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ITN
Kenya urged to start reconciliation
Kenya urged to start reconciliation
Kenya's main Opposition Party has accused police of killing seven people during another day of protests in the country.A ten-year-old boy who was shot on Wednesday has died in hospital.Three others were killed in the capital Nairobi and in the western town of Kisumu, police fired teargas and bullets, striking at least two people including a boy of five.Opposition leader Raila Odinga said the Government has turned the Kenya into "a killing field of innocents."Earlier, the British Government urged the country to start a process of national reconciliation to end the bloodshed.The violence was triggered by the disputed re-election of President Mwai Kibaki, which took place in December. At least 700 people have died and the streets of Nairobi are becoming increasingly dangerous.Junior Foreign Office minister Meg Munn said: "A process of national reconciliation is desperately needed to start to heal the wounds that have been inflicted by the disputed elections and the violence that has followed."Ms Munn insists a solution can be reached if Mr Kibaki and Mr Odinga co-operate with international leaders to find a peaceful solution.The political unrest has also hit the tourism industry; major tour operators in the UK have extended the ban on holidays to Kenya to include all flights up to and including next Monday.Some Britons are still managing to fly to Kenya as flights operated by British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Kenya Airways are scheduled to go ahead.Ms Munn warned that The Department for International Development's aid programme to the country was being kept under close review while the crisis continues.She said: "The Kenyan people, the business community and Kenya's international partners have had their confidence in the government of Kenya damaged in the past three weeks."Kenya's politicians will have to work hard to win back that trust."The Kenyan government claims Mr Odinga's side is rigging votes, orchestrating ethnic killings and ignoring court challenges in favour of violence.The ODM has retaliated by saying the courts are biased and have accused the police of opening fire on peaceful protesters.© Independent Television News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.
ITN | January 18, 2008
