The article discusses the postelection crisis in Kenya which has caused suffering to innocent civilians in the area. It states that the chaos was caused by the negligence of both the opposing parties of incumbent candidate Mwai Kibaki and his rival Raila Odinga. The author claimed that Kenyan people would continue to suffer and the nation will continue to be troubled because of the selfishness of both leaders over power

Orobator, Agbonkhianmeghe E.

English

epublications@Marquette

Marquette Universitye-Publications@MarquetteTheology Faculty Research and Publications Theology, Department of3-10-2008A Tale of Two Elephants: Overcoming thePostelection Crisis in KenyaAgbonkhianmeghe E. OrobatorMarquette University, agbonkhianmeghe.orobator@marquette.eduPublished version. America, Vol. 198, No. 8 (March 10, 2008): 14-16. Permalink. © 2008 AmericaPress Inc. Used with permission.Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner.  Further reproduction prohibited without permission.A Tale of Two ElephantsOrobator, Agbonkhianmeghe EAmerica; Mar 10, 2008; 198, 8; ProQuestpg. 14A Tale of Two Elephants Overcoming the postelection crisis in Kenya BY AGBONKHIANMEGHE E. OROBATOR L OCAL AND INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS quote a popular saying to characterize the current post-election crisis in Kenya: "When two elephants fight, the grass suffers." For us in Kenya this is not just a quaint figure of speech. It aptly describes the catastrophe that has rocked the country since the December 2007 presidential elections. The elections set the stage for mortal combat between two colossal personalities who bestride Kenyan politics, motivated by an unmitigated quest for power: the incumbent, Mwai Kibaki, and his archrival, Raila Odinga. The prize at stake was the presidency. As in many other African countries, this ultimate prize comes with unimagin-able powers to (mis)appropriate national economic resources, reward political cronies and frustrate rivals into submission. Sadly, neither of the two elephants has had the courage to make the ultimate sacrifice for his own political ambitions. Instead innocent Kenyans have paid the price. With vitriolic rhetoric the assorted cast of Kenyan politi-cians goaded masses of supporters into battle, while they, ensconced in their villas, 2007, changed all that and opened the eyes of Kenyans to deep-rooted seeds of raging discontent, tribal hatred and mutual distrust. The oasis has turned out to be a mirage. It is a commonly accepted position among Kenyans that the ongoing violence is no longer about the election. Whether one considers the elections a trigger factor, an excuse or a subterfuge, the violence we have seen over the past weeks bears signs of a carefully premeditated and orga-nized operation. Some of it may have been sporadic and some opportunistic. Underneath it all lies a murderous quest to avenge old wrongs, settle atavistic scores and elim-inate ethnic rivals and enemies. VIolent Disregard for Human Rights Unquestionably, in all parts of the country, the result has been the same: death and destruction, impunity and disre-gard for fundamental human rights. I know a mother of 12 children who eked out a living selling a few assorted candies and cigarettes in a makeshift kiosk less than a block from our school grounds. Over the years she survived several evictions and harassment looked on, only occasional-ly venturing out in heavily protected convoys of S.U.V.'s. For weeks the Western media beamed images of horrific postelection vio-lence to a stunned global audience. The images pro-voked shock and disbelief, but also a feeling of deja vu. After all, as the lead actor in "Blood Diamond" cynically Kenyans will continue to reel with pain and seethe with anger, traumatized by the truth that they voted for and lost out to selfish politicians. by city council officials. As I write, she sleeps in the open in an agricultural showground with her entire family. She has lost her home and her liveli-hood; she now depends on the goodwill of humani-tarian volunteers. When violence erupt-ed in a nearby slum, the choir director of our local remarked in the film, "This is Africa!" Inside Kenya ordinary citizens still wonder how this could have happened. The country is surrounded by neigh-bors convulsed by wars and internecine conflicts that have swelled the refugee population of Kenya and given it a rep-utation as an oasis of peace in a troubled region. Dec. 27, AGBONKHIANMEGHE E. OROBATOR, S.J., a member of the North· West Africa Province, is a teacher and the rector of the Jesuit community at Hekima College, Nairobi, Kenya. 14 parish ran for her life, not knowing who was pursuing her or why. Unfortunately she ran into a mob of riotous youths, who did not spare her. They hacked her to death. . Our cook's eldest son saw his ramshackle room razed to the ground by a gang of youths. He was lucky to escape alive. Every day we hear horror stories of how the postelec-tion crisis continues to destroy innocent lives. Many of the victims voted with pride on Dec. 27. Whichever elephant they voted for, they did so with conviction and high hopes for a change in their living conditions. One of my students America March 10,2008 Some images have been removed from this version of the article due to third-party copyright restrictions Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner.  Further reproduction prohibited without permission.stood in line for seven hours to cast his ballot; many traveled hundreds of miles to their home areas to exercise their civic right. It was a heartening sight to behold millions of Kenyans braving the elements to make sure every eligible votor participated. The results, however, betrayed all expectations. The dis-puted vote count sparked unprecedented mayhem, chaos and violence. Any talk of an election rerun, which some political leaders have proposed, is now met with a scornful, "God forbid! Never again!" This morbid fear of elections is understandable. As one victim put it, "We voted and we lost!" Several weeks after the elections, the death toll contin-ues to rise. Over 1,000 Kenyans have died, though govern-ment figures claim the number is smaller. Countless others lie injured in hospitals across the country, nursing wounds inflicted by machetes, poisoned arrows, clubs and gasoline bombs. Almost overnight, Kenya has generated 300,000 internally displaced persons and refugees. Forced off land they once called home, these people, mostly women and children, sleep in open spaces: stadiums, police stations, showgrounds and church compounds. Neither the two elephants nor their cheerleaders know March 10, 2008 America the indignities of forced displacement. It would seem that Kenya has finally joined the league of African countries whose tortuous quest for socioeconomic development remains bedeviled by senseless violence and political short-sightedness. Consequences Across Africa During a recent panel discussion analyzing the postelection crisis, one speaker suggested that Kenya's was only the lat-est in a wave of conflicts sweeping across Africa. This wave has tossed and overturned Zimbabwe, Congo, southern Sudan, Darfur, Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and northern Uganda. No one quite knows when, where or how this rag-ing tide of violent conflict will subside. In Kenya and else-where, the consequences have proved devastating for a con-tinent perpetually struggling to climb out of a debilitating downward spiral of poverty, hunger, disease and underde-velopment. When people see images of violence in one African country, they see all of Africa. Not many are informed enough to distinguish between the continent as a whole and the individual countries. The present crisis has far-reaching consequences for Africa. Here again the saying about two fighting elephants 15 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner.  