IT IS NOT A WAR
The international media, and friends here in denmark seems to have a very war-like imagination of what is going on in Kenya, most likely due to the medias continious reference to other african countries like Rwanda, Somalia and Ebony Coast.
So for the reference - Kenya is not becoming a new geniocide, nor is it in a state of civil war.
During the last week 300-400 people have died from the post election violence - compared to a full population of 30 million people. The Kikuyu tribe, which is the one most ethnic violence has been directed at, is approximately 22% of the population which is more than 5 mil people. The Luhya (14%) and Luo (13%), which from a purely tribal perspective has been some of the strongest opposition supporters, hold about 6 mil of the population, so the situations in which police have shot at protesters, can in no way be called geniocide either.
Kenya is a country on the rise - it has during the last five years had a gcp of more than 5 percent, and (according to nationmedia), lifted more than 2 mil out of poverty - thus the vote was not about who could save the country, but about who could make it grow the fastest. The situation in Kenya, is not a civil war agains an evil dictator. It is a display of frustration over a disputed poll that split the population in two - and it is a power game between two politicians, who are both unbendable focused on leading the country in the next five years - refering to the quote from a friend in my last post.
The sad thing about this situation, is that the politicians who vowed to take kenya to new heights, now seems bend on destroying it. Right now there is over 170.000 displaced people in Kenya, and unles a solution is found quickly that can make people live peacefully side by side, then this will be a huge problem in not only the months, but also the years to come - if a solution is found, however, most of these can go to their homes again, and life can, with quite a bit of rebuilding, continue.
But again, it is not a geniocide or a civil war - just an election and a bunch of politicians from different parties, gone very very wrong.
For voices of wisdom, please check the editorials of the two kenyan newspapers previously posted, and the statements of amongst others the Danish ambassador.
So for the reference - Kenya is not becoming a new geniocide, nor is it in a state of civil war.
During the last week 300-400 people have died from the post election violence - compared to a full population of 30 million people. The Kikuyu tribe, which is the one most ethnic violence has been directed at, is approximately 22% of the population which is more than 5 mil people. The Luhya (14%) and Luo (13%), which from a purely tribal perspective has been some of the strongest opposition supporters, hold about 6 mil of the population, so the situations in which police have shot at protesters, can in no way be called geniocide either.
Kenya is a country on the rise - it has during the last five years had a gcp of more than 5 percent, and (according to nationmedia), lifted more than 2 mil out of poverty - thus the vote was not about who could save the country, but about who could make it grow the fastest. The situation in Kenya, is not a civil war agains an evil dictator. It is a display of frustration over a disputed poll that split the population in two - and it is a power game between two politicians, who are both unbendable focused on leading the country in the next five years - refering to the quote from a friend in my last post.
The sad thing about this situation, is that the politicians who vowed to take kenya to new heights, now seems bend on destroying it. Right now there is over 170.000 displaced people in Kenya, and unles a solution is found quickly that can make people live peacefully side by side, then this will be a huge problem in not only the months, but also the years to come - if a solution is found, however, most of these can go to their homes again, and life can, with quite a bit of rebuilding, continue.
But again, it is not a geniocide or a civil war - just an election and a bunch of politicians from different parties, gone very very wrong.
For voices of wisdom, please check the editorials of the two kenyan newspapers previously posted, and the statements of amongst others the Danish ambassador.
posted by SmileyDane @ 9:36 AM
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