Anew report says Kenya's coalition government has failed to support peaceefforts to heal ethnic divisions. Violence after last December's disputedelections led to the deaths of well over one thousand people and thedisplacement of thousands of others.
TheMinority Rights Group International briefing paper outlines conditions in Kenyasix months after a power-sharing agreement. It says tens of thousands of peopleremain displaced or are living in what it describes as "miserable conditions"in transit camps.
IshbelMatheson is the group's head of policy and communication.
"Althoughthe violence in Kenya has obviously subsided and the atmosphere is calmer, theunderlying problems in Kenya are very far from being solved. And in particular,the efforts that the government has put into building bridges between theircommunities on the ground in the wake of the terrible ethnic violence reallyhaven't been sufficient," she says.
Mathesonsays ethnic tensions continue to simmer despite the outward calm.
"We'reconcerned that unless there is a proper comprehensive peace-building programrolled out across the country, that the seeds for the kind of conflict that wesaw at the beginning of the year are still there and may yet lead to furtherconflict," she says.
Atthe height of the violence, Minority Rights Group International, or MRG, saysmore than 400,000 people were displaced and 1500 people killed. Matheson saysthe "crucible of the violence" was in Kenya's Northern Rift Valley.
"Thispitted a group called the Kalenjins against the Kikuyus. The Kalenjins thereregard themselves as the traditional occupiers of the land there and they seethe Kikuyus there as people who have come in and settled on their land. TheKikuyus traditionally are the group, which have dominated Kenya economicallysince independence. So, there was a lot of simmering resentment there," shesays.
TheKikuyus supported President Mwai Kibaki, while the Kalenjins favored RailaOdinga, who's now prime minister.
Smallethnic groups were also the targets of violence, such as the forest-dwellingOgiek people.
"Accordingto their cultural tradition, they don't move into IDP (internally displacedpersons) camps. They attempt as best they can to look after those who have beenmade homeless within their own community. And that basically meant that theyslipped through the net and that they didn't get access to any official help,"she says.
Apower-sharing agreement brokered by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annanbrought a political solution. But MRG says the agreement's provisions have yetto be fully carried out.
"Oneof them is a constitutional review. Kenya has been trying for nearly twodecades to try and get a new constitution ? a more inclusive, a more equalconstitution. That's back on the table again and we very much welcome thatprocess. There's also an effort to get a truth and justice and reconciliationcommission going, looking at historical injustices related to land and relatedto economic crimes. Again, we very much welcome that," she says.
Mathesonsays in order for these efforts to be "truly inclusive," they have to reach outto all segments of Kenyan society. This includes minority and indigenouspeoples. She says while Kenya officially recognizes 42 ethnic groups, theactual number is over 70.