Further reproduction prohibited without permission.holds true: the fighting in Kenya hurts all of Africa. The events of recent weeks have demonstrated how much Africa stands to lose from this crisis. The economies of neighboring countries, like Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, south-em Sudan and Congo, face serious challenges as a result of the postelection crisis. Besides, the tourist industry, which is Kenya's economic mainstay, is tottering on the brink, because many Western countries have advised their citizens to steer clear of Kenya. Local hotels are operating below capacity. Another important foreign exchange earner, the exportation of cut tropical flowers, faces an uncertain future, because most of the industry operates in the combustible Rift Valley region. Thousands of jobs have been lost, compounding an already precarious situation of unemployment. A Tall Order What is the way forward? That is the question on the lips of many Kenyans. "If you don't know where you are going, you should at least know where you are coming from," says an African proverb. The efforts at mediation have identified the need to redress historical injustices as part of the total peace package. This is a tall order for a country where self-seeking political operators have consistently swept the con-tentious issues of land tenure, ethnic bigotry, constitutional reforms, human rights abuse, corruption and economic misappropriation under the carpet for many decades since independence. As some have argued, this is perhaps an opportune moment to revisit these burning questions. But for this process to commence, a bold, credible and people-centered political leadership remains an absolute prerequi-site. The political arena, however, is overpopulated by char-latans and megalomaniacs who have lost the confidence of ordinary Kenyans. The disillusionment of Kenyans with the political class has revived the debate over the role of religion in society. First, churches have served as places of refuge for thousands of victims. And yet during the early days of conflict, the most horrific act of barbarity was committed inside a church, where scores of innocent Kenyans were burned to death as they huddled together for safety and comfort. Second, churches have served as gathering places for Kenyans seeking divine intervention. Millions continue to throng to places of worship to pray for peace so they can return to the land. Third, a tum to religion for solace and relief has highlighted the critical role of religious leaders. Many have issued passionate appeals for peace and volun-teered their services as mediators and facilitators. The complexity of the present crisis, though, reveals the precarious role of religion and religious leaders in Africa's politics. So emotionally powerful and polarizing are the issues that a perception of one's neutrality, even as a religious leader, is not guaranteed. A few high-profile religious lead-16 ers have been discredited on account of their perceived polit-ical biases-a charge leveled against them by their own eth-nically divided congregations. The ability of religious lead-ers to establish themselves as viable alternative agents and facilitators of peace in a time of crisis remains limited. This crisis proves that the church in Africa still lacks an effective mechanism of sociopolitical engagement. Even more unset-tling is the fact that the vocabulary of Christian social ethics has become suspect. The following is an example. As part of the myriad responses to the postelection cri-sis in Kenya, Hekima College launched a Lenten Peace Campaign. It was a simple initiative: to print and distribute postcards of St. Francis of Assisi's prayer for peace, just as Cardinal Francis Spellman of New York did during World War II. We planned to set up a booth at our school gate, as we have done for the school's Lenten campaign in past years, distributing peace postcards to passersby and urging them to take the words of the prayer to heart. Sadly, we were urged to revise our plans and adopt a more cautious and discreet approach. Under the present circumstances, the logic of political polarization in Kenya means that pro-tagonists use words like "peace" and "justice" to represent their mutually exclusive claims to political power: if you advocate "peace," then you are for the incumbent and the status quo; if you call for "justice," then you stand on the side of the opposition leader and support his cause. Either way, one is bound to draw the ire of one of the two ele-phants and their herds of arsonists, looters and murderers. Mediation and Dialogue Kenyans and the rest of Africa pin much hope on the ongo-ing mediation process led by the former secretary general of the United Nations, Kofi Annan. This skilled diplomat and negotiator achieved a remarkable feat by bringing the two elephants together: Kibaki and Odinga shook hands in pub-lic and were seen on national television sharing a cup of tea. But even that gesture did not seem to quell the violence; they had already ignited a fight in which ordinary Kenyans turned against one another out of frustration and despera-tion. As things stand, sincere mediation and frank dialogue represent Kenya's best chance for long-lasting solutions to perennial socioeconomic and political injustices. Eventually, out of political expediency, the two elephants will reach a compromise and agree on a power-sharing deal. Each one will have gotten what he wanted at the expense of hundreds of slain victims and thousands of internally dis-placed persons and refugees. Long after Kibaki and Odinga have made their peace with each other and achieved their political ambitions, Kenyans will continue to reel with pain and seethe with anger, traumatized by the fact that they voted for and lost out to selfish politicians. We face a long road to peace and reconciliation with truth and justice. U America March 10, 2008 

A Tale of Two Elephants: Overcoming the Postelection Crisis in Kenya

https://epublications.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1446&amp;context=theo_fac

A Tale of Two Elephants: Overcoming the Postelection Crisis in Kenya

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

epublications@Marquette