~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From
CNN...read it all
HERE.
MOLO, Kenya (CNN) -- Lying in a hospital bed in this rural hub of Kenya's Rift Valley, a man describes surviving two machete wounds to his head and multiple slashes to his hands. He says he was attacked by people who now live by the rules of tribalism.
Witnesses say attackers are living by the rules of tribalism, often using the machete to inflict punishment.
"They have to be stopped," he said. "It is the work of the devil."
Nearby, another machete-attack survivor, John Machana, said he thought he was a dead man when he was attacked.
"I was sure they would kill me," he said, nursing slashes to his backside and still lying in his bloodstained clothes.
"They told me the blood in Kenya now had to be pure and clean, and they accused me of being of mixed tribal blood."
Both men are among the hundreds of thousands of Kenyans victimized by a weeklong spate of violence that has left nearly 500 people dead after the nation's disputed presidential election. Witnesses and victims have said in some regions gangs of men are terrorizing people with machetes.
The Kenyan Red Cross says it is trying to meet the needs of more than a half-million affected Kenyans, including more than 250,000 people who have been driven from their homes. Thousands are escaping ethnic violence and, while they are lucky to leave with their lives, they now have little else.
Read the rest
HERE.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NAIROBI, Kenya (CNN) -- Kenya's president and opposition leader will meet to address vote-counting irregularities and the ensuing violence in which nearly 500 people have been killed, U.S. envoy Jendayi Frazer said on Monday.
African Union chairman John Kufuor will try to mediate between Kenya's warring factions.
Frazer, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, said the election was "rigged" and Kenyans had been "cheated" by their political leaders and institutions.
She told CNN she was able to get President Mwai Kibaki and bitter rival Raila Odinga to agree to talk under the mediation of the African Union's chairman by relaying the concerns of the Kenyan people.
Frazer said: "They both have to acknowledge certain key issues -- for instance that there were irregularities in the counting of the vote and that violence is not the answer to these problems.
"I think that both are prepared to move the country forward on an understanding of that basis."
Ghanaian President John Kufuor is expected to arrive in Kenya on Tuesday evening to mediate talks between the two, Frazer said, which has led Odinga's party to cancel a planned rally earlier that day.
Read it all HERE.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
from the
UPI Tutu in Kenya to broker peace
Published: Jan. 3, 2008 at 3:53 AM
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan. 3 (UPI) --
Archbishop Desmond Tutu arrived in Kenya Thursday to begin an attempt to restore calm to the African nation torn apart by post-election violence.
Tutu, a Nobel laureate heading up a delegation from the All Africa Conference of Churches, said he would meet with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odina of the Orange Democratic Movement, SABC News reported. After arriving in Nairobi, Tutu said the group had hopes of reaching an acceptable agreement to save the country and its people, the news service reported on its Web site.
An estimated 300 people have died in wanton violence across the country since the closely contested elections Dec. 27 in which Kibaki won re-election by a slim margin.
The Orange Democratic Movement reportedly was planning a demonstration at Uhuru Park in Nairobi. A large contingent of police and army soldiers had been deployed, SABC said.
I make no apology for talking and writing, in the UK, about a foreign leader. But expectations of him are so high and attention worldwide is glued to his every step as he reaches the end of his first month in office. He is the story of the moment. 
