead the families to the farm in the next seven days if the government does not act.
"We are approaching elections and the government has gone quiet on our plight. We wonder who will take charge of us once the county governments take effect because they will not have provisions to deal with us," said Kariuki. He said they identified the land after the government asked them to do so last year.
The victims were visited at the camps by the Gema national organising secretary Paul Kinyanjui and an aspirant for the Uasin Gishu county governor's seat, Vesca Kangongo. "We are asking the government to speed up the resettlement of the families so that they can to resume normal lives ahead of the elections," said Kangogo.
She said it would be embarrassing for politicians to campaign in the area when the IDPs are still in camps. With the ongoing heavy rains in the region, the IDPs are currently living in torn tents and have not been receiving food supplies from the government.
The IDPs complained that all their children had dropped out of schools, many of them had died due to spread of diseases at the camps within the last four years and their documents like IDs were being held as security at the hospitals where they had been going for treatment because of inability to pay for medication.
Kinyanjui said the government should pay the owner of the farm at Kuinet so that the IDPs can move in as soon as possible. "Once the elections are held, new regional government's will take over in the counties and no one will take responsibility for the plight of the IDPs", said Kinyanjui. He said state officials had for the last four years been visiting the IDP camps to give empty promises to the victims.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201208210151.html
The Star (Nairobi)
Kenya: 1,200 IDPs Threaten to Invade Farm in Eldoret
By Mathews Ndanyi, 20 August 2012
More than 1,200 IDP families in Eldoret have threatened to invade a farm that the government promised to buy for them early this year.
The 200-acre Kuinet Farm had been earmarked for the resettlement of the 2007/08 post-election violence victims but the government has not paid for it, more than six month since the land was identified.
The IDPs, who have been waiting to be resettled for the last four years, are currently living at the Naka, Kamwingi/Ngwataniro and Yamumbi camps on the outskirts of Eldoret town. The chairmen for the camps, Solomon Kariuki (Naka), Edward Kimani (Kamwingi/Ngwataniro) and Simon Mwangi (Yamumbi), have threatened to lead the families to the farm in the next seven days if the government does not act.
"We are approaching elections and the government has gone quiet on our plight. We wonder who will take charge of us once the county governments take effect because they will not have provisions to deal with us," said Kariuki. He said they identified the land after the government asked them to do so last year.
The victims were visited at the camps by the Gema national organising secretary Paul Kinyanjui and an aspirant for the Uasin Gishu county governor's seat, Vesca Kangongo. "We are asking the government to speed up the resettlement of the families so that they can to resume normal lives ahead of the elections," said Kangogo.
She said it would be embarrassing for politicians to campaign in the area when the IDPs are still in camps. With the ongoing heavy rains in the region, the IDPs are currently living in torn tents and have not been receiving food supplies from the government.
The IDPs complained that all their children had dropped out of schools, many of them had died due to spread of diseases at the camps within the last four years and their documents like IDs were being held as security at the hospitals where they had been going for treatment because of inability to pay for medication.
Kinyanjui said the government should pay the owner of the farm at Kuinet so that the IDPs can move in as soon as possible. "Once the elections are held, new regional government's will take over in the counties and no one will take responsibility for the plight of the IDPs", said Kinyanjui. He said state officials had for the last four years been visiting the IDP camps to give empty promises to the victims.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201208210151.html
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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- Posts: 4398
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Tue Aug 21, 2012 1:55 pm
Standard Digital News
ICC: Political statements won't stop us
Updated 5 hrs 43 mins ago
By Robert Nyasato
Political statements made about crimes against humanity cases facing four Kenyans at the International Criminal Court(ICC) will not inform the judicial progress, a meeting heard.
ICC Field Coordinator for Kenya, Maria Mabinty Kamara said the statements which are made everyday by politicians and the international community will only affect public opinion but not proceedings at The Hague based court.
Responding to questions raised during an outreach session on the ICC cases at Itierio Social Hall, Kisii County yesterday Kamara said foreign countries including America had a right to make comments about the process but such statements are not judicial in any way.
Participants mostly opinion leaders had questioned why America was so concerned with the ICC cases yet it was not signatory to the Rome Statute that established the court.
“The ICC is independent and will execute its mandate according to the law,” Kamara told the meeting held in the area on grounds it was one of the most affected in the 2007/08 post election violence(PEV).
Participants used the forum to demand for arrest of Sudanese President Al Bashir Mohamed for the ICC to demonstrate seriousness so that to Kenyans will have confidence that accused persons in the presidential race will not be left off the hook if they ascended to power but get convicted.
Presidential aspirants, Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto are in the race to State House but are facing crimes against humanity at The Hague together with former Head of Public Service Francis Muthaura and journalist Joshua arap Sang.
The coordinator said the on-going outreach programme targeting the most affected communities in the PEV and also regions where the accused persons hail from was meant to demystify the ICC process and clarify misrepresentation of facts due to limited information.
“I am urging Kenyans to keep on open mind and speak about the ICC progress from an informed point not view as opposed to weak positions,” she said.
The forum that brought together representatives of faith based organisations, youth groups, women, teachers and PEV victims heard that investigations on the crimes against humanity were still on in the country.
“It is upto the prosecutor to either bring new evidence or prefer more charges based on their findings,” she said when asked if people were allowed to present further evidence to the ICC on the Kenyan cases.
Yes Youth Can, Kisii County President Dennis Orioki called for more outreach programmes targeting young Kenyans saying they were at risk of being misused again as it happened in the last General Election.
Centre for Community Dialogue(CODE) Director Geoffrey Mogire hailed the initiative saying people needed to be brought on board to understand what was happening at The Hague.
Kamara asked PEV victims to engage political leaders and the civil society to push for compensation saying at The Hague that was being channelled by lawyers representing them.
The session agreed to wisely use their voting right to in the coming polls so that leaders with questionable integrity do not ascend to power.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... 't-stop-us
ICC: Political statements won't stop us
Updated 5 hrs 43 mins ago
By Robert Nyasato
Political statements made about crimes against humanity cases facing four Kenyans at the International Criminal Court(ICC) will not inform the judicial progress, a meeting heard.
ICC Field Coordinator for Kenya, Maria Mabinty Kamara said the statements which are made everyday by politicians and the international community will only affect public opinion but not proceedings at The Hague based court.
Responding to questions raised during an outreach session on the ICC cases at Itierio Social Hall, Kisii County yesterday Kamara said foreign countries including America had a right to make comments about the process but such statements are not judicial in any way.
Participants mostly opinion leaders had questioned why America was so concerned with the ICC cases yet it was not signatory to the Rome Statute that established the court.
“The ICC is independent and will execute its mandate according to the law,” Kamara told the meeting held in the area on grounds it was one of the most affected in the 2007/08 post election violence(PEV).
Participants used the forum to demand for arrest of Sudanese President Al Bashir Mohamed for the ICC to demonstrate seriousness so that to Kenyans will have confidence that accused persons in the presidential race will not be left off the hook if they ascended to power but get convicted.
Presidential aspirants, Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto are in the race to State House but are facing crimes against humanity at The Hague together with former Head of Public Service Francis Muthaura and journalist Joshua arap Sang.
The coordinator said the on-going outreach programme targeting the most affected communities in the PEV and also regions where the accused persons hail from was meant to demystify the ICC process and clarify misrepresentation of facts due to limited information.
“I am urging Kenyans to keep on open mind and speak about the ICC progress from an informed point not view as opposed to weak positions,” she said.
The forum that brought together representatives of faith based organisations, youth groups, women, teachers and PEV victims heard that investigations on the crimes against humanity were still on in the country.
“It is upto the prosecutor to either bring new evidence or prefer more charges based on their findings,” she said when asked if people were allowed to present further evidence to the ICC on the Kenyan cases.
Yes Youth Can, Kisii County President Dennis Orioki called for more outreach programmes targeting young Kenyans saying they were at risk of being misused again as it happened in the last General Election.
Centre for Community Dialogue(CODE) Director Geoffrey Mogire hailed the initiative saying people needed to be brought on board to understand what was happening at The Hague.
Kamara asked PEV victims to engage political leaders and the civil society to push for compensation saying at The Hague that was being channelled by lawyers representing them.
