"As Africa trip begins, Clinton urges Kenya to resolve tensions" by Mary Beth Sheridan and Stephanie McCrummen, Washington Post | August 6, 2009
NAIROBI, Kenya - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton began a major trip to Africa yesterday by publicly urging Kenya, a strategic US ally, to move faster to resolve tensions lingering from a disputed 2007 election that precipitated the country’s worst crisis since independence.
Clinton went further in a private meeting with Kenyan leaders, urging them to sack the attorney general and the police chief, who have been accused of ignoring dozens of illegal killings carried out by police death squads.
Before I address another murderous government (but an ally, so I'm sure the complaint is for show), I want to comment on her arrogance.
Can you imagine some African minister coming over here and telling Obama he ought to dump Holder and and let's say Davis, the Boston police commish?
I'm sorry, American females; I know you like to think having Hitlery as SecofState is such a leap for women, but THIS WOMAN has NO DIPLOMATIC SKILLS AT ALL!!!!
And besides, WHERE THEY GONNA PUT 'EM?
"Kenya’s 97 prisons are overcrowded, underfunded, and understaffed. They were built for a population of about 15,000 but now hold more than 40,000."
Clinton also raised the possibility of banning some Kenyan officials from traveling to the United States if Nairobi does not move more quickly to prosecute those responsible for postelection ethnic violence that left 1,300 people dead. The organizers are widely believed to include senior officials and Cabinet ministers, many of whom have family members in the United States.
Hey, I'm all for that EXCEPT WE HAVE NO STANDING to COMMENT!
The U.S. HAS SECRET PRISONS with SECRET TORTURE!
“We are going to use whatever tools we need to use to ensure that there is justice,’’ a senior US official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the meeting was private. “We raised the possibility of visa bans and implied there could be more.’’
Clinton’s public remarks were more gentle, but still reflected the Obama administration’s concern that Kenya, which has lent crucial support to US humanitarian, diplomatic, and military operations in this volatile region, could slip back into political and ethnic violence that brought it close to collapse last year.
We will see what the follow-up in the paper is before we decide if this is a one-day wonder. Either that or the Kenyan government has pissed us off and we are in the process of reversing that.
President Mwai Kibaki and former opposition leader Raila Odinga, now the prime minister, ended the crisis with a power-sharing deal and a commitment to political reforms that would include prosecution of those suspected of participating in postelection violence. But Clinton made clear that their coalition government has not followed through.
“The absence of strong and democratic institutions has permitted ongoing corruption, impunity, politically motivated violence, human rights abuses and lack of respect for the rule of law,’’ Clinton said at a news conference after meeting with Kibaki, Odinga, and security officials.
Has she taken a look in the mirror lately?
Could you send some of that criticism Israel's way?
Look, I'm not trying to minimize the Kenyan suffering in any way.
I THINK ALL PEOPLE should BE ALLOWED to LIVE THEIR LIVES in PEACE and SELF-DETERMINATION!
Something GOVERNMENT has NO INTEREST IN no matter WHAT YOU CALL IT!
Kenyans remain deeply frustrated with a coalition government they say is bloated with well-paid officials concerned more with their own survival than with the welfare of the country, swaths of which are in the midst of a hunger crisis.
Man, does THEIR GOVERNMENT ever SOUND FAMILIAR to this American.
And WHAT DO I CARE ABOUT?
Yeah, THAT'S RIGHT!
In the latest example of trouble with the peace deal, the Kenyan government stepped back in recent days from a commitment to establish a special tribunal to try people accused in connection with the postelection violence.
WTF? WHY did the PAPER DROP the HUNGER ASPECT?
The government said it would rely on a “reformed judicial system’’ instead. But in a country with a history of overlooking corruption cases, political killings, and other official misdeeds, human rights groups and ordinary Kenyans cast the move as a blatant bid by senior officials to avoid punishment.
I don't want to diminish the human rights of the people, but isn't freedom from starvation a right? I always thought so.
“They’re selfish, and they’re trying to hide,’’ said Caleb Onduso, 25, who was among a crowd at a convention center here yesterday hoping to hear Clinton speak. “They’ve forgotten us.’’
Okay, so the follow-up is sure to focus on the hunger and corruption, right?
"Clinton promises support for Somalia; Goal is to bolster region’s stability" by Stephanie McCrummen and Mary Beth Sheridan, Washington Post | August 7, 2009
NAIROBI, Kenya - .... Earlier yesterday, Clinton attended a ceremony honoring the victims of the 1998 bombing, as well as a spirited town hall meeting at the University of Nairobi.
At the town hall, the secretary was asked by a student how the United States could support having the International Criminal Court intervene in Kenya’s problems when the US government had not subjected itself to the court’s procedures.
Clinton said it was “a great regret but it is a fact’’ that the US government was not a member of the court. “But we have supported the court and continue to do so.’’Pffft!
Then again, SHE IS a VOTE-CASTING, INVASION-APPROVING WAR CRIMINAL HERSELF, so....
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Btw, have you EVER NOTICED the ICC is EXCLUSIVELY FOR tin pot African dictators and poor whites that buck the NWO (think Serbia)?
I'm STILL WAITING for the BUSH/BLIAR INDICTMENTS, aren't you?
The only thing the Globe has thrown my way since (censored from the web version?):
"Scottish gem dealer killed in Kenya" by Los Angeles Times | August 14, 2009
NAIROBI - .... His camp in the Kenyan bush....
But Bridges’s life and adventurous career ended abruptly this week when his truck was ambushed in southeastern Kenya by a mob armed with spears, machetes, and bows and arrows. Police and family members say the attackers appeared to be linked to a gang seeking to seize control of Bridges’s lucrative mining concession....
Yes, WHY the REGION is SO IMPORTANT and WHY we are NEVER TOLD the FULL STORY of the REASONS for the MESS in Eastern Africa.
This is WHY there are WARS, SUFFERING, and HUNGER, folks!
RESOURCES!!!!!!
Bruce Bridges said his father had been fighting for the past three years against a group of Kenyans - who he said were backed by local officials - seeking to drive him away....
The attack occurred amid what many see as a resurgence in violence and corruption in Kenya, which is struggling with a sluggish economy and a stalled coalition government, formed after a disputed 2007 presidential election.
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Those human rights and famine must not be too much of a problem, huh?
