Kenyan Leader Makes Unity Offer: Washington Post

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119954713643770197.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

By SARAH CHILDRESS

January 5, 2008 10:37 a.m.

NAIROBI, Kenya -- After a week of political stalemate and bloodshed, Kenyan president Mwai Kibaki said Saturday that he was prepared to form a government of national unity with the opposition, easing tensions between the two side and potentially setting the stage for negotiations to end violence that has so far killed at least 300 people and displaced as many as 250,000.

The statement, which was released shortly after Mr. Kibaki met with Jendayi Frazer, America's top diplomat for Africa, suggested a power-sharing agreement between the president and his challenger, Raila Odinga, who claims that Mr. Kibaki stole presidential elections late last month.

"The president said he was ready to form a government of national unity that would not only unite Kenyans but would also help in the healing and reconciliation process," the statement said.

Kenya, once considered a safe haven in a region wracked by civil war, dissolved into ethnic clashes shortly after Mr. Kibaki was hastily sworn in Dec. 30 after a presidential election criticized by international observers. Supporters of Mr. Odinga, an ethnic Luo, and Kikuyus, Mr. Kibaki's tribe, clashed in sometimes-horrific violence in the days after the election.

Kenya has become an important ally to the U.S. Mr. Kibaki has worked closely with the Americans to fight extremists, and Washington has invested millions in training and equipment for Kenyan forces. As the largest economy and most stable country in East Africa, Kenya has also played an important role as a peacekeeper in the region.

Mr. Kibaki responded to the election protests by filling the streets of Nairobi, the capital city, with police clad in olive-drab body armor, and sending reinforcements into the western part of the country, an Odinga stronghold.

Representatives from the European Union, the United Kingdom, the U.S. and several African countries pled with both sides for reconciliation in recent days. But while both sides called for peace, they also blamed the violence solely on their rival's supporters, and until Saturday, showed little willingness to compromise with each other.

Mr. Odinga had recently agreed to a neutral mediator such as the head of the African Union, Ghanaian President John Kufuor, and held meetings with Archbishop Desmond Tutu and others. But Mr. Kibaki's government had said it wouldn't negotiate with those who instigated violence, and suggested he would only consider a recount if a court ordered it, an unlikely outcome.

Mr. Odinga stopped short Saturday of embracing the idea of a power-sharing agreement. But crucially he didn't rule it out, either. Asked at a press briefing Saturday whether he would agree to a national unity government, Mr. Odinga said, "Let them put that on the table when we negotiate."

At the briefing he said that there were only two options: Mr. Kibaki, whom he called a "thief sitting in the State House," should step down as president; or the elections must be rerun. Any negotiations, he said, would have to be conducted through an international mediator.

Still, Mr. Kibaki's concession brought fresh hope to Kenyans, most of whom are exhausted and horrified by the violence. One local newspaper printed messages sent in by text from people begging Mr. Kibaki and Mr. Odinga to reconcile. Radio and television announcers broadcast the same message in interviews with ordinary Kenyans.

European Pressphoto Agency
Paramilitary police threw tear gas as several hundred demonstrators rallied in Mombasa

In Nairobi, many people have cautiously resumed their normal lives. Traffic is returning to the streets, restaurants stay open after dark and long lines at supermarkets have dwindled. The police, a ubiquitous presence just a few days earlier, no longer outnumber pedestrians along the roadside.

In western Kenya, aid groups struggled to provide water, food and other supplies to displaced, and hospitals were overwhelmed trying to provide medical care to those who had been hacked by mobs armed with machetes or shot by paramilitary police. Kisumu, which was embroiled in violence this week, yesterday had settled into a tense calm as families returned to search for the bodies of their missing relatives.

Mr. Odinga plans to hold a rally in Uhuru Park in Nairobi on Tuesday. The government banned the past two attempts to hold a meeting, chasing away demonstrators with tear gas and water cannons. Mr. Kibaki's government said Mr. Odinga aims to rekindle violence. Mr. Odinga said it's simply to thank his supporters.

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