I must apologize for the lack of posts over the last 3 months. I hope to work on bringing African news stories to this blog, but if you read this, keep in mind that you don't have to visit here for a good news story, there are many links in the margin. -AL

Somalis refused entry to Kenya
02/01/2007 21:05 - (SA)



Mogadishu re-opens airports

Somali govt 'in control'

Kenya told to seal off border


Nairobi - Thousands of refugees fleeing recent fighting between the Ethiopia-backed Somali government and the now-vanquished Islamists were stranded on Tuesday at the border with Kenya after authorities refused them entry, said officials.

UN office for coordination for humanitarian affairs (Unocha) said: "About 4 000 Somalis are said to be in Dhobley along the Kenya-Somalia border, waiting, not yet able to cross."

Kenyan police said they would not allow the refugees into the country for security reasons.

"We will never allow them to cross over," said a top police commander in northeastern Kenya, adding: "If we allow them they will bring in security problems."

Kenya has reinforced its border security to prevent Islamists from crossing into the country, which already hosts about 160 000 refugees who fled fighting more than 15 years of unrest in Somalia.

Somalia lacks an effective government

Police said they are probing eight suspected Islamists fighters who tried to infiltrate into the country after they lost control of their last stronghold in Kismayo to an allied Somali-Ethiopian force.

Despite government claims that it has full control of southern and central Somalia, the Islamists, who have vowed to wage a guerrilla war, still pose a security threat in the impoverished nation of 10 million inhabitants.

The UN World Food Programme (WFO) said it had resumed normal operations in Somalia after a two-week disruption was caused by a land, air and sea ban imposed by the Somali government.

Somalia has lacked an effective government since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

Recurrent natural calamities have compounded misery for people in the country, where recent flooding affected about a million people.

News24.com (South Africa)

Kenya: Year in Review: When Kibaki Threw His Allies A Lifeline

The East African Standard (Nairobi)

December 27, 2006
Posted to the web December 28, 2006

Alex Ndegwa
Nairobi

As President Kibaki marked his 75th birthday last November 15, two of his trusted allies - Prof George Saitoti and Mr Kiraitu Murungi - had cause to toast other than the Head of State's birthday celebration.

The President coincidentally chose the day in which ideally one receives goodwill messages and presents from well-wishers to extend the spirit of the day to the two, by re-appointing them back to the Cabinet.

Kiraitu and Saitoti were reinstated exactly nine months after "stepping aside" on February 14, following the controversy sparked by revelations of the Anglo Leasing scandal and the release of the Goldenberg report.

It is believed that the two were brought back into the fold amid fears that President Kibaki was running short of experienced, credible and vocal allies to counter the Opposition offensive.

Facing a credibility problem

Insiders pointed out that the reliable Internal Security minister, Mr John Michuki, was facing a credibility problem after numerous gaffes including the raid on The Standard.

Another member of the old guard, Livestock minister, Mr Joseph Munyao, appeared too embroiled in keeping the Democratic Party, a party founded by Kibaki, afloat.

Apparently, the Kibaki handlers appeared not too keen to place much in the hands of Defence minister, Mr Njenga Karume, who had been head hunted from Kanu, while the other old guard - Co-operative minister, Mr Njeru Ndwiga, seemed to have lately abandoned his combative nature.

Needless to say, the nascent Narc-Kenya's "young turks" were deemed too naÔve and over-enthusiastic to the comfort of the President's handlers.

In fact, the poaching of members of the Opposition to craft the so-called Government of National Unity was aimed at cushioning the regime from the hostile opposition, especially from Parliament.

'The scandal that never was'

The appointment of Kanu MPs to Government positions is a thorny issue, with the Official Opposition party having gone to court to challenge it.

The Opposition has also called for the law to be amended to compel the President to consult party leaders before appointing their MPs to the Government.

Of the three key Cabinet ministers shunted aside over the graft allegations, only Mr David Mwiraria, who held the Finance portfolio, remained on the backbenches.

Before the scandal claimed his scalp, Kiraitu had memorably dismissed the Anglo Leasing as "the scandal that never was."