The session agreed to wisely use their voting right to in the coming polls so that leaders with questionable integrity do not ascend to power.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... 't-stop-us
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
- ICC.supporter
- Posts: 4398
- Joined: Sun Jan 02, 2011 1:33 am
Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Wed Aug 22, 2012 8:48 am
Standard Digital News
Judiciary to intensify war on impunity
Updated 6 hrs 23 mins ago
By Felix Olick and Moses Njagih
Just when Kenyans are faced with roguish attempts by Parliament determined to lower the vetting and integrity bar and Government officials are defying court orders, a reassuring message comes from the Judiciary.
The message was delivered by Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, who is the face of a neutral arbiter, Kenya needs during constitutional implementation and elections.
His message came on the day MPs were in an informal meeting to discuss national outrage over the way they were weakening stringent vetting rules, and against threat by Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution (CIC) to go to court if the legislators uphold the assault on leadership and integrity clauses.
The President of the Supreme Court, while launching this year’s ‘Judiciary Week’, declared justice was no longer on sale, the era of impunity manifested by defiance of court orders is gone, and judicial officers must bring honour and dignity to their offices.
He reassured the public that Leadership and Integrity Bill that has caused outrage among the public is still at the debating stage and new input to improve it is welcome.
He said that the Government is committed to capture the consensus that creates a law that replicates the constitutional standards.
“We are committed that we capture the consensus that creates a law that replicates the constitutional standard practical and enforceable in a reliable and a meaningful way,” he said. Dr Mutunga reminded the Government the country must be run by the rule of law. He warned that the culture of disobeying court orders that seem to have crept in the system must end.
Though he did not specify the instances when Government has defied court orders, one such glaring example is the refusal by Office of the President to recall 47 county commissioners, even after a High Court judge declared the President’s appointments were unconstitutional.
Mutunga decried the disrespect of court orders by a clique in Government that has not appreciate Kenya had moved to a new constitutional dispensation.
Speaking at two different occasions, one to launch the Judicial Marches Week at Kenyatta International Conference Centre, and later at the University of Nairobi, the CJ sent a strong message to those still living in the ‘old order’ that their time was up.
He insisted time had come for everyone, including Government agencies to respect court orders, adding that not all court decisions would be popular.
Conservatives in Government
“For those who seek to subvert the Constitution, we must remind them that it is our only defence against lawlessness and disorder. Unless we obey the law – of which court orders are a part – we cannot expect others, be they Government agencies, private interests or individuals, to be held to that standard,” Mutunga said. He was sworn-in a year ago, as Kenya’s first CJ to be publicly vetted and cleared for the position by Parliament.
Mutunga reiterated his pledge to remain true to all Articles of the Constitution.
The CJ is on record warning the Judiciary would respect Chapter Six on Leadership and Integrity. He said the Judiciary would enforce it to ensure only credible candidates are allowed to vie in the March 4 General Election.
“The Constitution has radically recreated the Kenyan Republic. Few have internalised this reality and, even many more have yet to make the mental shift to the new order. Vestiges of the old republic are actively resisting the new Constitution,” added Mutunga.
The CJ warned that the major problem the country was facing with respect to the rule of law was mainly the conservatives in Government.
“Having been socialised in and benefited from a retrogressive culture, they lack the skill, appetite and inclination to live and thrive in this new environment. It is terra incognita (unexplored land) for a political class not used to accountability, and bureaucratic elite accustomed to patronage and insularity,” he told the students at University of Nairobi’s Taifa Hall, a place he frequented in his days as a lecturer at the institution.
He called upon all Kenyans to commit to a free, fair, and peaceful election by being law-abiding in the exercise of their rights.
Mutunga received support from Attorney General Githu Muigai on the need to respect court orders, saying the Executive should lead by example.
New approach
Muigai, who is also the Government Chief Legal Advisor, said some public officials have lately been under criticism for disobeying court orders with the latest being the appointment of 47 county commissioners.
The commissioners have continued to discharge their roles despite a court order by Justice Mumbi Ngugi declaring the appointments illegal.
Prof Muigai maintained the Executive has a greater responsibility to respect court orders. “Many times we disagree with the courts. Many times we think that the courts are not right in the interpretation of law. Many times we think that the courts are more zealous. But this is not an excuse to disobey the law, “ he noted.
The CJ said the remaking of the Kenyan State and society that the new Constitution had engendered required a new approach to power and authority.
“The Constitution has reset the power relations between the State and the society in favour of the latter. In Article 1, it has made an unambiguous declaration that sovereign power reposes in the people,” he added.
Mutunga said it was sad that universities played little role in the Constitution making, and have also not taken part in debates about its implementation, leaving the crucial responsibility to politicians.
“It is, for instance, difficult to recall the voice that the Faculties of Law, or the Departments of Political Science, made in the debate on presidential and parliamentary systems of government or Devolution”.
“Even now, it is very surprising that as debate rages on what should constitute our laws on integrity and leadership, those who study ethics, philosophy, law and political science have not yet organised a forum to discuss these issues,” said the CJ, who was accompanied by 30 judges.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... n-impunity
Judiciary to intensify war on impunity
Updated 6 hrs 23 mins ago
By Felix Olick and Moses Njagih
Just when Kenyans are faced with roguish attempts by Parliament determined to lower the vetting and integrity bar and Government officials are defying court orders, a reassuring message comes from the Judiciary.
The message was delivered by Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, who is the face of a neutral arbiter, Kenya needs during constitutional implementation and elections.
His message came on the day MPs were in an informal meeting to discuss national outrage over the way they were weakening stringent vetting rules, and against threat by Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution (CIC) to go to court if the legislators uphold the assault on leadership and integrity clauses.
The President of the Supreme Court, while launching this year’s ‘Judiciary Week’, declared justice was no longer on sale, the era of impunity manifested by defiance of court orders is gone, and judicial officers must bring honour and dignity to their offices.
He reassured the public that Leadership and Integrity Bill that has caused outrage among the public is still at the debating stage and new input to improve it is welcome.
He said that the Government is committed to capture the consensus that creates a law that replicates the constitutional standards.
“We are committed that we capture the consensus that creates a law that replicates the constitutional standard practical and enforceable in a reliable and a meaningful way,” he said. Dr Mutunga reminded the Government the country must be run by the rule of law. He warned that the culture of disobeying court orders that seem to have crept in the system must end.
Though he did not specify the instances when Government has defied court orders, one such glaring example is the refusal by Office of the President to recall 47 county commissioners, even after a High Court judge declared the President’s appointments were unconstitutional.
Mutunga decried the disrespect of court orders by a clique in Government that has not appreciate Kenya had moved to a new constitutional dispensation.
Speaking at two different occasions, one to launch the Judicial Marches Week at Kenyatta International Conference Centre, and later at the University of Nairobi, the CJ sent a strong message to those still living in the ‘old order’ that their time was up.
He insisted time had come for everyone, including Government agencies to respect court orders, adding that not all court decisions would be popular.
Conservatives in Government
“For those who seek to subvert the Constitution, we must remind them that it is our only defence against lawlessness and disorder. Unless we obey the law – of which court orders are a part – we cannot expect others, be they Government agencies, private interests or individuals, to be held to that standard,” Mutunga said. He was sworn-in a year ago, as Kenya’s first CJ to be publicly vetted and cleared for the position by Parliament.
Mutunga reiterated his pledge to remain true to all Articles of the Constitution.
The CJ is on record warning the Judiciary would respect Chapter Six on Leadership and Integrity. He said the Judiciary would enforce it to ensure only credible candidates are allowed to vie in the March 4 General Election.
“The Constitution has radically recreated the Kenyan Republic. Few have internalised this reality and, even many more have yet to make the mental shift to the new order. Vestiges of the old republic are actively resisting the new Constitution,” added Mutunga.
The CJ warned that the major problem the country was facing with respect to the rule of law was mainly the conservatives in Government.
“Having been socialised in and benefited from a retrogressive culture, they lack the skill, appetite and inclination to live and thrive in this new environment. It is terra incognita (unexplored land) for a political class not used to accountability, and bureaucratic elite accustomed to patronage and insularity,” he told the students at University of Nairobi’s Taifa Hall, a place he frequented in his days as a lecturer at the institution.
He called upon all Kenyans to commit to a free, fair, and peaceful election by being law-abiding in the exercise of their rights.
