African history repeats itself just about every few years.

From the attack on Igbos in Nigeria in the 1960s, to the attack on Hutus by Tutsi in the 1990s, today, we have the attack on the Kikuyus of Kenya by other tribes long oppressed by their political, economic, and social power.

Apart from equitable distribution of wealth and political resources, what other solution do we have as a people to developmemnt beyond these primitive tendencies.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/07/world/africa/07kenya.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin


NAKURU, Kenya — Kenya’s privileged tribe is on the run.

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A woman walked past a razed shop Sunday near Eldoret, in western Kenya, where Kikuyus are greatly outnumbered.
Over the past few days, tens of thousands of Kikuyus, the tribe of Kenya’s president, have packed into heavily guarded buses to flee the western part of the country because of ethnic violence. On Sunday, endless convoys of buses — some with their windshields smashed by rocks — crawled across a landscape of scorched homes and empty farms.

It is nothing short of a mass exodus. The tribe that has dominated business and politics in Kenya since independence in 1963 is now being chased off its land by machete-wielding mobs made up of members of other tribes furious about the Dec. 27 election, which Kenya’s president, Mwai Kibaki, won under dubious circumstances. In some places, Kikuyus have been hunted down with bows and arrows.

The hospital in Nakuru, a town in the Rift Valley, is full of Kikuyu men with deep ax wounds, fingers cut off and slash marks across their faces.

“It was the Kalenjin,” said Samuel Mburu, a Kikuyu farmer with rows of stitches in his head, when asked who had nearly killed him. The Kalenjin are one of the bigger tribes in the Rift Valley, and they have fought fiercely with the Kikuyus before, mostly over land.

Many Kalenjin are unapologetic. Robert Tutuny, a Kalenjin farmer, stood on a hillside on Sunday with an iron bar in his hands and looked down at the charred remains of a Kikuyu village that was razed a week ago.

“We hate these people,” Mr. Tutuny said.

The election — and the unresolved battle about who won — has ignited old tensions in Kenya, which in a week and a half has gone from being one of Africa’s most promising countries to another equatorial trouble zone.

The political impasse continued Sunday, with Jendayi E. Frazer, the American assistant secretary of state for African affairs, meeting again with opposition leaders and government officials, but no resolution was in sight.

The heavy fighting that claimed more than 300 lives last week has subsided and many people have gone back to work in the capital, Nairobi. There, people from different tribes live side by side and often work in the same office. They are aware of ethnic differences and sometimes joke about them, but it usually does not go further than that.

But out here — where little towns rise from the veld like mirages and where there is so much wide-open space it seems incongruous to fight over land — these differences matter. A tribal war is shaping up between the Kalenjin, who mostly support Kenya’s opposition leaders, and the Kikuyus, who voted heavily — up to 98 percent in some areas — for the president.

Tens of thousands of Kikuyus are camped out at police stations and churches for protection, waiting for buses guarded by military escorts to evacuate them to the central highlands, the traditional Kikuyu homeland. There, amid the lush tea fields and rolling green hills, they are safe because almost everyone who lives in the highlands is Kikuyu.

Ethnic conflict is now threatening the decades of stability that has set Kenya apart from so many of its neighbors, like Congo, Rwanda, Somalia and Sudan. But Kenya has struggled with ethnic violence before. Its rare bursts usually come around election time.

“You have to understand that these issues are much deeper than ethnic,” said Maina Kiai, chairman of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights.

“They are political,” he said, and “they go back to land.”

The last time the Rift Valley was this violent was in 1992, another election year in Kenya and a time of turbulent transition between dictatorship and democracy. Kalenjin militias, stirred up by politicians who told them that the valley was Kalenjin ancestral land, massacred hundreds of Kikuyus in a bid to steal their farms.

Since then, Mr. Kiai said, “Emotions have been festering, resentments have been building and we sat around pretending ethnicity didn’t exist.”

Kenya has more than 40 tribes, but the Kikuyus have almost always been on top. They run shops, restaurants, banks and factories across the country. One reason Mr. Kibaki has engendered so much resentment from other tribes is because many of the top officials in his government — including the ministers of defense, justice, finance and internal security — are Kikuyus.

The Kikuyus are the biggest tribe in Kenya but far from a majority, at 22 percent of the population. The Kalenjins make up about 12 percent.

