Hussein Bogere, Emojong Osere, Andrew Bagala,& John A Emojong
30 January 2008
Kampala — AT LEAST four people died yesterday after mobs torched houses in a slum in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, following the killing of an opposition MP.
MP Mugabe Were, from Raila Odinga's opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), was gunned down by two unidentified men as he drove up to his gate in Nairobi after midnight yesterday.
Kenya police spokesman Eric Kiraithe was quoted by the Associated Press as saying; "We are treating it as a murder but we are not ruling out anything, including political motives. We are urging everyone to remain calm."
Were is the first leading politician to die amid the violence that has gripped Kenya since the disputed December 27 presidential poll. Were, who represented Nairobi's Embakasai district, won a seat in the December legislative election, which was held at the same time as the presidential vote.
President Kibaki condemned the killing, but urged Kenyans not to jump to conclusions about who had carried it out. Mr Odinga, however, pointed a finger at the government.
The violence has prompted the Uganda government to draw plans of evacuating its citizens caught-up in the mayhem there.
In Kampala, the state Minister for Regional Cooperation, Mr Isaac Musumba said the government directed Uganda's High Commission in Nairobi to assess the living conditions of Ugandans in Kenya and advise the government accordingly. "The report we are receiving is that the problem has spread all over [Kenya].
So we are assessing plans of whether to evacuate them [citizens] on Tuesday evening and I will have a final decision tomorrow [Wednesday]," Mr Musumba said on telephone yesterday.
The decision by the Uganda government was further corroborated by Mr James Mugumue, the foreign affairs permanent secretary who also added that if the situation deteriorates, "we shall get in touch with the Red Cross to evacuate the Ugandans. We have advised them to stay indoors and avoid gatherings".
Mr Musumba said initial reports from Kenya had indicated that Ugandans were "directly" in the line of fire. The Foreign Affairs ministry last week opened up two hotlines for Ugandans to call in case they find themselves in danger. But the number of Ugandans living in Kenya is still unknown.
The targeting of Ugandans by Kenyans started after Mr Odinga announced the presence of suspected Ugandan troops in the western town of Kisumu, accusing them of shooting opposition rioters.
However, the Ugandan government has since denied the allegations, with Foreign Affairs minister Sam Kuteesa threatening to resign if they are proven. Parts of the railway line to Uganda were plucked out of the ground by rioters.
Despite intervention from a host of high profile politicians, including as former UN Secretary General Koffi Anan, and President Yoweri Museveni, there seems to be no end in sight.
Ugandans attacked
A Kenyan policeman, who preferred anonymity because he is not authorised to talk to journalists, told Daily Monitor by telephone that two men in a Ugandan registered car were attacked at Luanda, a lower class estate in the outskirts of Kisumu. However, the two unidentified men managed to escape from the charging crowd which set ablaze a petrol station at which people had sought refuge.
Their car, it is reported, was towed away by police to an unknown destination. "Residents at Luanda told me that the two men were Ugandan businessmen who have been running a wholesale business in Kisumu town for three years," the officer said. At Kimaiti, about 20 kilometres from Malaba town, three Ugandans travelling in a saloon car were attacked by rowdy youth who had barricaded the Malaba-Bungoma road.
They stopped the car and demanded their identities. A source, who had audience with one of the rioters, told Daily Monitor that the two pleaded to be set free and had a thorough body search before the youth confiscated car keys from the driver.
They were, however, freed after one of the rioters who had set a bonfire in the road identified the driver as his tribe-mate from Mbale, Uganda. Bungoma is predominantly inhabited by the Bagisu, who occupy the eastern district of Mbale. Meanwhile, towns in the Rift Valley, where a number of Ugandans are reportedly living, are witnessing fresh inter-ethnic fighting.
Army helicopters fired at a mob of ethnic Kikuyus attacking Luo refugees who were trying to flee the town of Naivasha. They used tear-gas canisters and rubber bullets, causing the crowds to flee in panic. Police on the ground had been unable to control the mob, said to number thousands of people, which was looting and burning buildings in the town.
Members of President Mwai Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe have been fighting with Luos and Kalenjins who backed Mr Odinga in last month's election.
Annan starts mediation
But as the violence continued, members of the government and opposition began arriving yesterday at the County Hall in Nairobi for talks mediated by Mr Annan. Mr Annan opened the meeting,flanked by President Kibaki and Mr Odinga. Western nations have urged both sides - who appear far apart - to take the talks seriously or risk losing aid.
And while analysts have warned that a cycle of violence is emerging amid the political impasse, where the pattern of attacks is followed by reprisals, the daunting task that Mr Annan faces cannot be contested as large swathes of the country are beyond the control of security forces.
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