Tuesday 29 January 2008

Maina Kiai interview with Jon Snow on the police approach in Kenya

I watched Maina Kiai the chairman of the Kenya National Commission of Human Rights on Channel 4 news.

Jon Snow asked Maina Kiai whether he thought the police approach was evenhanded in this crisis.

Maina's response was that the police were not evenhanded, and do not follow common orders. He pointed out that



  1. In Kisumu police fire at the crowds, and we know they used live bullets in most cases.


  2. In Eldoret the police were firing in the air, when civilians were burned.


  3. However in Naivasha we witness the police negotiating with civilians.

Maina Kiai was then asked by Jon Snow whether he thought we were heading towards a Rwanda scenario. Maina felt that this was not an appropriate comparison, however he felt that there were several routes which Kenya could go down



  1. Zimbabwe style, where the state dominates, and we live in fear under a dictator.


  2. Ivory coast style, where the country is broken up, and we have internecine wars.

The news report implied that if the army were to take over in Kenya, that it would be fractured; as there would be local armed groups with local sympathies.


What route do you think Kenya will go down?

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