On December 31, after results were announced for an election widely condemned as fraudulent, Kenya, a country long known as a beacon of peace and prosperity in a region of war and lawlessness, witnessed a heretofore unseen level of tribal bloodshed and ethnic cleansing in which an estimated 1,500 people were killed. After several intense days of widespread clashes, revenge killings and mayhem,...
more »

On December 31, after results were announced for an election widely condemned as fraudulent, Kenya, a country long known as a beacon of peace and prosperity in a region of war and lawlessness, witnessed a heretofore unseen level of tribal bloodshed and ethnic cleansing in which an estimated 1,500 people were killed. After several intense days of widespread clashes, revenge killings and mayhem, nearly 1 million Kenyans were forced to flee to their ancestral homelands or to camps for the displaced. In recent weeks the country has calmed slightly; while Kofi Annan and Kenya's political big-men negotiated a settlement Kenyans held their breath with hope. Now as a political solution has been agreed upon the country has released a collective sigh of the slightest relief, for as Mr. Annan said when announcing the power-sharing agreement "the journey is far from over. Let it begin now."
« less