Kenya Elections
No tourists hurt in Kenya election chaos
NAIROBI, Kenya (eTN) - Calm has been replaced with chaos in Kenya after the relatively peaceful end December elections, which raised the emotions of this East African nation to new fever pitch levels. Few hours after Kenyan election results were announced to declare President Mwai Kibak the winner late on Sunday, clashes, violence, turmoil and riots reigned all parts of this economically stable African nation.
Voters appeared at polling stations in a record turn out already at night on December 27, making for long queues and long waiting times before they could cast their votes. In some cases this led to the extensions of the evening voting deadline to allow the waiting crowds to cast their ballot. Some 20 ministers and assistant ministers lost their parliamentary seats, including Nobel Laureate Prof. Wangari Mathai, feeling the apparent anger of the electorate over broken promises from the 2002 general election but also having believed the quick silver campaign the opposition used to make itself shine.
Until Monday evening, almost 140 people were feared dead, 124 among them confirmed to have died in ethnical clashes between followers of Mr. Kibaki and his closest rival, Mr. Raila Odinga.
In the capital city of Nairobi, tourists and other visitors were ordered to stay in their hotels while local residents were barred from getting into the city from other parts of Kenya and ordered to stay at their homes.
Scores of Kenyan armed police on vehicles, the paramilitary police and members of Kenya’s notorious General Service Unit (GSU) cordoned off the city and no one was allowed to enter the city centre from early morning hours.
Security officials said the police in support of the Kenyan army were deployed in the capital city to ban a planned alternative inauguration ceremony of Mr. Odinga at Uhuru Park grounds in central Nairobi. Mr. Odinga announced Sunday to form his own government in protest to Mr. Kibaki's winning of the December 27 General Election.
Tourists driving from Tanzania’s northern city of Arusha to Nairobi have been diverted to other safe destinations in wildlife parks and less populated locations in Kenya.
Kenyan Immigration Minister Gideon Konchellah said Sunday that all territorial borders will remain open, but the Kenyan government sealed off later all borders with Uganda and left open the Tanzanian entry points.
Until Monday evening, most Kenyans of Asian origin had already left Nairobi and other big Kenyan cities of Kisumu and the beach city of Mombasa for Tanzania and other African states. Theft of goods from big shops in Kisumu, Mombasa and Nairobi kept off Kenyans of Asian origin.
No reports yet of tourist attack, as most tour operators and hotel owners have taken great care to protect the tourists.
Kenya’s hoteliers have geared up for one of Kenya’s strongest high-seasons in recorded history in mid 2007 with airlines clamoring to get a stake of Kenya’s lucrative air-share.
With record number of tourists visiting Kenya increasing, the East African country worked hard to woo a variety of airline suitors, to help sustain tourism demand.
Brussels Airlines is now providing services between Kenya and Belgium six while Air France and the KLM Group replaced Boeing 777 from their Nairobi – Amsterdam route with larger capacity Boeing 747-400 for this year’s summer schedule, the fight for air space into Nairobi has officially begun.
All this is in reaction to the high demand for an East African route out of Europe and due to Kenya Airways joining with the SkyTeam alliance by end of 2007 and the conclusion of Kenya Airways network with Continental, Delta and Northwest.
Swiss International Air Lines, which is also trying to get a slice of the pie in Kenya, ramped up its flights from five-days-a-week to daily flights from Zurich into Nairobi.
Virgin Atlantic’s had on June 2, 2007 opened its route from London Heathrow into Nairobi, Kenya, which looked to increase Kenya’s overseas business and leisure passenger rates by 25 percent once Virgin started service into the country. The airline issued a fare special out of the United States to Nairobi with one-way fares as low as $648 (plus tax and fuel surcharges) out of key US cities being serviced by Virgin Atlantic.
The Kenya Tourist Board has just announced that Americans are hitting the market big as of late. For the first time ever, Americans surpassed Germans in terms of visitor arrivals for an entire year in 2007, making Americans the second most valuable group to Kenyan tourism.
