Joseph Borawski, Friday February 10sth 2008, 4:26 AM, Global Social Protests Current Event
This week yet again we return to the developing story in Kenya where continued unrest throughout the country has thrown it into chaos following Decembers questionable election. The UN has sent John Holmes, its emergency relief coordinator to the region to take stock of some areas which have been labeled key flashpoints in the protests and violence. Optimistically the latest reports coming from the region seem to show that the UN envoy’s visit comes during times which look, for the first time since the start of the unrest, to be promising. Indeed, former UN head, Kofi Annan suggests that solutions in regards to the political issues may be found as early as next week. Though this unrest has been costly for the African nation, since its inception leaving roughly 1,000 people dead, and more than a quarter of a million displaced from homes and communities, business, infrastructure, trade and tourism have ground down during this time of volatility.
Reportedly the envoy, Mr. Holmes has come to see for him self the damage and displacement the dispute has caused within the region, and wishes to lend a hand to Mr. Annan in efforts of mediation between different tribal, ethnic and political groups. Most surprisingly to me perhaps is that despite all of the violence and displacement within the country, there are talks that President Muwai Kibaki’s party and the opposition are speaking about the possibility of an interim power sharing arrangement, though the exact details of this arrangement are still being ironed out, including its specific structure and the scope of how long such a programs time span might last. Check it out here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7236219.stm
No comments:
Post a Comment