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| Uhuru Kenyatta wins Kenyan election by a narrow margin - The Guardian Posted: 09 Mar 2013 09:49 AM PST Jason Patinkin in Nairobi  Kenyatta supporters celebrate his victory in Nairobi earlier today. Photograph: Simon Maina/AFP International criminal court indictee Uhuru Kenyatta was officially declared the winner of Kenya's presidential election afternoon, although his rival, Raila Odinga, will not concede defeat and a legal challenge, alleging widespread fraud, is certain. Kenyatta won by the slimmest of margins, earning 50.07% of the vote to clinch a first-round win, in an election that saw a record turnout of 84.9% of registered voters. Kenyans waited for nearly a week for its beleaguered electoral body, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, to announce the result. So far protests have remained peaceful in a country known for ethnic violence. "This is a coming of age for Kenya," Kenyatta said in his acceptance speech. "Despite the misgivings of many in the world, we have demonstrated a level of political maturity that surpassed expectation. We voted in peace, we upheld order and respect for the rule of law, and maintained the fabric of our society." Kenyan media called the election for Kenyatta before dawn after the electoral commission posted results from the last constituencies, but did not officially crown Kenyatta the winner until early afternoon. In the dawn hours, Kenyatta supporters blew whistles and vuvuzelas in celebration. Boniface Mwinde, 25, is a bus conductor and Kenyatta supporter who went out to celebrate at three in the morning. "I feel very, very good," he said, wrapping himself in a red flag of Kenyatta's party. "I've been waiting to go back to work." Businesses and schools were closed across Nairobi during the long wait. A Kenyatta presidency has worried western governments, which may have to limit diplomatic contact with Kenya due to the international criminal court charges against him. Kenya is an ally of the west in combating terror in Africa, and Nairobi, the capital, is home to a UN headquarters. John Kerry, the US secretary of state, released a statement after the election saying America would remain "a strong friend and ally of the Kenyan people", but outgoing assistant secretary of state for Africa Johnnie Carson had previously warned of "consequences" for Kenya's government with Kenyatta in office. In his acceptance speech, Kenyatta told the international community that he would work with the ICC prosecution. "To the nations of the world I give you my assurance that ... we will continue to co-operate with all nations and institutions," he said. "However," he added, "we also expect that the international community will respect the sovereignty and the democratic rule of Kenya." Kenyatta has called the ICC charges western meddling in Kenyan affairs. Kenya's last general elections in 2007 were racked by ethnic violence that killed more than 1,200 people and left hundreds of thousands homeless after disputes over election results. This time Kenyans mobilised against violence with rallies, concerts and online campaigns. Last Monday's vote earned international praise as peaceful and fair. But electronic glitches and lack of transparency tarnished the vote counting process, stretching the process over six days. Odinga's Coalition for Reforms and Democracy party accused the electoral commission of permitting vote-rigging, and a coalition of civil society groups filed a case against the electoral commission asking for a halt in the release of results, although this was dismissed. Tensions mounted as the long counting process tested Kenyans' patience. When official results gave Kenyatta the presidency, Odinga urged his supporters to remain peaceful despite losing. "Let the supreme court determine whether the result determined by the [Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission] is the correct one. Any violence now will destroy this nation forever." Overall, peace held throughout the country, though there were reports of police in the western city of Kisumu dispersing small riots with tear gas and some rock throwing in the Nairobi slum of Kibera. Odinga alleged "massive tampering of the tallying process," and vowed to go to the Kenyan supreme court for redress. "Democracy is on trial in Kenya," said Odinga. "It is clear that the process of electing a new set of leaders has been thwarted by another tainted election." The case will begin tomorrow, and could lead to another lengthy wait for Kenyans. But Josh Ogure, an electrician in Kibera who supported Odinga, was not excited about a court battle. "I'm disappointed," he said of Odinga losing the election, "but I don't think there is anything that can change it. I will just now have to move on." |
| As Security Crisis Deepens in Egypt After Verdict, Calls for a Military Coup - New York Times Posted: 09 Mar 2013 09:05 AM PST By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK and KAREEM FAHIMPublished: March 9, 2013PORT SAID, Egypt — Just months ago, demonstrators here and around Egypt were chanting for the end of military rule. But on Saturday, a court ruling about a soccer riot set off angry mobs that burned two buildings in Cairo and threatened the Suez Canal here, many in the crowd here said they had changed their minds. They argued that a military coup might now be the best hope to restore order. "Military rule was bad, but they would be better," Ahmed Abdel Fattah, 50, said. "Where is the state? Where is the interior ministry, the government? Where are the decisions to protect the interests of the people?" He added: "The military should take over until the police are ready." Although such calls are hardly universal and there is no threat of an imminent coup, murmurs that military intervention may be the only solution to the collapse of public security can be heard across the country, in circles opposed to the Islamists who have dominated post-Mubarak elections. The talk reflects the dire state of the security crisis, which threatens not only Egypt's transition to democracy but also its hopes to stave off economic collapse. And here in Port Said, a focal point of the widening crisis since the police lost control more than a month ago, a form of local military takeover has already taken place. As the city braced for a court ruling on Saturday about responsibility for a deadly riot last year at a match between Port Said and Cairo, security forces fled the city. The few local police stations where staff was still present "suspended" their work, officers said, in what appeared to be part of a widening strike by police and security forces across the country. The crisis in Port Said began in late January with a similar verdict. A court initially sentenced 21 local soccer fans to death for their role in a riot at match against a team for Cairo. When the verdict came, the court confirmed the death sentences it had issued last month to 21 Port Said soccer fans. Its preliminary decision set off a month of lethal clashes with security forces that killed at least four police officers and more than 40 civilians. It prompted the president to deploy the military. On Saturday the court reaffirmed the death sentences and added a verdict that only increased the anger in the streets. It convicted two senior security officials, sentencing both to 15 years in jail for negligence. But it acquitted seven police officers and two officials of the Port Said soccer club. With the police all but gone, crowds that had vowed revenge were unsure where to vent their rage. Hundreds of Port Said residents and several wailing relatives of those sentenced to die gathered in the square opposite the empty security headquarters, which was badly damaged by flames and pockmarked with broken windows from a weeklong siege by protesters. "The whole city comes to the streets!" one man shouted. But the mob was confused. "We don't know what to do!" one man shouted. "We want a police officer to kill, a soldier to rip apart." Another screamed in frustration: "They took the police outside the city so we will bang our heads against the wall!" When the crowd moved toward soldiers, a row of civilians linked hands and held back the mob. "The army and the people are one hand," they chanted, reprising the mantra of the early days after Mr. Mubarak's ouster, when protesters applauded the military for taking over to end his rule. Handmade banners around the city echoed the sentiments. "Port Said is in the protection of the military," read one notice signed by "the people of Port Said." And the military hung banners that appeared to take the side of the residents against the police. "The Armed Forces share the people's grief for the martyrs of Port Said," one military sign declared.
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