Mutunga received support from Attorney General Githu Muigai on the need to respect court orders, saying the Executive should lead by example.
New approach
Muigai, who is also the Government Chief Legal Advisor, said some public officials have lately been under criticism for disobeying court orders with the latest being the appointment of 47 county commissioners.
The commissioners have continued to discharge their roles despite a court order by Justice Mumbi Ngugi declaring the appointments illegal.
Prof Muigai maintained the Executive has a greater responsibility to respect court orders. “Many times we disagree with the courts. Many times we think that the courts are not right in the interpretation of law. Many times we think that the courts are more zealous. But this is not an excuse to disobey the law, “ he noted.
The CJ said the remaking of the Kenyan State and society that the new Constitution had engendered required a new approach to power and authority.
“The Constitution has reset the power relations between the State and the society in favour of the latter. In Article 1, it has made an unambiguous declaration that sovereign power reposes in the people,” he added.
Mutunga said it was sad that universities played little role in the Constitution making, and have also not taken part in debates about its implementation, leaving the crucial responsibility to politicians.
“It is, for instance, difficult to recall the voice that the Faculties of Law, or the Departments of Political Science, made in the debate on presidential and parliamentary systems of government or Devolution”.
“Even now, it is very surprising that as debate rages on what should constitute our laws on integrity and leadership, those who study ethics, philosophy, law and political science have not yet organised a forum to discuss these issues,” said the CJ, who was accompanied by 30 judges.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?article ... n-impunity
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
- ICC.supporter
- Posts: 4398
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Wed Aug 22, 2012 10:45 am
Bankok Post
At least 48 Kenyans hacked to death in ethnic clash
Published: 22/08/2012 at 06:48 PM
Online news: World
At least 48 Kenyans were hacked or burnt to death in ethnic clashes between two rival groups, the worst single attack since deadly post-election violence four years ago, police said Wednesday.
"It is a very bad incident.... They include 31 women, 11 children and six men," regional deputy police chief Joseph Kitur said of the attack, which took place late Tuesday between the Pokomo and Orma peoples in the rural Tana River district.
Kitur said "34 were hacked to death and 14 others were burnt to death," while several huts were torched after a gang of men launched the attack, the latest in a long history of bitter clashes between the rival groups in the remote area of Kenya.
It was not clear what sparked the attack, but the two communities have clashed before over the use of land and water resources, although the scale and intensity of the killings shocked police.
The attack happened in the Reketa area of Tarassa in Kenya's south-east, close to the coast and some 300 kilometres (185 miles) from the Kenyan capital Nairobi.
In 2001, at least 130 people were killed in a string of clashes in the same district and between the same two communities about access to land and a river.
"Clashes over pasture have been recurrent in this region," said national police spokesman Eric Kiraithe.
The Pokomo are a largely settled farming people, planting crops along the Tana River, while the Orma are largely cattle-herding pastoralists.
"Our investigations have shown that it is the Pokomo who attacked the Orma people, who live on an island" in the river, Kitur added.
Lawmaker Danson Mungatana, who represents the area, said the killings were "revenge attacks", adding there had been a string of tit-for-tat killings, attacks and cattle raids this month, though on a far smaller scale.
"There have been problems simmering for a while.... About 10 days ago three Pokomo were killed by the Orma community," he said.
"In revenge, the Orma raided villages occupied by the Pokomo and burnt down more than 100 houses. Now the Pokomo have once again revenged by killing about 50 people. These are purely revenge attacks."
Mungatana said that police had boosted numbers in the region since the attacks.
In 2007 Kenya spiralled into violence after contested elections that left some 1,200 people dead and 600,000 displaced.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/world/3 ... hnic-clash
At least 48 Kenyans hacked to death in ethnic clash
Published: 22/08/2012 at 06:48 PM
Online news: World
At least 48 Kenyans were hacked or burnt to death in ethnic clashes between two rival groups, the worst single attack since deadly post-election violence four years ago, police said Wednesday.
"It is a very bad incident.... They include 31 women, 11 children and six men," regional deputy police chief Joseph Kitur said of the attack, which took place late Tuesday between the Pokomo and Orma peoples in the rural Tana River district.
Kitur said "34 were hacked to death and 14 others were burnt to death," while several huts were torched after a gang of men launched the attack, the latest in a long history of bitter clashes between the rival groups in the remote area of Kenya.
It was not clear what sparked the attack, but the two communities have clashed before over the use of land and water resources, although the scale and intensity of the killings shocked police.
The attack happened in the Reketa area of Tarassa in Kenya's south-east, close to the coast and some 300 kilometres (185 miles) from the Kenyan capital Nairobi.
In 2001, at least 130 people were killed in a string of clashes in the same district and between the same two communities about access to land and a river.
"Clashes over pasture have been recurrent in this region," said national police spokesman Eric Kiraithe.
The Pokomo are a largely settled farming people, planting crops along the Tana River, while the Orma are largely cattle-herding pastoralists.
"Our investigations have shown that it is the Pokomo who attacked the Orma people, who live on an island" in the river, Kitur added.
Lawmaker Danson Mungatana, who represents the area, said the killings were "revenge attacks", adding there had been a string of tit-for-tat killings, attacks and cattle raids this month, though on a far smaller scale.
"There have been problems simmering for a while.... About 10 days ago three Pokomo were killed by the Orma community," he said.
"In revenge, the Orma raided villages occupied by the Pokomo and burnt down more than 100 houses. Now the Pokomo have once again revenged by killing about 50 people. These are purely revenge attacks."
Mungatana said that police had boosted numbers in the region since the attacks.
In 2007 Kenya spiralled into violence after contested elections that left some 1,200 people dead and 600,000 displaced.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/world/3 ... hnic-clash
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
- ICC.supporter
- Posts: 4398
- Joined: Sun Jan 02, 2011 1:33 am
Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Wed Aug 22, 2012 11:03 am
theStar
Ethnic Card Does Not Apply Anymore
Wednesday, 22 August 2012 12:46
BY HUSSEIN MOHAMMED
A popular Kiswahili adage says: Mjinga akierevuka, mwerevu huwa mashakani. Paraphrased, it means when the perceived fool finally unravels the truth, the teacher is in danger. Kenyans are waking up to new politics: peddlers of negative ethnicity beware. Ethnicity itself is a good thing: it denotes a group of people with a shared culture, values, heritage and language.
It’s a part of who we are; an integral part of our identity. In its simplest form, negative ethnicity is a deliberate propagation of conscious biasness, prejudice, and stereotyping against anyone who does not belong to one’s ethnic group. Negative ethnicity thrives on a sustained effort at creating ethnic enemies in a misguided attempt at self preservation.
Since the introduction of the multi-party politics in the early 1990s, negative ethnicity has been a hot commodity among the political elite in galvanizing political support and advancing self interest. All manner of lies have been peddled to communities by political leaders in the name of “ethnic progress” and survival.
Parties have been formed along ethnic lines ostensibly to ensure certain communities are not locked out of political power and /or government. Ethnic nepotism has become a fashionable practice in our institutions in the name of “ensuring our people get a share of the national cake”. Ethnic violence has found a chilling justification in the name of protecting community territories from perceived “foreigners”, as witnessed in 2008.
But now the Constitution has brought a renewed consciousness among Kenyans on their entitlement as citizens of this country. Indeed, the Constitution starts by affirming Kenya’s ethnic diversity: “We the people of Kenya are PROUD of our ethnic, cultural and religious diversity, and determined to live in peace and unity as one indivisible
Political opportunists who have been using the ethnic trump cards to advance their political interest will find it very hard to sell their selfish agenda. The Constitution now guarantees access to basic essential services such as clean water, health facilities, education and security for all Kenyans under the Bill of Rights.
The next government must fulfill this mandate to the people. The Equalization Fund will be the new passport for marginalized communities to catch up with the more developed regions, therefore vanquishing the fear of political alienation by government for voting on non-ethnic lines.
In addition, any ethnic group that feels reasonably sidelined by the government of the day can go to court and seek for an order of mandamus to compel the government to fulfill its obligations to the citizens. The demagogues who hoodwinked communities to vote for them in exchange for mafia-style protection have been rendered useless by the new Constitution: the Bill of Rights gives express powers to Kenyans to reside and own property anywhere in this country.
