Kenya's bishops appealed to their countrymen to stop the "senseless killing of our brothers and sisters" and asked for an investigation into the December 27 elections that sparked violence. In a statement released Wednesday and signed by the archbishop of Nairobi, Cardinal John Njue, the Kenyan prelates said they witnessed "with deep sorrow and concern the outbreak of violence and the breakdown of law and order that has led to numerous deaths, injuries and destruction of property, creating fear and helplessness that has led many to flee from their homes. Kenya erupted in violence after the general elections were decried as rigged. Incumbent President Mwai Kibaki, 76, was sworn in for another term just a few minutes after his alleged victory was announced. Some 500 people have been killed and thousands more displaced in the violence. Though the conflict sprung from the election, it has taken on tones of ethnic cleansing, with tribal fighting between the president's Kikuyu people and opposition leader Raila Odinga's Luo tribe, with other tribes joining in.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) estimates that at least 100,000 children have been forced to flee their homes due to the wave of violence that swept through Kenya following last month's disputed elections.The agency said that as many as 75,000 children are now residing in over 100 camps for internally displaced persons, while many thousands more children are believed to be living temporarily with other family members. Almost 600 people have lost their lives and some 255,000 others displaced during the crisis which began after President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner over opposition leader Raila Odinga in the country's polls late last December.
UNICEF has prioritized the provision of life-saving interventions - including water, sanitation, shelter and nutrition - as well as the protection of children and facilitating their return to school. In the largest camps in the capital Nairobi and the western towns of Nakuru and Eldoret, the agency has established water and sanitation facilities by providing temporary latrines, water storage tanks, buckets and chlorine. So many have camped in the Eldoret Catholic diocese's Cathedral helped by the local Bishop Cornelius Korir. This is expected to help 50,000 people. Also in Kisumu and Eldoret, UNICEF is sending emergency health supplies to benefit more than 100,000 people. It is assisting Kenya's Ministry of Health to operate screening centres in camps to identify and treat malnourished children. An emergency polio and measles vaccination programme, de-worming and vitamin A distribution are also underway.
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