But he met his waterloo when former anti-corruption Czar Mr John Githongo's alleged recordings of the former Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister urging him to go slow on Anglo Leasing investigation were aired on BBC television and replayed on local TV stations.

Series of political blunders

It did not help his cause either that he was given to a series of political blunders, particularly due to his unguarded talk, which won him a couple of enemies.

When the heat became too much to bear, for him and, by extension, the Kibaki administration, a besieged Kiraitu threw in the towel and tendered his resignation though still protesting his innocence.

"For a man does not know his time: like a fish in a cruel net, like birds in a snare; so the sons of men are snared in an evil time, when it falls suddenly upon them," he said, quoting the Bible while stepping aside.

But he warned that his resignation was by no means an end to his political career. Kiraitu walked back to his office barely a month after the Njuri Ncheke - the revered Ameru council of elders - paid a courtesy call on President Kibaki.

As for Saitoti, he probably lived up to his billing because the former Vice President has a knack for rising from the ashes like the proverbial phoenix.

Saitoti's ship has sailed in rough waters

Just when his career seemed to have hit the brickwall again when he was forced to resign for being implicated in the Goldenberg Affair by the Justice Samuel Bosire Commission, he bounced back to the Cabinet thanks to the clearance by the constitutional court.

Describing the moment that he was unshackled from the scam's chain by the courts, the professor paraded his wife and gave a passionate speech, saying "this is my happiest day in the last 16 years."

In fact, since joining politics in 1983, Saitoti's ship has sailed in rough waters, but he has somehow managed to stay afloat.

Perhaps his lowest moment was during the infamous Kanu elections at Kasarani in 2002 when former President Moi anointed Mr Uhuru Kenyatta as his preferred heir, skipping Saitoti who was then the vice-president.

Then he gave his most memorable speech to date, saying: "There come (sic) a time when the nation is more important than the individual."

With Narc in power, Saitoti was named the Minister for Education and won the hearts of many parents with the introduction of the free primary education programme.

Despite this credit, the Goldenberg ghost saw his removal from the Cabinet and many had began writing his political obituary before Kibaki threw him another lifeline.

Kenya: War Greatly Alarming

The Nation (Nairobi)

December 27, 2006
Posted to the web December 27, 2006

Nairobi

All-out war is is about to erupt in the Horn of Africa following Ethiopia's invasion of Somalia early this week.

Thousands of people are reported to have fled their homes to escape the fighting,

The IUC, who emerged in June to capture huge swathes of southern Somalia, are an assemblage of former warlords led by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys -a radical on both UN and US terrorism lists.

But support for the IUC is not in short supply, which is why a majority of Somali youths have joined it.

While it would be silly to reduce the conflict to a mere contest between the "Islamist" Somalia and "Christian" Ethiopia, this religious appendage is appealing to both sides.

What the world is witnessing is a resurrection of old tensions between Ethiopia and Somalia, now fanned by proxies.

On the face of it, Eritrea, which has some unfinished business with Ethiopia over a disputed border that climaxed with bruising battles between 1998 and 2000, have allied themselves with the IUC.

Then there are the Arab states that have expressed a wish to spread Islam in the Horn and beyond, and who have supported the IUC cause.

But the lifting of the arms embargo on Somalia places the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the African Union and the United Nations in a precarious position as the Somali crisis threatens to escalate into a regional conflict

The East African Standard (Nairobi)

OPINION
December 24, 2006
Posted to the web December 26, 2006

Catxon Muune
Nairobi

Transport minister, Mr Chirau Ali Mwakwere, recently launched the Christmas Season Road Safety Campaign.

It marked a significant milestone in public transport reforms and road safety campaigns. There was a notable presence at the well-attended launch. Unlike previous ones, this year's campaign is more action-oriented in distributing posters and educating drivers at traffic lights.

Accidents and deaths dramatically increase during the Christmas holidays. Excessive consumption of alcohol and high traffic of buses on longer trips create conditions that turn Christmas into an accident season.

The culture of over-indulgence and the permissive mood pervading the merry-making singles out drinking and driving as the lethal killers on highways during the festivities. This problem affects private car owners more than public ones, but accidents involving public service attract greater media attention because they kill more people.