These arrival numbers are a potent argument for those questioning Kenya’s tourism future. The Kenyan Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife is hoping to quintuple tourism arrivals by 2012. After seeing Kenya’s overall tourism arrivals almost triple since 2000, Kenya seems up for the challenge; and is taking quick action to accommodate these new tourists.
On the political front, presidential candidate Odinga, whose late father Jaramogi Oginga Odinga was an avowed communist just like him, served time in detention over allegation of wanting to sabotage the Kenyan state, promoting treason and sedition and being generally subversive, was initially unable to cast his vote as his name did not appear on the voter’s register in his chosen constituency in Nairobi. The younger Odinga was also repeatedly rumored to have been one of the dark forces behind the 1982 coup attempt in Kenya, which tried to overthrow the elected government of former Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi. His voting problem was however later resolved and he could finally make a tick against his own name on both parliamentary and presidential election ballots.
As it turned out from the results, however, this was not enough, as he lost to the incumbent in a tightly fought race. Odinga’s projected early lead, at least as peddled by sections of the media and his own supporters, but notably not the electoral commission, was progressively eroded by President Kibaki’s growing numbers, at which stage the opposition brought out their goons to the streets to begin causing chaos, following the 1982 recipe. In Odinga’s home stronghold of Kisumu members of Kibaki’s Kikuyu tribe were literally hunted like animals by rampaging Luos (Odinga’s home tribe), their shops targeted, looted and burned and individuals beaten up and worse.
Losing is not new to the Odingas. Raila Odinga’s late father had made a spectacle of himself when he lost the presidential contest in the 1992 election, and begged the electorate under tears to give him “even one day in State House,” which forever remained a distant dream for him as well as for the son now. Odinga had decisively split the former ruling coalition with his uninhibited ambition for power and the top post in the country. He was part of the initial Kibaki government which was swept into power in 2002, but was soon afterwards sacked for dissent and only then became an outspoken critic of the now re-elected president, before being sent by the majority of the people of Kenya into dustbin of history. Bringing his hoodlums out to the streets once again shows his true ilk and after the country has settled down again it may be the time to look into criminal charges for inciting crowds of clearly misled people into violence as well as for his alleged role in the 1982 coup attempt.
Comments
The comments above are quite right to point out that tourists, provided they are sensible of course, are unlikely to come to any harm from political violence that has nothing to do with them. Indeed, following violent clashes between KANU youth militias and the police after the 1997 elections, a bus-load of German tourists where waved through an impromptu road-block set up by an armed militia. In addition, as Richard Dowden of the Royal Africa Society has recently pointed out, the violence needs to be seen in the context of the continuing legacy of colonial (mis)development of the Kenyan economy, particularly with regard to land ownership patterns, Kikuyu misrule, and pent-up frustration at the inequalities of wealth and power, particularly in the Eldoret area where Kikuyu farmers purchased land from white farmers who left after independence. Rather than desert Kenya, right now more than ever, Kenya needs its tourists to keep coming and not repeat the mistakes of 2002-2003 when over-zealous travel advisories nearly bankrupted the industry.
Kenya Tourism Federation Updates
Saturday 5 January 2008: Update 10.00 pm
Nairobi:
Once again there were no incidents today affecting tourists in Nairobi. The roads between Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Wilson Airport and all Nairobi hotels were all open and traffic was moving without hindrance throughout the day. All flights operated as normal. Tourist vehicles were also able to move along Uhuru Highway throughout the day. The police were present along the highway but in reduced numbers today. There was an attempt by small crowds to march to Uhuru Park from the Karen area but the GSU / Police presence prevented access and there were no serious confrontations.
All airport transfers took place without any problems. JKIA arrivals were lower than normal as a result of the travel warnings taking effect.
There were some skirmishes and inter-tribal fighting in the low-income housing estates near Nairobi between residents, and police intervened, with reports indicating that one person was killed but this disturbance was confined to Dandora, well away from the tourist routes.
Mombasa:
At the coast things continue returning to normal. Shops are open, traffic has resumed driving into the city centre and pavement cafes are all open as usual. Markets were open and were thronged with residents shopping peacefully.