The Commission on Revenue Allocation which is tasked with sharing the national resources proportionately and in accordance with the law will take care of ethno-regional interests. This empowerment of the people by the Constitution spells liberation for the people of Kenya.Where we saw Kenyans from other ethnic groups as rivals, we can now start seeing them as brothers putting Kenya on the global competitive landscape.
In our institutions, the Kenyans who used to be the unenviable recipients of our ethnic hatred must now be seen as worthy colleagues in a concerted effort to promote institutional efficiencies. The same way we cheer on our Gold Medalists while they are on the international track, is the same zeal with which we must appreciate Mr. Cheruiyot and Miss Okello, the high school teachers in Nyeri, Meru and Malindi.
Elections are politically charged processes, often with negative ethnic innuendos. We have witnessed first-hand the devastating effects of ethnic animosity. Did we learn? We still hear politicians saying so-and-so should not be voted for this position because they come from a particular ethnic group, or that this seat must go to our community. What happened to merit? What happened to fair competition? Are we so devoid of political ideologies that we must sell negative ethnicity? African states remain politically and economically fragile due to unnecessary ethnic tensions and polarization.
The Rwanda Genocide and the war in Darfur are sad reminders of negative ethnicity. We must embrace our ethnic diversity and build a Greater Kenya for us and our children. sovereign Nation...and are COMMITTED to nurturing and protecting the well-being of the individual, the family, communities and the nation...”
Hussein Mohammed is Chief Campaign Manager, Martha Karua 2012 Secretariat & Chair to the Board, Youth Agenda
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/othe ... ly-anymore
Ethnic Card Does Not Apply Anymore
Wednesday, 22 August 2012 12:46
BY HUSSEIN MOHAMMED
A popular Kiswahili adage says: Mjinga akierevuka, mwerevu huwa mashakani. Paraphrased, it means when the perceived fool finally unravels the truth, the teacher is in danger. Kenyans are waking up to new politics: peddlers of negative ethnicity beware. Ethnicity itself is a good thing: it denotes a group of people with a shared culture, values, heritage and language.
It’s a part of who we are; an integral part of our identity. In its simplest form, negative ethnicity is a deliberate propagation of conscious biasness, prejudice, and stereotyping against anyone who does not belong to one’s ethnic group. Negative ethnicity thrives on a sustained effort at creating ethnic enemies in a misguided attempt at self preservation.
Since the introduction of the multi-party politics in the early 1990s, negative ethnicity has been a hot commodity among the political elite in galvanizing political support and advancing self interest. All manner of lies have been peddled to communities by political leaders in the name of “ethnic progress” and survival.
Parties have been formed along ethnic lines ostensibly to ensure certain communities are not locked out of political power and /or government. Ethnic nepotism has become a fashionable practice in our institutions in the name of “ensuring our people get a share of the national cake”. Ethnic violence has found a chilling justification in the name of protecting community territories from perceived “foreigners”, as witnessed in 2008.
But now the Constitution has brought a renewed consciousness among Kenyans on their entitlement as citizens of this country. Indeed, the Constitution starts by affirming Kenya’s ethnic diversity: “We the people of Kenya are PROUD of our ethnic, cultural and religious diversity, and determined to live in peace and unity as one indivisible
Political opportunists who have been using the ethnic trump cards to advance their political interest will find it very hard to sell their selfish agenda. The Constitution now guarantees access to basic essential services such as clean water, health facilities, education and security for all Kenyans under the Bill of Rights.
The next government must fulfill this mandate to the people. The Equalization Fund will be the new passport for marginalized communities to catch up with the more developed regions, therefore vanquishing the fear of political alienation by government for voting on non-ethnic lines.
In addition, any ethnic group that feels reasonably sidelined by the government of the day can go to court and seek for an order of mandamus to compel the government to fulfill its obligations to the citizens. The demagogues who hoodwinked communities to vote for them in exchange for mafia-style protection have been rendered useless by the new Constitution: the Bill of Rights gives express powers to Kenyans to reside and own property anywhere in this country.
The Commission on Revenue Allocation which is tasked with sharing the national resources proportionately and in accordance with the law will take care of ethno-regional interests. This empowerment of the people by the Constitution spells liberation for the people of Kenya.Where we saw Kenyans from other ethnic groups as rivals, we can now start seeing them as brothers putting Kenya on the global competitive landscape.
In our institutions, the Kenyans who used to be the unenviable recipients of our ethnic hatred must now be seen as worthy colleagues in a concerted effort to promote institutional efficiencies. The same way we cheer on our Gold Medalists while they are on the international track, is the same zeal with which we must appreciate Mr. Cheruiyot and Miss Okello, the high school teachers in Nyeri, Meru and Malindi.
Elections are politically charged processes, often with negative ethnic innuendos. We have witnessed first-hand the devastating effects of ethnic animosity. Did we learn? We still hear politicians saying so-and-so should not be voted for this position because they come from a particular ethnic group, or that this seat must go to our community. What happened to merit? What happened to fair competition? Are we so devoid of political ideologies that we must sell negative ethnicity? African states remain politically and economically fragile due to unnecessary ethnic tensions and polarization.
The Rwanda Genocide and the war in Darfur are sad reminders of negative ethnicity. We must embrace our ethnic diversity and build a Greater Kenya for us and our children. sovereign Nation...and are COMMITTED to nurturing and protecting the well-being of the individual, the family, communities and the nation...”
Hussein Mohammed is Chief Campaign Manager, Martha Karua 2012 Secretariat & Chair to the Board, Youth Agenda
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/othe ... ly-anymore
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
- ICC.supporter
- Posts: 4398
- Joined: Sun Jan 02, 2011 1:33 am
Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Thu Aug 23, 2012 12:40 am
Care2 make a difference
The politics cause
Dozens of Women and Children Perish in Ethnic Clash in Kenya
by Sarah Vrba | August 22, 2012 | 6:30 pm
At least 52 people have died in a serious ethnic attack in Kenya on Tuesday. AFP notes that most of the victims were women and children. The original toll of 48 casualties reported on Tuesday was raised to 52 after four more people perished from sustained injuries on Wednesday.
The tragedy was sparked by the long rivalry between Pokomo and Ormo people in a remote corner of Kenya near the Tana River district. Police chief Joseph Kitur said that 31 women perished, along with 11 children and six adult men. Kitur also told reporters that 34 of the victims were hacked to death and 14 were burnt.
The attack occurred in a rural corner of southeast Kenya, about 185 miles away from the capital of Nairobi. The New York Times notes that the gruesome incident was staged by numerous members of an armed militia from the Pokomo group who entered the Ormo village and began to slash residents before setting many of the homes on fire.
One member of Parliament, Danson Mungatana, thought the attacks were probably a backlash after an Ormo cattle raid that occurred last week. Battles for water and land resources between the two groups in this part of Kenya are reportedly very common. Another clash between the two groups back in 2001 caused around 130 deaths. The Pokomo reportedly practice subsistence farming, while the Ormo tend towards a pastoral livelihood. The Kenya Red Cross was at the scene and reported that they sent seven people to the hospital with severe injuries.
The most tragic aspect of the current episode is the high number of children lost in the conflict, along with women and unsuspecting male village members. Both the AFP and the New York Times note that this most recent attack is a reminder of the post-election ethnic violence of 2007, when there were contested election results between two candidates from different ethnic backgrounds, which pitted populations against each other, resulting in more than 1,000 deaths.
In January, the International Criminal Court charged four Kenyan officials with crimes related to the post-election deaths. The next set of elections are planned for next year, according to UPI. The most recent violence has sparked discomfort and is an unsettling reminder that elections could also pose more danger for Kenyans next year.
http://www.care2.com/causes/dozens-of-w ... kenya.html
The politics cause
Dozens of Women and Children Perish in Ethnic Clash in Kenya
by Sarah Vrba | August 22, 2012 | 6:30 pm
At least 52 people have died in a serious ethnic attack in Kenya on Tuesday. AFP notes that most of the victims were women and children. The original toll of 48 casualties reported on Tuesday was raised to 52 after four more people perished from sustained injuries on Wednesday.
