Victims of violence want more than mere political handshake

A group of opposition supporters confront police officers during the elections last year. Police are accused of killing many Kenyans. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • President praised police for their good work.
  • Police officers insist those killed were criminals, despite video evidence to the contrary.

With their meeting last week, Kenya’s political rivals have been hailed for calming ethnic tensions and ending a stalemate that had brought the region’s biggest economy to a near halt.

But Ms Benna Buluma feels she’s been left behind.

Her son Victor Okoth was killed by the police officers the day after the presidential election in August — a vote whose contested result pushed the country to the brink of a democratic crisis and set off protests and violence that human rights groups said led to roughly 70 deaths at the hands of the police.

VICTIMISED

“This new marriage between the two men is not in good faith,” said 48-year-old Buluma, speaking of the rapprochement between President Uhuru Kenyatta and his longtime rival Raila Odinga.

“It keeps the wound in my heart alive.”

The men promised to work together for national unity, releasing a lengthy statement that has drawn international praise.

But those who say they were victimised by police aggression say they feel forgotten and betrayed.

VIOLENCE

“People were sacrificed,” said Ernest Ngesa, who lives in Kibera, a Nairobi neighbourhood.

“You can’t just come and make us a promise that there will be changes. People have lost a lot.”

The 31-year-old knows what that loss means. The last time widespread violence followed a contested election, in 2007, more than 1,100 people were killed — including his daughter.

“I was fighting very hard this year for something more,” Mr Ngesa said.

“We say we have come together in spite of our differences, but this is the second time we’re hurting.”

GUNFIRE

President Kenyatta won the August presidential vote, but in a historic ruling, the Supreme Court nullified the result, citing irregularities, and ordered a second poll.

Mr Odinga withdrew from the second vote, which was held in October, saying the process was unfair, and Mr Kenyatta handily won re-election.

But Mr Odinga’s public appearances continued to draw thousands of supporters, and the police responded with tear gas, water cannons and gunfire.

Officials denied that live ammunition was used.

LEGITIMACY

In January, when Mr Odinga inaugurated himself as “the people’s president,” the government jailed opposition politicians, deported a lawyer and took Kenya’s three biggest television stations off the air for 10 days.

An economy already slowed by electoral uncertainty seemed to stall, owners of small businesses said.

So when Mr Odinga and Mr Kenyatta met last Friday, after secret negotiations, much of the country heaved a sigh of relief.

Mr Odinga abandoned his attacks on Mr Kenyatta’s legitimacy as President, and Mr Kenyatta acknowledged that he needed to engage the opposition.

DIALOGUE

The two released a seven-page plan for national unity, focusing on inclusivity, broad electoral reforms and efforts to fight corruption.

But neither the men nor their unity plan acknowledged the suffering of people like Ms Buluma, whose family members were injured or killed in election-related violence.

“The country needs to have a dialogue, but the voice of the ordinary people hasn’t been raised,” said Rachael Mwikali of the National Coalition of Grassroots Human Rights Defenders.

EVICTED

“Sometimes, I feel when they’re calling for reconciliation, it’s only about their interests. And these are two men who are supposed to be looking after the country.”

Because neither leader acknowledged the deaths caused by the political fight, Ms Buluma said, the healing is much harder.

And her family has lost so much.

Their neighbour, whose husband was also shot by police, couldn’t keep up with the Sh2,500 monthly rent and was evicted, Ms Buluma said.

No one knows what has happened to her.

CRIMINALS

Senior government and police officials have consistently characterised those killed or injured by the police during the unrest as criminals.

Mr Charles Owino, a spokesman for the National Police Service, said in an interview on Monday that opposition gatherings styled as democratic protests often involved looting and lawbreaking.

But local and international rights groups documented dozens of cases of police violence, including sexual violence.

Human Rights Watch released a report in December describing “widespread sexual violence” by uniformed men during the election period.

BEATINGS

Mr Owino declined to respond to victim testimony and video evidence suggesting some police officers used force against nonviolent people, saying: “We will wait for the court to make those decisions."

Ms Anna Anyango Agalo doesn’t need a court to tell her what happened.

“I saw it with my own eyes,” she said defiantly, gesturing to the space in her home in Mathare, an informal settlement in Nairobi, where she said she found police officers beating her son, Chrisphine Owino, and his friend, Silas Lebo, both 17.

EXPLANATION

Witnesses say the officers went house to house in Mathare smashing doors and terrorising anyone they found.

Video evidence supports their statements.

Ms Agalo said she demanded an explanation from the officers.

“Did you vote?” she remembered an officer asking her in reply.

She said yes.

TRAUMA

“And now you people are saying your votes have been stolen,” she remembered him saying. “That is why we are here.”

Ms Agalo’s son survived but failed to speak for months afterward and remains affected by the physical and psychological trauma.

The hardest thing for him, she said, was losing his best friend. Lebo died of his injuries.

Ms Agalo resents the government’s characterisation of the boys as criminals.

“The children were not out on the street protesting,” she said.

“They were not even out there watching what was going on. They were just inside our home, studying. The president is the one who told us to go home after casting our vote, and we did. We were in our houses when this happened.”

GOOD WORK

She said reconciliation between Mr Kenyatta and Mr Odinga would not mean anything to her unless police explained their actions — and Mr Kenyatta apologised.

“The President was brave and courageous enough to tell the national police they did good work in killing those who were thugs,” she said with angry sarcasm.

“The President needs to come back here and ask our forgiveness.”

This story was first published in the online version of the 'New York Times'