Nairobi — The church has assured Kenyans that there is nothing wrong in stating their tribe on the census forms.

Protestant churches led by the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) said Israelites "were counted according to their families and also by tribe."

The Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA) has urged its members to follow the Israel example. Biblically, Israel is God's chosen tribe and their census was mainly done to determine how people could be organised into a military force to defend themselves against enemies.

The census was carried out on the orders of God, according to the Bible. Lobby groups have opposed the reference to tribe on the census forms, saying this would fan the ethnic animosity that is partly blamed for last year's post-election violence.

But the churches don't see anything wrong with the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics' compilation of tribal data. "The people of God participated in censuses when required to do so by God or the government of the day," said a statement signed by PCEA deputy secretary general, Rev Francis Njoroge.

The birth of Jesus, on whom the Christian faith is based, is said to have occurred in Bethlehem where his parents had gone to participate in a census ordered by the Romans who had conquered Israel.

Sparked debate

"It is in this light that the churches of Kenya have decided to support the census and appeal to members to provide truthful information to enumerators," said Rev Njoroge.

NCCK general secretary, Rev Peter Karanja, also wrote to member churches urging them to participate fully. The census is carried out every 10 years but this one, starting on the night of August 24, has sparked debate on the tribe question.

KNBS has said the question is optional and one can simply state that they are Kenyan. The Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (Supkem) yesterday also called for support for the census.

"We urge all Muslims to participate to ensure its success," Supkem said in a statement.