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I hope we all learn from this come 2011

you know what? many will quickly say its the fault of  draft men, who brought tribes together willy nilly, or should i say the British who in their colonization of most of Africa carelessly brought ethnic groups who lived separately together. Well yes it was a recipe for disaster, but. now a big  BUT. why can't we see that we only do our continent more harm by trying to fracture these states through ethnic cleansing? when for so long we have lived together? thesame was the case during the Biafran war. Why can't we use our God given brains to see that though our colonial Muppet's cocked up big time, we can carry on and build on that cock up and make healthy nations.why can't we see beyond bungling politicans who come with their greed filled propaganda to cause disenfranchisement?  why can't we see?
The Kenyans have fallen prey to a combination of propaganda and past cockup. Nigeria will follow suit , its a matter of WHEN!

Nigeria is not likely to follow suit. y? because most nigerians are still praying for tha "nigerian messiah" ti save them.
and the political class will never again offer you two major presidential candidates from different tribes in an election.

the ethnic groups always interacted by warfare or trade. countries such as Greece and italy were formed through warfare/diplomacy. deal with it. african countries are just struggling to find an identity after colonial rule.

bawomol:

the ethnic groups always interacted by warfare or trade. countries such as Greece and italy were formed through warfare/diplomacy. deal with it. african countries are just struggling to find an identity after colonial rule.

hi there
struggling to find their identity you say, but is there really a point anymore? who is the enemy now? the white man left ages ago , why can we live and let live and just move on. All that separates is languages, now that is nothing, why can't people just let things be. this struggle as you put it is proving to be a costly one and a huge embarrassment on us all as Africans. You think the past colonial muppets give two hoots if we are tutsis, hutus, Kikuyus, Ibos or Hausa? Like i said the struggle should have gone when the mupetts left Africa not . nation building should forge ahead. i dream to see a united state of Africa, now that will give the world something to be scared of, forget osama. Lets face one truth here if there is nothing to be gained the internation community will not intervene, go ask Rowandans

quinofhart:

you know what? many will quickly say its the fault of draft men, who brought tribes together willy nilly, or should i say the British who in their colonization of most of Africa carelessly brought ethnic groups who lived separately together. Well yes it was a recipe for disaster, but. now a big BUT. why can't we see that we only do our continent more harm by trying to fracture these states through ethnic cleansing? when for so long we have lived together? thesame was the case during the Biafran war. Why can't we use our God given brains to see that though our colonial Muppet's cocked up big time, we can carry on and build on that cock up and make healthy nations.why can't we see beyond bungling politicans who come with their greed filled propaganda to cause disenfranchisement? why can't we see?
The Kenyans have fallen prey to a combination of propaganda and past cockup. Nigeria will follow suit , its a matter of WHEN!

A man/woman who is hungry does not need brains
He/she needs food
And where is the food coming from?
From the crumbs and manipulations of the politicians

oldie:

A man/woman who is hungry does not need brains
He/she needs food
And where is the food coming from?
From the crumbs and manipulations of the politicians

I say give me brains to be able to find store houses bursting with food, not crumbles from jaded politicans thank you very much. the sooner we stop settling for crumbs the sooner we quench the hunger in our bodies and spirit.

oldie:

A man/woman who is hungry does not need brains
He/she needs food
And where is the food coming from?
From the crumbs and manipulations of the politicians

that is correct

quinofhart:

I say give me brains to be able to find store houses bursting with food, not crumbles from jaded politicans thank you very much. the sooner we stop settling for crumbs the sooner we quench the hunger in our bodies and spirit.

that is also correct

quinofhart:

I say give me brains to be able to find store houses bursting with food, not crumbles from jaded politicans thank you very much. the sooner we stop settling for crumbs the sooner we quench the hunger in our bodies and spirit.

Nothing is as invigorating and energizing as meeting a sister with brains and perspective, I appreciate your points.

hi there
struggling to find their identity you say, but is there really a point anymore? who is the enemy now? the white man left ages ago , why can we live and let live and just move on. All that separates is languages, now that is nothing, why can't people just let things be. this struggle as you put it is proving to be a costly one and a huge embarrassment on us all as Africans. You think the past colonial muppets give two hoots if we are tutsis, hutus, Kikuyus, Ibos or Hausa? Like i said the struggle should have gone when the mupetts left Africa not . nation building should forge ahead. i dream to see a united state of Africa, now that will give the world something to be scared of, forget osama. Lets face one truth here if there is nothing to be gained the internation community will not intervene, go ask Rowandans

great points, but 40yrs is not ages ago. it takes time. do u think european countries didnt' go through civil wars 2. a few belgium and some folks from quebec still want to split till these days. 40yrs is tiny in terms of history. we'll see if african countries are failed states 100yr's from now.

