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Inquiry calls for Kenya tribunal on clashes
15 Oct 2008 15:09:07 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Humphrey Malalo and Richard Lough NAIROBI, Oct 14 (Reuters) - An official inquiry into Kenya's post-election violence called on Wednesday for an international tribunal to prosecute the ringleaders, but did not disclose the names of the top suspects.

Tribal and political clashes killed 1,300 people and displaced 300,000 more after a disputed Dec. 27 presidential vote in east Africa's biggest economy. In some areas, the clashes were planned by political leaders and businessmen.

"The commission has in its possession the names of powerful individuals in politics, in government, in business, the police and elsewhere," said Judge Philip Waki, who headed the inquiry.

"Anybody charged should be suspended and barred from holding any public office," he told a news conference.

But he disappointed many Kenyans by saying the commission's list of top suspects would be sealed and handed to former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Annan mediated talks that created a coalition government in April to end the crisis.

Waki's report said the state security agencies had "failed institutionally to anticipate, prepare for, and contain the violence. Often individual members ... were also guilty of acts of violence and gross violations of human rights."

In some areas, it said, the police were overwhelmed by the numbers of attackers and the coordination of the violence.

"These were systematic attacks on Kenyans based on their ethnicity and their political leanings," Waki said.

He said failure by the police and provincial administrations to heed warning signs had allowed the bloodshed to escalate.

His report called for a tribunal with non-Kenyans on the senior investigations and prosecutions staff. (Writing by Daniel Wallis)

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