Odinga is Mugabe's most vocal critic at African Union summit
BBC Jun 30, 08 1:30 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Kenya’s prime minister blasted Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe today, saying it would set a dangerous precedent for the African Union to accept him as "a duly elected president," the BBC reports. "They should suspend him and send peace forces to Zimbabwe to ensure free and fair elections," Raila Odinga said at the AU summit.
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Prez names opposition leader PM
BBC Apr 13, 08 2:11 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Calling for Kenyans to "put politics aside and get to work," president Mwai Kibaki named chief opposition leader Raila Odinga prime minister today in a move to end political strife with a power-sharing cabinet. The 40-member cabinet, including two deputy PMs, was divided evenly between the two parties, though the BBC notes that key positions remained with Kibaki loyalists.
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Analysts remain skeptical, noting past attempts at accord
BBC Apr 12, 08 7:18 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Kenya’s election crisis may finally be over. President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga today reached a deal on a new cabinet, the BBC reports, ending the dispute that has long delayed a February power-sharing deal. The new cabinet will be announced tomorrow and should be in place before the parliament returns on Tuesday.
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Parliament, back in session, must figure out how to make peace deal work
New York Times Mar 6, 08 4:53 PM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya's parliament reconvened today, the New York Times reports, and was immediately given the task of putting into law the power-sharing deal that ended the startling wave of violence that followed December's disputed election. "You must now become the ambassadors of peace and reconciliation,” President Mwai Kibaki told legislators. “Please forget the history of what has happened."
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Citizenry appears relieved, cautious after power-sharing accord is made official
New York Times Feb 28, 08 4:43 PM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya’s rival political leaders signed a power-sharing deal today in a ceremony that brought jubilant crowds to the streets of Nairobi, the New York Times reports—a change from the violence that followed December's disputed election. The agreement creates a powerful prime minister position for opposition leader Raila Odinga, with cabinet positions filled by the parties of both Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki.
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Annan says rivals have come to terms to end post-election crisis
BBC Feb 28, 08 8:12 AM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya’s feuding leaders have finally reached a power sharing deal, Kofi Annan announced today after a four-hour meeting. Annan said he could not yet release details, but the deal is expected to spell out duties for the prime minister position to be created for opposition leader Raila Odinga, the BBC reports. Though the violence that swept Kenya after the election has waned, tensions remain high.
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Mediator says he will speak to leaders personally
Associated Press Feb 26, 08 11:09 AM CST
(Newser)
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Mediator Kofi Annan is suspending the talks to end the bloody crisis in Kenya. In lieu of the negotiations, the ex-UN Secretary General says he will speak personally to rival leaders Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga, reports the AP. "I hope people will understand this is a move intended to speed up action," Annan said.
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Stonewalling by Kenya rivals paralyzing talks
BBC Feb 26, 08 3:45 AM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya's peace talks have ground to a standstill and the task of coaxing the country's two rival parties into an agreement is beginning to try even the patience of former UN secretary-general and lead negotiator Kofi Annan, reports the BBC. The two sides cannot agree on a power-sharing deal and aides say an increasingly exasperated Annan is beginning to feel like a "prisoner of peace."
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Power-sharing deal would prevent new round of violence
Reuters Feb 21, 08 9:43 AM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya’s government agreed today to create a prime minister position for opposition leader Raila Odinga—the narrow loser in a disputed election for president in December—in an effort to prevent a new round of violence from tearing the African nation apart. The details are still being hashed out, but a government negotiator promised the position would have real power. “We will not give anybody a hollow shell.”
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No progress seen on power-sharing or new government structure
Associated Press Feb 15, 08 5:08 PM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya’s president and opposition leader today unveiled an agreement to examine the hotly contested Dec. 27 election, but the sides have made no progress on a deal to share power, the AP reports. "There is real momentum," said mediator and ex-UN chief Kofi Annan. The deal also calls for the drafting of a new constitution within a year.
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Annan says deal is just days away
Reuters Feb 8, 08 10:53 AM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya’s two parties are close to a power-sharing deal that could end the national bloodshed in the wake of the disputed December election, Reuters reports. The details were still being hammered out, but one opposition legislator said, “We have finally agreed that there is a problem in the country and neither side can proceed on its own.”
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Immediate issues could be resolved within 15 days, Annan says
Reuters Feb 1, 08 2:27 PM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya's rival leaders have agreed on an outline for peace talks, Kofi Annan said today. Larger problems could take a year to iron out, but the ex-UN chief said the most pressing issues--ending the killings, aiding those hit by the turmoil, and fixing "immediate" political woes--could be solved within the next 7 to 15 days, Reuters reports.
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As violence continues, UN boss will join predecessor in talks
Reuters Jan 31, 08 11:29 AM CST
(Newser)
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Kenya's political turmoil continues to wreak havoc, and it is "threatening to escalate to catastrophic levels," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today. After the killing of another member of Raila Odinga's opposition party yesterday, the country faced renewed violence, Reuters reports. The death toll has reached 850 since late December as political disputes have opened old territorial conflicts.
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Politician's killing threatens peace talks
Associated Press Jan 31, 08 5:37 AM CST
(Newser)
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A second Kenyan opposition politician has been killed in the country's troubled Rift Valley, only two days after the murder of one of his colleagues. The lawmaker, who won a seat in parliament on the ticket of Raila Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement in December's contested elections, was fatally shot by a traffic cop at a roadblock. The police claimed the killing was part of a lovers' quarrel, but the party says it was a political assassination.
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