Kenya in Crisis Day 57: Power Sharing=Peace?

President Bush backed the power sharing plan currently being negotiated today.

The United States President George W. Bush on Saturday urged an end to political clashes in Kenya over the disputed presidential elections in December by opting for a power-sharing strategy.

He added that he will have his secretary of state visit Kenya to convey his message to the region that erupted in conflict because of the dispute between President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga.

A thousand people have been killed and at least 600,000 have fled their homes during the weeks of ethnic clashes between the supporters of the two parties in the Eastern African state.

This plan looked like it had been agreed to in principle about a week ago and has since stalled. I continue to be of the mind that a political power sharing plan will do little to settle a situation that has turned tribal, classed, and criminal. I continue to believe that those that are committing violence care very little about seeing some sort of a compromised government. It appears to me at least that certain elements saw a vacuum and used that vacuum as an opportunity to cause chaos and violence.

The situation remains tenuous. The agreement that everyone is hinging everything on continues to be in limbo and the violence continues in the meantime.