The tragedy was sparked by the long rivalry between Pokomo and Ormo people in a remote corner of Kenya near the Tana River district. Police chief Joseph Kitur said that 31 women perished, along with 11 children and six adult men. Kitur also told reporters that 34 of the victims were hacked to death and 14 were burnt.
The attack occurred in a rural corner of southeast Kenya, about 185 miles away from the capital of Nairobi. The New York Times notes that the gruesome incident was staged by numerous members of an armed militia from the Pokomo group who entered the Ormo village and began to slash residents before setting many of the homes on fire.
One member of Parliament, Danson Mungatana, thought the attacks were probably a backlash after an Ormo cattle raid that occurred last week. Battles for water and land resources between the two groups in this part of Kenya are reportedly very common. Another clash between the two groups back in 2001 caused around 130 deaths. The Pokomo reportedly practice subsistence farming, while the Ormo tend towards a pastoral livelihood. The Kenya Red Cross was at the scene and reported that they sent seven people to the hospital with severe injuries.
The most tragic aspect of the current episode is the high number of children lost in the conflict, along with women and unsuspecting male village members. Both the AFP and the New York Times note that this most recent attack is a reminder of the post-election ethnic violence of 2007, when there were contested election results between two candidates from different ethnic backgrounds, which pitted populations against each other, resulting in more than 1,000 deaths.
In January, the International Criminal Court charged four Kenyan officials with crimes related to the post-election deaths. The next set of elections are planned for next year, according to UPI. The most recent violence has sparked discomfort and is an unsettling reminder that elections could also pose more danger for Kenyans next year.
http://www.care2.com/causes/dozens-of-w ... kenya.html
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Thu Aug 23, 2012 9:16 am
allAfrica.com
The Star (Nairobi)
Kenya: Rights Activists Threaten to Sue Over Integrity Bill
By Walter Menya, 22 August 2012
Presidential and gubernatorial aspirants should disclose their wealth and tax returns for the past four years. A section of rights activists have also demanded that aspirants for other electoral positions disclose a minimum of two years tax compliance.
Ndung'u Wainaina of the International Centre for Policy and Conflict and former Kenya National Commission for Human Rights Maina Kiai said they would sue if the requirement is not made part of the Leadership and Integrity Bill.
"We want all election candidates and political parties make available to citizens the following: disclosure of information about campaign contributions, bank account information of a political party and candidate, the background of candidates, including their assets and any pending criminal investigations, the management and use of any public funds, the salary and other income and all liabilities," Ndung'u said yesterday.
The former KNCHR boss said the requirement should be made a key part of the bill. The activists want a disclosure on direct income either from employment or companies in which aspirants are shareholders. They also want information on the aspirants' ownership on these companies and those of their families and relatives.
The information, they said, should be submitted to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission in the form of a sworn affidavit. "This will be the first step in deterring misuse of public office for personal gain. It is the right of the electorate to know information regarding people who will be trusted with public offices and enact and implement laws and policies that have direct or indirect implication on the rights of citizens," Ndung'u added.
Kiai said the aspirants' declaration should date as far back as 2002. "We have seen some people go into office and after a while, they have accumulated wealth they cannot account for," said Kiai. "If they cannot do it willingly, we will go to court to seek such orders," said Ndung'u. Kiai said the requirement should apply to all public office holders to entrench transparency and fight corruption in the country.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201208230059.html
The Star (Nairobi)
Kenya: Rights Activists Threaten to Sue Over Integrity Bill
By Walter Menya, 22 August 2012
Presidential and gubernatorial aspirants should disclose their wealth and tax returns for the past four years. A section of rights activists have also demanded that aspirants for other electoral positions disclose a minimum of two years tax compliance.
Ndung'u Wainaina of the International Centre for Policy and Conflict and former Kenya National Commission for Human Rights Maina Kiai said they would sue if the requirement is not made part of the Leadership and Integrity Bill.
"We want all election candidates and political parties make available to citizens the following: disclosure of information about campaign contributions, bank account information of a political party and candidate, the background of candidates, including their assets and any pending criminal investigations, the management and use of any public funds, the salary and other income and all liabilities," Ndung'u said yesterday.
The former KNCHR boss said the requirement should be made a key part of the bill. The activists want a disclosure on direct income either from employment or companies in which aspirants are shareholders. They also want information on the aspirants' ownership on these companies and those of their families and relatives.
The information, they said, should be submitted to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission in the form of a sworn affidavit. "This will be the first step in deterring misuse of public office for personal gain. It is the right of the electorate to know information regarding people who will be trusted with public offices and enact and implement laws and policies that have direct or indirect implication on the rights of citizens," Ndung'u added.
Kiai said the aspirants' declaration should date as far back as 2002. "We have seen some people go into office and after a while, they have accumulated wealth they cannot account for," said Kiai. "If they cannot do it willingly, we will go to court to seek such orders," said Ndung'u. Kiai said the requirement should apply to all public office holders to entrench transparency and fight corruption in the country.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201208230059.html
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Thu Aug 23, 2012 1:18 pm
Radio Netherlands Worldwide
Africa
Kenya to hold peace meeting after 52 killed
Published on 23 August 2012 - 11:34am
Kenyan police said they were bringing two rival communities together for a peace meeting Thursday, after at least 52 mainly women and children were hacked or burnt to death in the worst ethnic massacre for several years.
"We want to bring together these warring communities," said regional deputy police chief Joseph Kitur, after the attack late Tuesday between the Pokomo and Orma peoples in the rural Tana River district.
The dead included at least 31 women and 11 children, the majority killed with machetes, the others burnt alive as men from the Pokomo community torched their huts.
It was not clear what sparked the attack, but the two communities have clashed before over the use of land and water resources, although the scale and intensity of the killings shocked police.
It was the worst single attack since deadly post-election violence four years ago.
"We are holding a major security meeting on the ground today, because we want to understand what the problem is," Kitur added. "We want to engage them so that we can work together in getting a lasting solution."
The Pokomo are a largely settled farming people, planting crops along the Tana River, while the Orma are mainly cattle-herding pastoralists.
Police were hunting down suspects from the Pokomo group blamed for the attack, but many had escaped into the remote bush.
"Most suspects have fled from their homes after committing the attacks, but we are closing in on them," Kitur said.
The attack happened in the Reketa area of Tarassa in Kenya's south-east, close to the coast and some 300 kilometres (185 miles) from the capital Nairobi.
The bodies were buried late Wednesday in line with Islamic custom, Kitur said, adding that around 50 people are still in hospital.
In 2001, at least 130 people were killed in a string of clashes in the same district and between the same two communities over access to land and a river.
"They need to live together as neighbours instead of resorting to killing one another and even burning houses because of water and pasture," Kitur added.
Lawmaker Danson Mungatana, who represents the area, said on Wednesday the killings were "revenge attacks", adding there had been a string of tit-for-tat killings, attacks and cattle raids this month, though on a far smaller scale.
"There have been problems simmering for a while," he said, shortly after the attack.
In 2007 Kenya spiralled into violence after contested elections that pitted candidates from different ethnic groups against each other, resulting in the deaths of some 1,200 people and displacing 600,000.
http://www.rnw.nl/africa/bulletin/kenya ... -52-killed
Africa
Kenya to hold peace meeting after 52 killed
Published on 23 August 2012 - 11:34am
Kenyan police said they were bringing two rival communities together for a peace meeting Thursday, after at least 52 mainly women and children were hacked or burnt to death in the worst ethnic massacre for several years.
"We want to bring together these warring communities," said regional deputy police chief Joseph Kitur, after the attack late Tuesday between the Pokomo and Orma peoples in the rural Tana River district.
The dead included at least 31 women and 11 children, the majority killed with machetes, the others burnt alive as men from the Pokomo community torched their huts.
It was not clear what sparked the attack, but the two communities have clashed before over the use of land and water resources, although the scale and intensity of the killings shocked police.
It was the worst single attack since deadly post-election violence four years ago.
"We are holding a major security meeting on the ground today, because we want to understand what the problem is," Kitur added. "We want to engage them so that we can work together in getting a lasting solution."
The Pokomo are a largely settled farming people, planting crops along the Tana River, while the Orma are mainly cattle-herding pastoralists.
Police were hunting down suspects from the Pokomo group blamed for the attack, but many had escaped into the remote bush.
