World | Other World Stories
'They're killing us because we voted for Kibaki'
Thousands of President Mwai Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe were fleeing the Rift Valley yesterday, running across the wastes of an ethnic battleground few Kenyans can believe is their country.
- Reuters
- Published: 01:31 January 3, 2008
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Eldoret, Kenya: Thousands of President Mwai Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe were fleeing the Rift Valley yesterday, running across the wastes of an ethnic battleground few Kenyans can believe is their country.
About 30 Kikuyus died when a mob torched a church near Eldoret on Tuesday, a slaughter evoking memories of ethnic violence usually associated with other states in Africa, not one of its most stable.
Thousands have taken shelter in churches and police stations across Eldoret town, the main city in the fertile Rift Valley about 300km north of Nairobi, prompting a humanitarian crisis as food and water run short.
"We've been sleeping outside of the airport. Can you imagine how cold they were?" asked children's home operator Patrick Kariuki, gesturing to 23 youths with him. "I never thought Kenya could be like this. They're killing us because we voted for Kibaki. Maybe the election was rigged. Why don't they go to court instead of inciting?"
Violence has erupted across opposition strongholds in the east African nation over the results of a disputed presidential election that saw Kibaki narrowly defeat challenger Raila Odinga amid accusations of rigging by both sides.
The death toll from four days of clashes has risen above 300 and the government has accused the opposition of "ethnic cleansing".
In the Rift Valley, gangs of youths have burned homes and crops while chasing away Kikuyus.
Scores of sharply dressed Kenyans with piles of luggage waited to get flights to Nairobi at Eldoret airport after youths blocked the main road to the capital city with tree trunks and rocks.
Police estimate that about 75,000 Kenyans have fled their homes. Some have crossed into neighbouring states - a reversal for a nation that for decades has accepted the victims of neighbouring conflicts.
In Eldoret, a Reuters reporter came across a roadblock manned by youths who fled when they saw police approaching. "They are asking 'Who are you?' in Kalenjin language. If you don't understand, you are removed and killed with a panga [machete]," said Jane Chepchirchir at the airport.
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