Anglican Church says No to new law

• The stage is now set for bruising campaign battles pitting the Church and the government ahead of the referendum whose date is yet to be set.

The Anglican Church of Kenya has declared its stand on the proposed draft constitution, and its a No.

The House of Bishops, which is the ACK's highest organ, said Thursday its move was informed by unsatisfactory provisions in the draft on the Bill of Rights, kadhis' courts and abortion.

"We therefore say No to the proposed constitution as it is unless amendments are effected before the referendum," read a statement by the bishops after day-long deliberations at the All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi.

The Catholic Church, other protestants churches, under the umbrella of the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK), and evangelicals are firmly opposed to the new law and with the ACK joining them, it will serve to strengthen their hand in a stand-off with the government- backed draft.

The stage is now set for bruising campaign battles pitting the two sides ahead of the referendum whose date is yet to be set.

It is the Cabinet’s Tuesday resolution to push for the Yes vote and the casual approach it gave to the negotiations with the Church that incensed some of the Anglican bishops who had previously rooted for the adoption of the draft constitution to change their minds and join their colleagues in rejecting the document.

“It is because of the government’s arrogance that makes me support the resolution by the House of Bishops,” said Maseno South Bishop Mwai Abiero, one of the church leader who recently issued a statement saying they would push for the adoption of the draft constitution at the referendum.

The church’s head, Archbishop Eliud Wabukala who had also indicated his support for the document stated that the meeting’s resolution was the church’s position when asked why he had changed his mind.

“This is the church’s position, not an individual’s position,” he said after reading the statement.

The Church objects to the section of Article 26, which empowers doctors to end a pregnancy if it endangers the woman's life or she needs emergency treatment.

Christian leaders are also opposed to the retention of kadhis' courts in the proposed Constitution under Article 169 and 170, which limit their authority to disputes over personal status, marriage, divorce or inheritance, where all the parties are Muslims and agree to take the case to a Kadhi.