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NAIROBI, Kenya (CNN) -- An American diplomat has described the
violence in Kenya's Rift Valley as "clear ethnic cleansing" aimed at
chasing out members of the Kikuyu tribe who are loyal to President
Mwai Kibaki.
However, U.S. envoy Jendayi Frazer said she did not believe the ethnic
clashes that have brought Kenya to its knees following disputed
elections last month could be classed as genocide.
The violence she saw this month while visiting the Rift Valley, where
Luos people are fighting Kikuyus, "was clear ethnic cleansing," she
told reporters at an African Union summit in Addis Ababa on Wednesday.
"The aim originally was not to kill, it was to cleanse, it was to push
them out of the region," she said, according to The Associated Press.
Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday pleaded with
Kenya's government to take "extraordinary measures" to protect
civilians hours after an opposition lawmaker was killed outside his
home.
Hundreds have died in fighting sparked by last month's presidential
election, which opponents insist was rigged to ensure Kibaki's
re-election.
"Kenya, which has long been a stable and peaceful country, today is in
turmoil with innocent men, women and children being hounded and
killed," Annan told Kenya's National Assembly before heading into
talks with Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga.
Annan's speech came as police and demonstrators clashed in Nairobi and
hours after gunmen killed opposition lawmaker Mugabe Were in a car
outside his house.
About 100 supporters also gathered in Kisumu, Kenya's third-largest
city, in a show of anger over Were's killing, prompting police to fire
tear gas and bullets to disperse them, the Kenya Broadcasting Corp.
reported.
violence in Kenya's Rift Valley as "clear ethnic cleansing" aimed at
chasing out members of the Kikuyu tribe who are loyal to President
Mwai Kibaki.
However, U.S. envoy Jendayi Frazer said she did not believe the ethnic
clashes that have brought Kenya to its knees following disputed
elections last month could be classed as genocide.
The violence she saw this month while visiting the Rift Valley, where
Luos people are fighting Kikuyus, "was clear ethnic cleansing," she
told reporters at an African Union summit in Addis Ababa on Wednesday.
"The aim originally was not to kill, it was to cleanse, it was to push
them out of the region," she said, according to The Associated Press.
Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday pleaded with
Kenya's government to take "extraordinary measures" to protect
civilians hours after an opposition lawmaker was killed outside his
home.
Hundreds have died in fighting sparked by last month's presidential
election, which opponents insist was rigged to ensure Kibaki's
re-election.
"Kenya, which has long been a stable and peaceful country, today is in
turmoil with innocent men, women and children being hounded and
killed," Annan told Kenya's National Assembly before heading into
talks with Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga.
Annan's speech came as police and demonstrators clashed in Nairobi and
hours after gunmen killed opposition lawmaker Mugabe Were in a car
outside his house.
About 100 supporters also gathered in Kisumu, Kenya's third-largest
city, in a show of anger over Were's killing, prompting police to fire
tear gas and bullets to disperse them, the Kenya Broadcasting Corp.
reported.
