KENYA: Kenyan election rallies marred by violence as election fever hits high pitch

Record ID: 361040

  • Title: KENYA: Kenyan election rallies marred by violence as election fever hits high pitch
  • Date: 31st October 2007
  • Summary: (AD1) NAIROBI, KENYA (RECENT) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF ORANGE DEMOCRATIC MOVEMENT (ODM) PARTY SUPPORTERS ON A LORRY HOLDING UP A BANNER (2 SHOTS) MAASAI WOMEN AT THE RALLY ODM SUPPORTERS
  • Embargoed: 15th November 2007 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kenya
  • Country: Kenya
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA1IPZWGY3998AYNLX54ZTLK6CR
  • Story Text: Election rallies in Kenya are attracting huge crowds as Kenyan politicians start criss-crossign the country ahead of a December 27 general election. But they are also attracting violence as political tensions heat up.
    Kenya's main political parties took to the streets of the country's cities and rural areas over the weekend as they began drumming up support ahead of general elections set for December 27.
    Running ahead in early polls is veteran politician Raila Odinga, candidate of opposition party Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).
    He is advocating a form of federal government, known locally as Majimbo.
    But on Sunday, an election rally by Odinga turned violent when armed youths tried to prevent the rally from taking place. The rally was being held in Meru town, 180 kilometers (110 miles) from Kenya's capital Nairobi.
    Anti-riot police had to use tear gas to quell the violence and managed to arrest people they suspected of instigating the riot. A man was shot dead in the ensuing scuffle.
    Odinga 62, has been making a tour of Central and Eastern province which are largely considered Party of National Unity (PNU) turf.
    Announcing his re-election bid under a new coalition last month, Kibaki named the PNU as the political vehicle for his bid.

    "I have decided that I will seek re-election as president of the republic of Kenya, under an alliance that we have named the Party of National Unity," he told the nation.
    Kibaki, 75, has won support for introducing free primary education, increasing press freedom and freedom of speech, and reviving the battered economy he inherited at 2002 polls where he replaced long-time leader Daniel arap Moi.
    But Odinga accuses the president of failing to tackle tribalism and rampant corruption. And Kenyans grumble about persistent crime and shoddy roads.
    A new survey on Friday (October 26) confirmed Odinga's lead. The Steadman Group survey put Odinga at 50 percent compared with 39 percent for Kibaki. Two weeks ago, a Steadman survey gave Odinga 53 percent to Kibaki's 37 percent.
    A third candidate, Kalonzo Musyoka, held steady at 8 percent.
    Odinga, a wealthy former cabinet minister and political prisoner who projects himself as a champion of the poor, first overtook Kibaki in opinion polls in late September.
    The Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) has so far registered 14.2 million voters, of whom 6.7 million are women, in the nation of 36 million.
    More than 60 percent are aged under 40.
    Analysts say despite exhortations to the contrary, the election is shaping up along largely ethnic lines with some economic considerations thrown in.
    Kibaki commands the support of his Kikuyu tribe, Kenya's largest, whose heartland is the central highlands.
    Odinga has his western Luo tribe behind him, and has also won support from others resentful of Kikuyu prominence.
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