The campaign should target specific problems that make Christmas holidays a high-accident season. Tackling the problems would stabilise fares, make passengers relaxed, have fewer accidents and drunk drivers and less disorder at matatu stages.

Thousands of holiday makers travel to the countryside at this time of the year. Crowds of people and vehicles turn Machakos "airport", a beehive of congestion, confusion and despair. Travellers get exhausted from long hours of waiting in the scorching sun or are drenched wet in the rain. Consequently, the happy Christmas spirit and mood are dampened.

Chaos erupt when an approaching bus is spotted. Travellers push and shove in a violent scramble for seats. The old and the disabled stand no chance, and are the last at the bus stop, having spent nights out. Travellers start streaming into Machakos "airport" and other stages from as early as 5am, endangering their security.

In the confusion, travellers are separated from their children, they lose money and luggage to conmen, fraudsters, pickpockets and petty thieves who prey on the mayhem. Some are hurt as they get into the bus through the windows. Fares increase by more than 100 per cent, depriving travellers of dignity and honour, and impoverishing many.

Travellers dread the thought of having to look for transport during the Christmas season. But they have little choice and brace themselves for the ordeal, an annual ritual that casts gloom and sorrow over an otherwise merry season.

But there are more problems in store for the travellers. They have to contend with crackdowns police and the Transport Licensing Board (TLB) mount on the roads. Passengers are inconvenienced and many times they are stranded when the vehicles are found wanting. This annual ordeal need not be so.

The safety campaign should have specific responses to the problems. The popular comedians of television programme, Vitimbi, should be hired to provide entertainment for travellers and to sensitise matatu operators, especially drivers and conductors, on the dangers of drink driving. Using their communication skills, the comedians can deliver messages for specific problems. This should be done three days preceding Christmas - December 22, 23 and 24.

Another solution is to divert all western Kenya-bound buses to Nairobi's Globe Cinema roundabout to decongest Machakos "airport".

Vehicle controllers should be hired for the season to help control crowds, queuing, security and coordinate movement, parking and loading of luggage and goods.

TLB should issue temporary licences to buses and other vehicles to ease transport problems. This would increase competition, improve services and stabilise fares. Vetting of public transport vehicles seeking temporary licenses should also be done to ensure that they are roadworthy. There is need to change behaviour, mannerisms and attitude of public transport operators to alcohol and driving.

The writer is the principal officer Muune Associates and lead consultant, Public Transport Reforms Programme

Kenya: 'Greener Pastures' Nurses Still Face Firing Squad

The Nation (Nairobi)

OPINION
December 23, 2006
Posted to the web December 23, 2006

Peter Mwaura
Nairobi

Imagine, if you will, five Kenyan nurses and one doctor in search of greener pastures. In March 1998 they went to Libya to work at the Al Fateh hospital in Benghazi, Libya's second city.

Libya is a country that imports a great deal of foreign labour, both unskilled and professional. Libya is also a country that its leader, Muammar Gaddafi, once proclaimed to be HIV-free.

At the end of the year 426 children at the hospital were found to be infected with HIV, a tragedy that caused a great deal of public anger. The foreign medical workers were charged of deliberately infecting the children.

After a protracted trial, they were found guilty in May 2004 and sentenced to die by firing squad. But Libya's Supreme Court scrapped the death sentences due to "procedural flaws" and ordered a retrial. On Tuesday this week they were again found guilty.

The Kenyan scenario must stop at this point. If the health workers had been Kenyans, the world would have heard very little about them and the international furore they are causing would be well-nigh impossible. Kenya counts little in international diplomacy.

The nurses are actually Bulgarians, the doctor a Palestininan who, because he is stateless, has been piggybacking on the Bulgarian case. In world terms, Bulgaria is not a diplomatic heavyweight but she is waiting in the wings to join the European Union and has the weight of the European Union behind it. Bulgaria has also received the support of the United States.

In addition, scientists and human rights groups have rallied on the side of the medical workers, accusing Libya of trumping up the charges to cover up for poor hygiene conditions at its hospitals.

President Gaddafi, on his part, has let the Libyan justice system run its course, figuratively telling the West that the Libyan Government does hot interfere with the independence of its courts any more than the Western governments interfere with their own courts.