The magnitude of tribal violence in Africa dwarfs whatever you have in Belgium and Quebec, however, I agree that there used to be tribal violence in Europe, but that was such a long time ago.

bawomol:

great points, but 40yrs is not ages ago. it takes time. do u think european countries didnt' go through civil wars 2. a few belgium and some folks from quebec still want to split till these days. 40yrs is tiny in terms of history. we'll see if african countries are failed states 100yr's from now.

Hello,
yep it takes time i quite agree, well i guess i should be optimistic about the future. But i am too scared to be, just in case i am let down.

@naijaking
yes you right , similarities but by no way on thesame scale .

I just want one thing, and that is the so called leaders develop a conscience and we the people stop celebrating their inadequacies and life styles.
The situation in Kenya really saddens me big time. Will you guys agree that it is down to the people not being educated enough to see that they are like pawns in the sick games of politics? I am watching intensely at the news on the tragedies and i am yet to see one person from the African community who cares enough to tell the media and people that this is all propaganda. The BBC and its broadcast leave me sick, the African journals skate round the issue.

quinofhart:

I just want one thing, and that is the so called leaders develop a conscience and we the people stop celebrating their inadequacies and life styles.
The situation in Kenya really saddens me big time. Will you guys agree that it is down to the people not being educated enough to see that they are like pawns in the sick games of politics? I am watching intensely at the news on the tragedies and i am yet to see one person from the African community who cares enough to tell the media and people that this is all propaganda. The BBC and its broadcast leave me sick, the African journals skate round the issue.

Fire on baby sister.

very sad story indeed. The scariest part is dat there seem to be no change in sight. Too bad dat ignorance, arrogance, corruption, and selfishness triumphs overall in Africa. Traditional kings should be somehow eradicated in order for many parts of Africa to move forward and there should be a plan for a language solution.

The magnitude of tribal violence in Africa dwarfs whatever you have in Belgium and Quebec, however, I agree that there used to be tribal violence in Europe, but that was such a long time ago.

it wasn't a long time ago that serbs and croats were killing each other in yugoslavia. there's still the persecution of chechenyan's in Russia. change is on the horizon.

bawomol:

The magnitude of tribal violence in Africa dwarfs whatever you have in Belgium and Quebec, however, I agree that there used to be tribal violence in Europe, but that was such a long time ago.

it wasn't a long time ago that serbs and croats were killing each other in yugoslavia. there's still the persecution of chechenyan's in Russia. change is on the horizon.

Serbs and Croats are probably not as developed as many African societies, don't be fooled simply because they are white.

Anyway, ethnic cleansing is not an art we need to copy or continue in Africa.

Do I need to state the reasons why ethnic cleansing political fraternicide is evil?

Serbs and Croats are probably not as developed as many African societies, don't be fooled simply because they are white.

i think it would be an insult to claim the slavs weren't developed. ethnic albanians were influences by advances during the muslim renanissance. development isn't a criteria for ethnic cleansing. ethnic cleansing is bad but it isn't an african problem alone. we have to stop it on the continent but let's stop making it likes blacks are violent folks

bawomol:

Serbs and Croats are probably not as developed as many African societies, don't be fooled simply because they are white.

i think it would be an insult to claim the slavs weren't developed. ethnic albanians were influences by advances during the muslim renanissance. development isn't a criteria for ethnic cleansing. ethnic cleansing is bad but it isn't an african problem alone. we have to stop it on the continent but let's stop making it likes blacks are violent folks

Development may not be a criteria for prevention of ethnic cleansing, but we know that poverty, lack of opportunity and information, etc are the basis for ethnic cleansing. Given the high level of poverty, lack of opportunity in the old nation of Tito, I wander why we have to split hair about slavik nations instead of Africa.

I regret ethnic cleansing in other parts of the World, but my primary concern is Africa, Africa, and Africa.

Marginalization is what is killing African Nations. How how can one tribe claim monopoly over a country's resources?

same thing is happening in Nigeria right now. When the yorubas were producing kola or what ever it's called, Awolowo made sure that funds to that population was based on what was being produced, hence the free education that catapulted the yorubas. when oil was discovered the same guy campaigned against the same format. Oil became a national product with money going to the yorubas still with an addition of the hausas.

Now tell me why there shouldn't be blood shed in nigeria? The same thing is happening in Kenya.

Political instability and corrupt economic system where the so-called winner 'takes all' is obviously a factor in inter-tribal fight all over the World, especially in Africa.