"Most suspects have fled from their homes after committing the attacks, but we are closing in on them," Kitur said.
The attack happened in the Reketa area of Tarassa in Kenya's south-east, close to the coast and some 300 kilometres (185 miles) from the capital Nairobi.
The bodies were buried late Wednesday in line with Islamic custom, Kitur said, adding that around 50 people are still in hospital.
In 2001, at least 130 people were killed in a string of clashes in the same district and between the same two communities over access to land and a river.
"They need to live together as neighbours instead of resorting to killing one another and even burning houses because of water and pasture," Kitur added.
Lawmaker Danson Mungatana, who represents the area, said on Wednesday the killings were "revenge attacks", adding there had been a string of tit-for-tat killings, attacks and cattle raids this month, though on a far smaller scale.
"There have been problems simmering for a while," he said, shortly after the attack.
In 2007 Kenya spiralled into violence after contested elections that pitted candidates from different ethnic groups against each other, resulting in the deaths of some 1,200 people and displacing 600,000.
http://www.rnw.nl/africa/bulletin/kenya ... -52-killed
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Thu Aug 23, 2012 5:13 pm
Radio Netherlands Worldwide
Africa
Displaced Kenyans robbed by camp management
Published on : 23 August 2012 - 3:38pm
Kenyan refugees at a camp 140 kilometres from Nairobi are believed to have been living in extremely harsh conditions between 2009 and 2012. They blame it on a management that is fraudulent and dictatorial. They claim that food donations were sold by the camp’s manager.
By Iris Visser, Nairobi
Post-election unrest in 2007-08 that killed at least 1,100 people and displaced more than 600,000 shattered Kenya's image as a beacon of stability in east Africa. The then-opposition leader Raila Odinga accused President Mwai Kibaki of rigging his way to re-election following the 2007 polls.
Following the violence, every single family that was internally displaced received 10,000 Kenyan Shillings (100 Euros) as compensation.
"New life"
“Our government told us to start a new life with 10,000 and that is why we united,” says David Njoroge, one of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). 3,389 families decided to group together to start an IDP camp situated in Mawingo, a town 140 kilometres from Nairobi. They elected Peter Kariuki as the chairman who used their compensation money to buy a piece of land to set up the camp. Until 2011, the Mawingo IDP camp was the largest one in Kenya. Since then, many have been resettled in other camps around the country.
“In the camp we faced many challenges. The leadership was poor from the start. There were no elections, no democracy. We had no rights as human beings,” Njoroge says. He even compares Kariuki’s managing style to that of a dictator. “He chose all our leaders: vice chairman, treasurer, secretary, etc.”
However, according to Kariuki, democracy shapes his management. “With our constitution we are supposed to hold elections every 2 years. I have been elected 3 times.” Keffa Magenyi, a coordinator at Kenya’s IDP Network, confirms no elections were held in the camp.
http://www.rnw.nl/africa/article/displa ... management
Africa
Displaced Kenyans robbed by camp management
Published on : 23 August 2012 - 3:38pm
Kenyan refugees at a camp 140 kilometres from Nairobi are believed to have been living in extremely harsh conditions between 2009 and 2012. They blame it on a management that is fraudulent and dictatorial. They claim that food donations were sold by the camp’s manager.
By Iris Visser, Nairobi
Post-election unrest in 2007-08 that killed at least 1,100 people and displaced more than 600,000 shattered Kenya's image as a beacon of stability in east Africa. The then-opposition leader Raila Odinga accused President Mwai Kibaki of rigging his way to re-election following the 2007 polls.
Following the violence, every single family that was internally displaced received 10,000 Kenyan Shillings (100 Euros) as compensation.
"New life"
“Our government told us to start a new life with 10,000 and that is why we united,” says David Njoroge, one of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). 3,389 families decided to group together to start an IDP camp situated in Mawingo, a town 140 kilometres from Nairobi. They elected Peter Kariuki as the chairman who used their compensation money to buy a piece of land to set up the camp. Until 2011, the Mawingo IDP camp was the largest one in Kenya. Since then, many have been resettled in other camps around the country.
“In the camp we faced many challenges. The leadership was poor from the start. There were no elections, no democracy. We had no rights as human beings,” Njoroge says. He even compares Kariuki’s managing style to that of a dictator. “He chose all our leaders: vice chairman, treasurer, secretary, etc.”
However, according to Kariuki, democracy shapes his management. “With our constitution we are supposed to hold elections every 2 years. I have been elected 3 times.” Keffa Magenyi, a coordinator at Kenya’s IDP Network, confirms no elections were held in the camp.
http://www.rnw.nl/africa/article/displa ... management
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Fri Aug 24, 2012 10:15 am
Irin
Humanitarian News and Analysis
Analysis: Taming hate speech in Kenya
NAIROBI, 24 August 2012 (IRIN) - So much for “never again”. Five years after 1,300 Kenyans were killed and more than half a million displaced in the wake of a presidential election, one of the triggers of that violence, the inflammatory language of politicians, remains a serious threat to peace and stability as the country gears up for the next polls in March 2013.
The 21 August massacre of 48 people in the Tana River district resulted in large part from the hate speech of politicians, according to several officials.
"Hate speech is the precursor to violence and has [been] every electioneering year in this country. We must begin to seriously hold people accountable for inciting people to violence and hatred," Atsango Chesoni, executive director of the NGO Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), told IRIN.
A judicial report into 2008's post-election violence said political rallies, vernacular radio stations, leaflets and mobile phone texting services had all been used by political and even religious leaders to transmit messages that contributed to the violence.
Joshua Arap Sang, a presenter on a local-language radio station, is one of four Kenyans charged by the International Criminal Court (ICC) of committing crimes against humanity during the last general election; his charges relate to the alleged dissemination of hate speech.
Measures in place
In an effort to stem political and ethnic violence, the Kenya National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) was set up in 2008 to promote ethnic harmony and to "investigate complaints of ethnic or racial discrimination or any issue affecting ethnic and racial relations". It has since recommended that the Director of Public Prosecution indict at least six politicians - two of them cabinet ministers - and three musicians for hate speech.
Section 13 of the 2008 National Cohesion and Integration Act, which established the Commission, criminalizes the use of hate speech and bars the use of threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour in any medium if they are intended to spur ethnic hatred.
The regulatory National Communications Commission of Kenya has drafted guidelines that put the responsibility of filtering out inflammatory text-messages on mobile phone service providers. It has also banned the use of any language other than Swahili and English - the country's two official languages - when sending political text messages during the designated campaign period.
The police have also been provided with audio recorders to monitor any hate speech at public gatherings.
Despite these measures, a May report by the Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation Committee, chaired by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, warned that as the political temperature rises, so does the risk of slipping back into old habits.
"The environment for the next General Election is becoming increasingly divisive as politicians continue to mobilize along ethnic lines. The trials at the International Criminal Court remain a divisive issue, with discourses for and against the ICC," the report found. "These divisions are feeding into the electoral environment through mobilization of political support."
Pinning down hate speech
There are drawbacks to tackling hate speech in the courts, according to Judith Musembi, a law lecturer at the University of Nairobi.
"Successful prosecution of hate speech can help stop it, but the success depends on getting water-tight evidence, which is never easy due to the difference in interpreting what has been said," she told IRIN.
Lack of such evidence led to charges being dropped against three politicians accused of using hate speech during a 2010 referendum on a new constitution.
The 2008 law defines hate speech as that which advocates or encourages violent acts against a specific group, and creates a climate of hate or prejudice, which may, in turn, foster the commission of hate crimes.
Part of the problem in enforcing this act is that “this definition is broad [so] providing evidence that passes the prosecutorial threshold is somewhat difficult” according to Abdullah Boru Halakhe, Horn of Africa analyst at the International Crisis Group.
“Where can we draw the line between what constitute hate speech and infringement of freedom of expression?” he asked.
This question runs through three cases now before the courts. Cabinet minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere, who stands accused of inciting hatred against “Arab” settlers who he said had taken land from indigenous coastal communities, claims his right of expression was being “grossly violated” by the case.
And three Kikuyu musicians - whose songs praising presidential aspirant and ICC suspect Uhuru Kenyatta were termed by the Commission as “insulting” and “threatening” to the Luo community - say their prosecution amounts to a “criminal interpretation of artistic works”.
