Children butchered as Kenya erupts

BODIES piled up in Nakuru mortuary yesterday. The dead, including children, were scarred by machete blows, spear thrusts and arrow shots.

All had been burned, their limbs and digits curled up and faces rigid, frozen in horror.

At least 27 people have been killed in the past two days in clashes between rival ethnic gangs in Nakuru, a lakeside town in a breathtaking stretch of Kenya's Rift Valley that was once a popular tourist destination.

Until Friday, it had escaped the weeks of violence that have seen at least 700 people killed in the east African country and 250,000 forced from their homes since a disputed December 27 election returned President Mwai Kibaki to power.

The chaos which erupted after the results were announced centred on the capital Nairobi and several other major cities.

Now the violence has spread. Rural areas initially untouched by the inter-ethnic disputes are caught up in the cycle of tit-for-tat killings, maimings and rapes.

Former UN leader Kofi Annan spent last week visiting affected areas and trying to negotiate a settlement. Yesterday he described the abuses he witnessed as "gross and systematic".

Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga, whose election defeat last month plunged the country into the current crisis, met last week for the first time since the violence started.

Their hour-long talk had been arranged by Annan and he described it as "a very encouraging development".

But despite this move, observers said any potential settlement was still some way off, with some fearing the trouble could escalate further.

Kibaki has said he is "determined to get to the underlying causes of these unprecedented events".

However, it would seem he is not in any mood to stand down, despite criticism.

He told his supporters: "As I pointed out after being sworn in as your duly elected president of Kenya, I will personally lead our country in promoting unity, tolerance, peace and harmony among all Kenyans."

His comments did nothing to prevent further violence.

Annan, who many believe is the best hope of striking agreement between the two parties,

said: "What we saw was rather tragic. We visited several IDP (internally displaced persons] camps. We saw people pushed from their homes, from their farms; grandmothers, children, families uprooted.

"And I think it is important that all Kenyans respond with sympathy and understanding, and do not try to take revenge. The leaders may not be able to do it alone. We all need to play our part."

He also said there needed to be fundamental changes to prevent a repetition of recent events. Annan said: "We cannot accept that periodically, every five years or so, this sort of incident takes place and no one is held to account. Impunity cannot be allowed to stand."

Tanzania's former president, Benjamin Mkapa, has been travelling with Annan. He said: "The political crisis in the country has caused a state of agony and despair. We console the people."

Yesterday, as police unloaded 16 burnt bodies off the back of a pick-up truck in Nakuru, a crowd stood by in shock, looking away as each corpse was dumped. A woman wailed and ran away.

"I've never experienced this in Kenya," said another witness, his face streaming with tears. "I just pray that our leaders end this thing quickly."

The problems arose after last month's general election, which according to UN observers was "flawed", with voter turnout in one ward being recorded at 115%. But despite the claims, Kenya's Electoral Commission declared Kibaki the winner, leading his main challenger Odinga to claim he was "cheated" of victory.

Although Kenya has been one of Africa's most stable countries, experts say there has been an undercurrent of political and ethnic tensions ever since the country became independent from Britain in 1963.

It is believed the present problems can be traced back to the mid-1990s when the then president, Daniel arap Moi was forced to introduce multi-party politics. It led to Moi's own ethnic group, the Kalenjins, who were mainly based in the Rift Valley province, feeling threatened by the move.

Since then they have demanded a federalist system and more economic autonomy, leading them to support Odinga in the run-up to December's polls. Odinga, who is from the Luo community, has won much support in the country after his calls to take on Kenya's political establishment and address the still prevalent income inequalities.

Kibaki, who is dependent on the votes of his own tribe, the Kikuyu, has railed against moves towards federalism, claiming it is a "recipe for ethnic violence".

Although during his time as president, the country's economy has improved steadily, for the average Kenyan the results have been slow in manifesting themselves. Meanwhile, the violence continues.

Like many victims of the bloodshed in his country, long seen as one of Africa's most stable, Nicodemus Adede knew his attackers – they were friends.

"They're people who have lived with us doing this. Can you imagine?" the 29-year-old motorcycle taxi driver asked, nursing two machete wounds on his head as he waited at a Nakuru hospital where 165 victims have been treated.

"We were friends, but this is like tribalistic madness. I still don't know why they did it."

As he spoke, a man with an arrow sticking out of the side of his skull walked past – dazed but somehow still conscious. Workers from the medical charity Medecins Sans Frontiers treated the wounded and took X-rays.

Those who escaped the machetes or poisoned arrows lost their homes to gangs who looted and torched them. Refugees sheltered in fields and churchyards.

"At least we're alive," said Mureithi Kibinge, 25, a credit officer for a small finance firm, as he balanced a wardrobe, bed and sofa on a trailer. A mob had burnt his house to ashes. "All these material things can be acquired again. We just want our peace back."