The Nigerian system, the 1978 land use decree, and the lop-sided developmental patterns are indicators that we are not on the right path.

you guys don't get the underlying point. humans are naturally competitive. things like ethnic cleaning would always pop up from the time to time. the question should be how to improve the security situation of african countries. and stop waiting on the UN to save ur asses. why can't the AU or groups like ECOMOG be more useful.

bawomol:

you guys don't get the underlying point. humans are naturally competitive. things like ethnic cleaning would always pop up from the time to time. the question should be how to improve the security situation of african countries. and stop waiting on the UN to save your asses. why can't the AU or groups like ECOMOG be more useful.

I think you don't understand the point, given the natural human tendency to be competitive does not mean being lawless. Having an effective security organization and safe environment is just a small part of an effective political situation.

If we have national governments bending the rules for the benefit of one tribe, and to the detriment of the other tribes, then the natural tendency is for the long oppressed tribe to rise up one day, and take the law into their own hands.

If you wait till tribal riots start, then you have waited too long. The solution should have been proferred long before trouble burst into the open.

Calling UN, AU, or ECOMOG is not the solution.

short term solution-enhancing security
long term solution- creating stable governments.

u can't reach a political solution while under ruins. national unity governments don't get created withing a day.

bawomol:

short term solution-enhancing security
long term solution- creating stable governments.
u can't reach a political solution while under ruins. national unity governments don't get created withing a day.

The short and long term solution is restructuring the political equation of Africa.

The short and long term solution is restructuring the political equation of Africa.

that involves security. u think people are thinking about a fucking election if someone is chasing them with an AK-47.

bawomol:

The short and long term solution is restructuring the political equation of Africa.

that involves security. u think people are thinking about a fucking election if someone is chasing them with an AK-47.

Once again, you confuse election with a stable political equation. A good political equation? Think about the revenue sharing formular in naija: from every perspective it is designed for the benefit of ruling elite.

Most of the money derived from oil is concentrated at the federal level, and the federal level is controlled by a clique from the north. The winner of naija elections takes direct charge of virtually all of the nations revenues, withe exclusion of the loosers. Winner-takes-all.

A balanced and fair political equation would begin with restructuring many of this country's unfair and unbalanced common sense laws.

If you wait till a fucking election, you have waited too late.

Marginalization is what is killing African Nations. How how can one tribe claim monopoly over a country's resources?

same thing is happening in Nigeria right now. When the yorubas were producing kola or what ever it's called, Awolowo made sure that funds to that population was based on what was being produced, hence the free education that catapulted the yorubas. when oil was discovered the same guy campaigned against the same format. Oil became a national product with money going to the yorubas still with an addition of the hausas.

Now tell me why there shouldn't be blood shed in nigeria? The same thing is happening in Kenya.

You are so wrong on that one; Kenya economy does not depend on mineral resources. As a matter of fact Kenya lacks natural resources, agriculture and tourism play a major factor. That said, the two towns torn down are Kisumu and Eldoret in Kenya. Kikuyus being the hard working people they are moved there and started industries, banks supermarkets stores name it. This are people who have taken loans, taken risk and i don't think they are oppressing anybody by doing that. Granted majority of the media outlets, banks, hotels, businesses and industries are owned by Kikuyus. But the Kenya government does not stop anybody owning anything it is a free capitalist country. What i see is a case of African Jealousy; where as Africans we don't like seeing our neighbors or other Africans prosper.

Most of the money derived from oil is concentrated at the federal level, and the federal level is controlled by a clique from the north. The winner of naija elections takes direct charge of virtually all of the nations revenues, withe exclusion of the loosers. Winner-takes-all.

so what do u want, do u want a decentralized government with provinces such as say a canada?? the federal government system is fine with me until all states can create considerable revenue on their own.


A balanced and fair political equation would begin with restructuring many of this country's unfair and unbalanced common sense laws.


and how are u going to do that? by electing people with "common sense" in. u are in real trouble if u can't SECURE ur citizens while they are voting or after an election.

There are different trends that weave around the kenyan situation some of which are human, and some are perculiarly african.

On one hand is the 'animal called man' who is naturaly competitive, divisive and perpetuates stereotypes. This problem has manifested itself in different parts of the world from the nazi holocust to the problems in former yugoslavia. Sometimes the violence that erupts in these areas as in kenya help put the problems in perspective.

On the other hand is the problem of crude and fraudulent elections in africa. When politicians cannot win fair elections in africa they resort to ethnic canopies.

Finally there's the problem of poor federal structures in several african countries that make the presidents too powerful and their apointments charged with ethnic interpretations. The same thing happens in nigeria.

Ultimately, as african countries begin to have visionary leaders who spread oportunities and promote education, africans would begin to handle their ethnic differences more maturely.
We talk of a united state of africa, but is it not better a bit apart - federally - while working together - unitedly?