Chesoni dismissed such a defence. “The Bill of Rights, which guarantees these freedoms, is also very clear on their limitations. We can't enjoy our rights by hurting others, and one can't use underlying historical injustices like land ownership as a pretext to incite people to violence," she said.
Milly Lwanga, a commissioner at the NCIC, explained that when the Commission was set up, “the first task was to define what entails hate speech vis-à-vis the need to maintain people's right to freedom of expression.”
But she conceded the ambiguity in utterances at the heart of hate crime cases was an issue. The Commission had had to bring in “expert witnesses to decipher what ordinary listeners might not understand in a given speech”.
The songs in question, which have been condemned even by Kenyatta’s own party, are indeed laced with allusions - “this is year of the hyena”, “stop chasing the wind, Awgambo”, “when a man is seated he sees further than a boy on top of a tree” - that might be lost on those unfamiliar with Kikuyu culture.
But some of the lyrics are less obscure - there are frequent derisive references to the fact that Luo men, unlike their Kikuyu counterparts, are generally uncircumcised, a condition one song links to “mental immaturity.”
Another song suggests that Kenyatta should “kill” Luo presidential rival Raila Odinga - “an uncircumcised man who wants to push you there [the Hague] and take over your wife and all your wealth” - for his alleged role in bringing about the ICC prosecutions.
More than ethnicity
Lawrence Mute, a commissioner at the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, an autonomous government body, says the scope of the 2008 law is too narrow. "When you look at the NCIC Act, it is too focused on ethnicity, yet hate speech goes beyond ethnic or political incitement. When you are faced with hate speech targeted at gender, for instance, it becomes difficult to prosecute because under what law do you do it?" he asked.
Mute also noted that despite the high-profile names currently linked to hate speech, the country's legal system has a poor track record of holding powerful officials to account. "You can only talk about deterrence when you have had successful prosecutions, but we have no track record at all in punishing high-level crime," he said.
"We must ask whether the various institutions have the will to investigate and prosecute hate speech. As it is now, cases that have not been properly investigated are taken to court and are dismissed for lack of proper evidence."
And according to KHRC’s Chesoni, the failure to prosecute means the crimes will continue. "There is a direct link between impunity and the behaviour of politicians who want to create an atmosphere of violence. People say, 'So and so got away with it and I can as well,'" she said.
NCIC’s Lwanga noted that the "tendency to politicize prosecution of hate speech is a real threat". Whenever prominent individuals are linked to incidents of hate crime, there is a tendency for their supporters to claim that the cases are inspired more by political affiliation than by specific acts.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/96168/An ... h-in-Kenya
Humanitarian News and Analysis
Analysis: Taming hate speech in Kenya
NAIROBI, 24 August 2012 (IRIN) - So much for “never again”. Five years after 1,300 Kenyans were killed and more than half a million displaced in the wake of a presidential election, one of the triggers of that violence, the inflammatory language of politicians, remains a serious threat to peace and stability as the country gears up for the next polls in March 2013.
The 21 August massacre of 48 people in the Tana River district resulted in large part from the hate speech of politicians, according to several officials.
"Hate speech is the precursor to violence and has [been] every electioneering year in this country. We must begin to seriously hold people accountable for inciting people to violence and hatred," Atsango Chesoni, executive director of the NGO Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), told IRIN.
A judicial report into 2008's post-election violence said political rallies, vernacular radio stations, leaflets and mobile phone texting services had all been used by political and even religious leaders to transmit messages that contributed to the violence.
Joshua Arap Sang, a presenter on a local-language radio station, is one of four Kenyans charged by the International Criminal Court (ICC) of committing crimes against humanity during the last general election; his charges relate to the alleged dissemination of hate speech.
Measures in place
In an effort to stem political and ethnic violence, the Kenya National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) was set up in 2008 to promote ethnic harmony and to "investigate complaints of ethnic or racial discrimination or any issue affecting ethnic and racial relations". It has since recommended that the Director of Public Prosecution indict at least six politicians - two of them cabinet ministers - and three musicians for hate speech.
Section 13 of the 2008 National Cohesion and Integration Act, which established the Commission, criminalizes the use of hate speech and bars the use of threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour in any medium if they are intended to spur ethnic hatred.
The regulatory National Communications Commission of Kenya has drafted guidelines that put the responsibility of filtering out inflammatory text-messages on mobile phone service providers. It has also banned the use of any language other than Swahili and English - the country's two official languages - when sending political text messages during the designated campaign period.
The police have also been provided with audio recorders to monitor any hate speech at public gatherings.
Despite these measures, a May report by the Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation Committee, chaired by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, warned that as the political temperature rises, so does the risk of slipping back into old habits.
"The environment for the next General Election is becoming increasingly divisive as politicians continue to mobilize along ethnic lines. The trials at the International Criminal Court remain a divisive issue, with discourses for and against the ICC," the report found. "These divisions are feeding into the electoral environment through mobilization of political support."
Pinning down hate speech
There are drawbacks to tackling hate speech in the courts, according to Judith Musembi, a law lecturer at the University of Nairobi.
"Successful prosecution of hate speech can help stop it, but the success depends on getting water-tight evidence, which is never easy due to the difference in interpreting what has been said," she told IRIN.
Lack of such evidence led to charges being dropped against three politicians accused of using hate speech during a 2010 referendum on a new constitution.
The 2008 law defines hate speech as that which advocates or encourages violent acts against a specific group, and creates a climate of hate or prejudice, which may, in turn, foster the commission of hate crimes.
Part of the problem in enforcing this act is that “this definition is broad [so] providing evidence that passes the prosecutorial threshold is somewhat difficult” according to Abdullah Boru Halakhe, Horn of Africa analyst at the International Crisis Group.
“Where can we draw the line between what constitute hate speech and infringement of freedom of expression?” he asked.
This question runs through three cases now before the courts. Cabinet minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere, who stands accused of inciting hatred against “Arab” settlers who he said had taken land from indigenous coastal communities, claims his right of expression was being “grossly violated” by the case.
And three Kikuyu musicians - whose songs praising presidential aspirant and ICC suspect Uhuru Kenyatta were termed by the Commission as “insulting” and “threatening” to the Luo community - say their prosecution amounts to a “criminal interpretation of artistic works”.
Chesoni dismissed such a defence. “The Bill of Rights, which guarantees these freedoms, is also very clear on their limitations. We can't enjoy our rights by hurting others, and one can't use underlying historical injustices like land ownership as a pretext to incite people to violence," she said.
Milly Lwanga, a commissioner at the NCIC, explained that when the Commission was set up, “the first task was to define what entails hate speech vis-à-vis the need to maintain people's right to freedom of expression.”
But she conceded the ambiguity in utterances at the heart of hate crime cases was an issue. The Commission had had to bring in “expert witnesses to decipher what ordinary listeners might not understand in a given speech”.
The songs in question, which have been condemned even by Kenyatta’s own party, are indeed laced with allusions - “this is year of the hyena”, “stop chasing the wind, Awgambo”, “when a man is seated he sees further than a boy on top of a tree” - that might be lost on those unfamiliar with Kikuyu culture.
But some of the lyrics are less obscure - there are frequent derisive references to the fact that Luo men, unlike their Kikuyu counterparts, are generally uncircumcised, a condition one song links to “mental immaturity.”
Another song suggests that Kenyatta should “kill” Luo presidential rival Raila Odinga - “an uncircumcised man who wants to push you there [the Hague] and take over your wife and all your wealth” - for his alleged role in bringing about the ICC prosecutions.
More than ethnicity
Lawrence Mute, a commissioner at the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, an autonomous government body, says the scope of the 2008 law is too narrow. "When you look at the NCIC Act, it is too focused on ethnicity, yet hate speech goes beyond ethnic or political incitement. When you are faced with hate speech targeted at gender, for instance, it becomes difficult to prosecute because under what law do you do it?" he asked.
Mute also noted that despite the high-profile names currently linked to hate speech, the country's legal system has a poor track record of holding powerful officials to account. "You can only talk about deterrence when you have had successful prosecutions, but we have no track record at all in punishing high-level crime," he said.