All tourist departure transfers last night, early this morning and later throughout the day took place without any problems. There were no charter arrivals from UK, France or Netherlands but there were some arrivals from Germany and Italy and also from Eastern Europe (Czech Republic, Poland).
The ODM leaders attempted to hold a march around 1pm in the city centre but this was quickly dispersed by the heavy police presence and the leaders then went to Makupa police station to present a letter. This did not cause any disruption to tourists since the tour operators are not running city tours for the time being but road safaris and excursions to Shimba Hills, Shimoni, Tsavo, etc continue to operate as normal.
Upcountry:
There were no problems reported from any of the parks or reserves and all road safaris were operating as normal while air safaris from Wilson to all scheduled stops went ahead as normal.
The Molo, Eldoret, Kericho, Kakamega, Kisumu areas have been the sites of serious civil unrest earlier this week, receiving continual TV coverage of the incidents in the international media, and continue to be tense with reports today of some incidents of arson. These areas are not suitable for tourist visitation and continue to be absolutely off-limits for tourists. No tour operators have been running tours to these areas since the unrest started last week. The roads to Eldoret have been blocked by mobs and the transport system in this area has broken down but the army has been in the area, clearing and re-opening the roads.
Jake Grieves-Cook
Spokesman
Kenya Tourism Federation
whats going happen to the seychellios in kenya
I'm appalled by your report by Apolinari Taro and Wolfgang Thome on the conditions in Kenya at present. While the dateline says Nairobi, the fact of the matter is that they are not based here but live in the capital cities of our neighbours Tanzania and Uganda. Not being in Kenya they are quite obviously under informed. True, there is sporadic violence in the rural areas and at times in the slums of both Nairobi and Mombasa, however our security forces apparently have this well under control. Far from tourists streaming out of the country, jamming up airports etc... most are content to enjoy their vacation in Kenya be that on the beach or in the bush - far from the madding crowds. Safe as houses, is I think an appropriate comment.
Kenyans are peaceful people, and most citizens to include this writer are appalled by the violence that has followed a flawed Presdiential election. Dialogue has already started between political parties which is the first positive step to resolution.
I'm the publisher of a monthly consumer travel & lifetstyle magazine based in Kenya and Chairman of Ecotourism Kenya - if you want accurate, up-to-date, unbiased reports from Kenya I'd be happy to oblige.
Happy New Year....
For all hotels, airlines and tour operators in Kenya the picture is simply one of business as usual.
Mombasa Air Safari flies daily schedules to the Mara and Lamu and we have no cancellations so far. All airports, main roads, hotels and lodges continue to function normaly.
The reports on Sky News about thousands of trapped tourists is pure hysteria or irresposible journalism.
The situation, whilst under control by a sophisticated tourism indusrty, is never the less of concern.
The real problem is that the country has been in holiday mode for about a week with numerous public holidays and a general election sandwiched inbetween. Now with violence or the possibility of violence disrupting road travel and general living conditions for ordinary Kenyans made difficult and dangerous by thugs, lack of foodstuffs and public transport ....it is difficult for busines to get back into full stride as staff are unable to travel and have real concerns for their security.
Fears of public rallies and a further deteriation are, I feel, very real.
It is true that tourism can continue normally, even whilst sporadic violence continues...its a question of ethics for foreign offices and journalism to portray that Kenya, whilst unsafe for some poorer Kenyans, remains safe for tourists! Tourists do remain safe in Kenya despite the current unrest. However if violence will continue unbated over the days and weeks ahead then prudent holidaymakers may begin to question the wisdom of taking a chance.
Everyones faith in Kenya is being put to the test. If the economy and the political landscape escape unscathed then the country will be stronger than before. We must hope for calm and a quick political solution
The tourism industry had, as a precaution ahead of the election , a well planned safety management scheme in place with 24 hour monitoring of potentail hot zones. Not one tourist has been hurt. The monitoring continues.
Regards,
John Cleave
Mombasa
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