Whilst reading the newspapers recently, articles documenting the violence in Kenya have no doubt caught the attention of many of you. They’ve certainly not escaped my notice.

Many issues are at hand and of interest here; the dearth of legitimate attention western media afforded the events, the apathy of western governments to the notion of ensuring valid elections in potentially unstable (particularly African) countries; the complex problem of ancient tribalism forced into the framework of western-style political systems; and of course the much-debated issue of foreign intervention.

On a domestic level, the dissolution of order in Kenya seems to have been met with less concern than violence in neigbouring countries has aroused in the past.  Whilst Australia, rightfully, goes to the rescue of surrounding states such as East Timor, the Solomon Islands and Fiji, we neglect those farther afield. Kenya does not have as good neighbours as the aforementioned countries to assist it; the next nearest "first world" countries according to the World Bank are Egypt, Libya and Saudi Arabia.

Australia’s inaction is not all that surprising considering that the idea of states helping their neighbours springs from geographical convenience. Many nations believed that East Timor needed help declaring independance from Indonesia in 1999 and following assassination attempts early this year, and, due to geographical convenience Australia was most suitable to provide aid. However, countries as far afield as Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Kenya, Malaysia, Norway, Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, United Kingdom and the United States of America also took part in the intervention.

If needed, help should not be denied simply because it is inconvenient; though this seems to have occurred in Kenya and continues to throughout the majority of Africa, Sudan being another prime example.

Kenya borders the Sudan to the northwest, Ethiopia to the north, Somalia to the east, Tanzania to the south and Uganda to the west. As far as neighbourhoods go in Africa, historically this is definitely one of the roughest. Letting Kenya slide into anarchy and lawlessness will not only hurt Kenya, but will surely facilitate unrest in bordering states. So, the matter of having fair elections in Kenya, which should be a compelling reason for intervention in and of itself, becomes an international issue, rather than one only for domestic Kenyan politics.

However, when considering intervention, many aspects of Kenya’s geopolitics must be taken into account. When colonial powers took hold of Africa no consideration was given to the established homelands or politics of its tribes. Westerners drew state lines after agreeing upon them with other colonials irrespective of which tribes they were corralling together. All of that business is done and dusted but it is highly important to be conscious that we live with this legacy today; people forced into a state system that is arbitrary and historically alien. The "why can't they all just get along" mentality shows blatant disregard for the ancestry and tradition of the peoples involved.

Intervention has become a dirty word in foreign policy thinking, but in cases of violence, corruption and unrest, such as that seen in Kenya now, it must be considered. That being said, any intervention in Kenya would need to be, first and foremost, by invitation, as well as being disciplined and planned meticulously.

Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has assisted in negotiations between Mwai Kibaki's ruling Party of National Unity and Raila Odinga's opposing Orange Democratic Movement. The African Union, an organisation which the wider world would surely enjoy seeing as the main mediator in negotiations, have sent the Tanzanian president and AU chairman Jakaya Kikwete to the table in Kenya.

The US has also weighed in, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visiting Nairobi whilst President George Bush toured other nations in sub-Saharan Africa (Benin, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana and Liberia). "They need to have a power-sharing arrangement ... There needs to be a coalition" she said after meetings with the two party heads. Surely this must only be a temporary measure for Kenya, not the two year affair that has been mooted. Whether the December 27 elections were fraudulent or not, the shadow that has been cast over them is now immovable. For the day to day running of Kenya and for restoring order, interim power sharing is the answer. However Ms Rice should be wary suggesting such ideas as even medium term solutions, ones which seem to reward the corrupt and bypass democracy.

President Bush has made commitments to the effort of restoring peace and order, saying, "We'll help. We send people over and we'll stay engaged." With the AU tied up in the Sudan, a place the UN seems reticent to involve itself in (an attitude which does not auger well for the idea of UN forces assisting Kenya), he may soon be forced to act on his word. Perhaps its time a few more of us further afield put our hands up too.

Carl Fester

Image by Giorgio
Courtesy of Creative Commons