"We must ask whether the various institutions have the will to investigate and prosecute hate speech. As it is now, cases that have not been properly investigated are taken to court and are dismissed for lack of proper evidence."
And according to KHRC’s Chesoni, the failure to prosecute means the crimes will continue. "There is a direct link between impunity and the behaviour of politicians who want to create an atmosphere of violence. People say, 'So and so got away with it and I can as well,'" she said.
NCIC’s Lwanga noted that the "tendency to politicize prosecution of hate speech is a real threat". Whenever prominent individuals are linked to incidents of hate crime, there is a tendency for their supporters to claim that the cases are inspired more by political affiliation than by specific acts.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/96168/An ... h-in-Kenya
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Re: Helping Post-Election Violence Victims: Write to Ocampo
by ICC.supporter » Fri Aug 24, 2012 5:26 pm
theStar
Eugene Needs To Tread Carefully
Friday, 24 August 2012 16:06
BY DAVID MAKALI
Eugene Ludovick Wamalwa is clearly the man of the moment. He is at the centre of many swirling events from which he can reap big politically. But he could also fall thunderously with just one misstep, which is eminently probable. Just five months ago before he was elevated to minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs at the behest of Uhuru Knyatta, he looked every bit the underdog in his aspiration to become president.
He was the flower girl in the party of ICC suspects and was, together with Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, derided as a vulture waiting reap from the misfortune of others. But his appointment to a challenging Cabinet position added him the wind in his sails that yanked him to peerage with URP’s William Ruto. It gave him a platform to demonstrate that he is more than a political novice punching above his weight. So far, his report card should read above average.
Eugene’s elevation has had the instant effect of dimming Ruto and also giving him the means to move around. In place of his weak financial means he now simply rides on state facilities like the Vice-President, PM Odinga and deputy Prime Ministers Uhuru and Musalia Mudavadi to conduct his campaign in the guise of official duties. What’s more, he has the platform of a high profile ministry charged with the all-important implementation of the constitution.
But there is where it ends. His ascendance seems to be at great expense to the amorphous G7 alliance. Pretence aside, G7did not have a place for Eugene on the high table because he was always regarded as a junior partner in the pecking order. His elevation was a double-barreled plot by Uhuru to superintend over the government’s handling of the ICC process and dim Ruto’s star amid. It happened on the spur of simmering rivalry and cooling of relations between Uhuru and Ruto because of the latter’s unwillingness to play second fiddle to Uhuru.
Eugene’s appointment was designed to re-order the succession plot but it seems to be evolving into a partnership of sorts with Uhuru. While he was expected to be content with the ministerial position and reduced to doing the spadework for the Uhuru - Ruto ticket, Eugene is now solidly Uhuru’s preferred candidate should he not run. This has jolted Ruto’s wing, which has sensed an ulterior plot to impose Uhuru on him but which they know will not go down well with his Rift Valley supporters.
So Ruto has decided to concentrate on charting his own political path until circumstances again force him to work with Uhuru — preferably after the election. It was not lost on Ruto and his supporters that at the triumphant Uhuru Park rally upon return from The Hague last year, Uhuru was played up as the prince and Ruto as the privileged escort. And fact that central Kenya political parties have predictably began trooping to Uhuru, while other influential figures are lobbying for Musalia Mudavadi as the alternative is to Ruto the clearest indication of his eventual betrayal.
Thus, while the circumstances of the moment favour Eugene, it remains to be seen if he will take advantage to propel himself forward. So far, he appears content to be Uhuru’s running mate despite his insistence that he is still in the race to Sate House. Any appearance of a threat to his place by Uhuru’s side elicits instant reaction, especially if it is from western. But is that enough for a man who has lifted the aspirations of a whole community?
The Luhya (principally Bukusu) support he enjoys is premised upon his bid for State House. Yet many are not convinced about the seriousness and potential success of his bid and the question still lingers among many: to whom will he deliver them? Most of those who would support Eugene in western Kenya are inclined towards ODM’s Raila Odinga and much less to Musalia Mudavadi. Even fewer support Uhuru Kenyatta or William Ruto.
The moment Eugene confirms the widely held suspicion that he is out of the race, his support will varnish. He will cease to be an asset to any presidential aspirant and even his own political career will be in great jeopardy. Eugene’s dilemma is shared by many fringe candidates who are putting on brave faces to calm their apprehensive supporters. Even the main ones like Kalonzo, Ruto, and Martha Karua who are pressing on unflinchingly have their lonely reflection moments. But none, it seems has his future wrapped around the bosom of another at this point like Eugene.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/davi ... -carefully
Eugene Needs To Tread Carefully
Friday, 24 August 2012 16:06
BY DAVID MAKALI
Eugene Ludovick Wamalwa is clearly the man of the moment. He is at the centre of many swirling events from which he can reap big politically. But he could also fall thunderously with just one misstep, which is eminently probable. Just five months ago before he was elevated to minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs at the behest of Uhuru Knyatta, he looked every bit the underdog in his aspiration to become president.
He was the flower girl in the party of ICC suspects and was, together with Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, derided as a vulture waiting reap from the misfortune of others. But his appointment to a challenging Cabinet position added him the wind in his sails that yanked him to peerage with URP’s William Ruto. It gave him a platform to demonstrate that he is more than a political novice punching above his weight. So far, his report card should read above average.
Eugene’s elevation has had the instant effect of dimming Ruto and also giving him the means to move around. In place of his weak financial means he now simply rides on state facilities like the Vice-President, PM Odinga and deputy Prime Ministers Uhuru and Musalia Mudavadi to conduct his campaign in the guise of official duties. What’s more, he has the platform of a high profile ministry charged with the all-important implementation of the constitution.
But there is where it ends. His ascendance seems to be at great expense to the amorphous G7 alliance. Pretence aside, G7did not have a place for Eugene on the high table because he was always regarded as a junior partner in the pecking order. His elevation was a double-barreled plot by Uhuru to superintend over the government’s handling of the ICC process and dim Ruto’s star amid. It happened on the spur of simmering rivalry and cooling of relations between Uhuru and Ruto because of the latter’s unwillingness to play second fiddle to Uhuru.
Eugene’s appointment was designed to re-order the succession plot but it seems to be evolving into a partnership of sorts with Uhuru. While he was expected to be content with the ministerial position and reduced to doing the spadework for the Uhuru - Ruto ticket, Eugene is now solidly Uhuru’s preferred candidate should he not run. This has jolted Ruto’s wing, which has sensed an ulterior plot to impose Uhuru on him but which they know will not go down well with his Rift Valley supporters.
So Ruto has decided to concentrate on charting his own political path until circumstances again force him to work with Uhuru — preferably after the election. It was not lost on Ruto and his supporters that at the triumphant Uhuru Park rally upon return from The Hague last year, Uhuru was played up as the prince and Ruto as the privileged escort. And fact that central Kenya political parties have predictably began trooping to Uhuru, while other influential figures are lobbying for Musalia Mudavadi as the alternative is to Ruto the clearest indication of his eventual betrayal.
Thus, while the circumstances of the moment favour Eugene, it remains to be seen if he will take advantage to propel himself forward. So far, he appears content to be Uhuru’s running mate despite his insistence that he is still in the race to Sate House. Any appearance of a threat to his place by Uhuru’s side elicits instant reaction, especially if it is from western. But is that enough for a man who has lifted the aspirations of a whole community?
The Luhya (principally Bukusu) support he enjoys is premised upon his bid for State House. Yet many are not convinced about the seriousness and potential success of his bid and the question still lingers among many: to whom will he deliver them? Most of those who would support Eugene in western Kenya are inclined towards ODM’s Raila Odinga and much less to Musalia Mudavadi. Even fewer support Uhuru Kenyatta or William Ruto.
The moment Eugene confirms the widely held suspicion that he is out of the race, his support will varnish. He will cease to be an asset to any presidential aspirant and even his own political career will be in great jeopardy. Eugene’s dilemma is shared by many fringe candidates who are putting on brave faces to calm their apprehensive supporters. Even the main ones like Kalonzo, Ruto, and Martha Karua who are pressing on unflinchingly have their lonely reflection moments. But none, it seems has his future wrapped around the bosom of another at this point like Eugene.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/davi ... -carefully
Liberate yourself from your tribe and its "leaders." It's a great feeling!
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