The convicted health workers have maintained their innocence, claiming they were tortured to confess the crime. Luc Montagnier, the French virologist credited with discovering the HIV virus in 1983 and Italian professor Vitorio Colizzi, an Aids researcher, carried out a genetic analysis of viruses from the infected children and concluded that many of them were infected long before the nurses' arrival in Libya.

But the Libyan court threw out the report, arguing that investigation by Libyan doctors had reached the opposite conclusion.

The case has stoked xenophobia and thirst for revenge. Families of the infected children have demonstrated at every court session. President Gaddafi has found himself under siege, both by his own people and the West. It was easier for him, however, to allow the courts to run their course than admit the infection was an accidental tragedy, as the Western scientists have maintained. It was decidely easier for Libya to pursue the "conspiracy theory" than admit the "scientific evidence" provided by Western scientists.

President Gaddafi is also probably not averse to exploiting the case to score international propaganda points, particularly with regard to the way the West ruthlessly pursued Libya over the bombing of the Pan Am plane over the Scottish village of Lockerbie in 1988 in which 270 victims died and Libya was forced to pay whopping compensation for the families of the victims.

This, in fact, is a case where money can buy justice, just like in the Lockerbie case. President Gaddafi did offer to free the medical workers in return for compensation to the families of the infected children.

Lawyers of the families of the infected children asked for about $10 million for each child. With more than 400 children involved, the total compensation demanded amounts to over $4 billion, a figure that mirrors the amount paid by Libya to the families of the victims of the Pan-Am plane bombing.

This, apparently, is the sticking point. Bulgaria, supported by the European Union and America, is opposed to paying "blood money" because that will imply guilt.

But is willing to provide "humanitarian assistance" to the Aids victims. If sufficient, the humanitarian assistance might free President Gaddafi from domestic politics so he can pardon the nurses.

I found this perspective interesting, but sad. It's probably true about Kenya mattering little in international political affairs. Sad.

Kenya: Texas Keen to Do Business With Nation

The Nation (Nairobi)

December 22, 2006
Posted to the web December 22, 2006

Nation Reporter
Nairobi

The American State of Texas has expressed interest in doing business with Kenya.

The Mayor of Dallas, Ms Laura Miller and Mayor Pro Tem Don Hill told Kenyan ambassador to the US Mr Peter Ogego that Texas had "deep interest to develop bilateral trade and investment cooperation with Kenya."

Mr Ogego, who gave a keynote address at a Luncheon organised by the African Chamber of Commerce, interested the business community in Dallas to invest in various sectors of the Kenya economy and take advantage of the opportunities presented by the expansion of the East Africa Community.

The event was attended by among others, Mr Ross Perot Jr. a multi billionaire investor in Dallas, who earlier held discussions with the ambassador in his office.

The ambassador also made a follow up meeting with Ross Perot Sr. a one time presidential candidate in the United States and explored possibilities of his family investing in Information Technology and hotel industry in Kenya.

During the event, Mr Ogego was presented with a special key for the city of Dallas by Mr Don Hill.

In October 2006, Mr Hill led a delegation of businesspeople from Dallas and members of the African chamber of Commerce D/FW on a business exploration mission to Kenya.

The delegation held meetings with the Minister for Trade, Dr Mukhisa Kituyi and Nairobi Mayor Dick Wathika and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU).

During his visit to Texas, the ambassador also met with the Secretary of the State Mr. Roger Williams.

The secretary welcomed efforts by the ambassador to promote business between Kenya and the State of Texas and assured him of his support.

The two agreed that there was need for an exchange of trade missions to the two countries. They discussed the possibility of Mr. Rogers bringing some Texans to Kenya to explore business opportunities especially in the area of windmill energy.

Mr Ogego was accompanied by the Deputy Chief of Mission, Mrs. Lily Sambu, First Counsellor, Mr James Wakiaga, Commercial Attaché, Mrs. Lina Ochieng and the Immigration Attaché, Ms Felicina Ndwiga.

The mission staff organised a successful two-day session to renew passports for Kenyan citizens in Dallas and outlying areas.

My opinion? Windmill energy my ASS, they want to see if Kenya's got oil. The End.