Kenya not ready for poll, Annan team told
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http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/author/judie-kaberia12352/>
JUDIE KABERIA on January 18, 2012
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 18 - A consultancy firm that monitors Kenya's
reconciliation progress following the deadly 2008 post election violence now
says the country is not ready for general elections.
In a report to the Kofi Annan-led mediation panel of Eminent African
Personalities, South Consulting notes that new electoral boundaries are yet
to be demarcated as the clock ticks towards another poll in Kenya.
The report further questions the possibility of rolling out civic education
in time to ensure Kenyans understand the new electoral process.
"Uncertainty remained on key constitutional issues, including provisions on
gender balance and the delimitation of constituency boundaries, the absence
of comprehensive civic and voter education and the lack of
institutionalization of political parties to date," it indicated.
According to the report, it is important for Kenya to deal with the post
election violence saying that most people were interested in justice, citing
a poll where 64 percent are in support of the International Criminal Court
(ICC) process.
"Public support for the ICC remains high, although lack of consensus in
government about how to respond to the ICC investigation and whether to
punish or grant amnesty to middle and lower-level perpetrators of the
post-election violence sent mixed signals about dealing with impunity," the
South Consulting report says.
The panel of former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan received and reviewed
the report which further recommends justice for the victims and also ensure
those responsible for the crimes committed face the law. It explains that it
will not only cement peace in the country but also be a crucial point in
addressing impunity.
The team further called for political support to the Truth, Justice and
Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) and National Cohesion and Integration
Commission (NCIC) to ensure there is peace and healing ahead of the general
elections.
The mediators also discussed concerns that peace efforts did not enjoy
stable support to ensure the country would reconcile differences linked to
the 2008 post election violence.
"Reconciliation and social harmony in areas most affected by the
post-election violence remained fragile and that the lack of political
support for peace and reconciliation efforts by the government and
non-governmental organisations had created a climate of silence and
suspicion," the report read in part.
It was however noted that the constitution implementation process was on
track but pointed at delays in production of legislations which was likely
to lead to rushed enactment of laws without giving the public an opportunity
to scrutinise them.
The report also showed there was need for fast tracking and financing
critical Bills on devolution to ensure county governments are set up as
stipulated in the Constitution.
After discussing the report, the Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation
(KNDR) team urged the government to ensure its recommendations are fully
implemented. They agreed they will meet again in April to continue
discussions with their agenda on Kenya.
KNDR is a team of eminent personalities comprising Annan, former Tanzanian
President Benjamin Mkapa and Graca Machel, wife of former South African
President Nelson Mandela.
The team is remembered for having mediated talks that led President Mwai
Kibaki and PM Raila Odinga to form a coalition government, ending the
violence that led to the deaths of over 1,300 people and displacement of
more than 350,000 others.
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Received on Wed Jan 18 2012 - 09:50:13 EST
