OTJR: Research Working Papers

 

The Politics of Violence and Accountability in Kenya

 

On 28 February 2008, PNU, the party of incumbent Kenyan president Mwai Kibaki, and ODM, the opposition party led by Raila Odinga, signed an agreement for a coalition government. This agreement was brokered by the Panel of Eminent African Personalities under the leadership of Kofi Annan, and aimed at bringing an end to the violence that broke out following contested 2007 elections. Two of the four commissions established under the agreement to address long-term issues have implications for transitional justice – the Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC- gazetted on 9 May 2008), and the Commission of Inquiry into Post-Election Violence (the Waki Commission, which submitted its report on 15-17 October 2008, recommending prosecutions and institutional reform). Following insufficient progress in the implementation of the recommendations of the Waki Commission, the names of suspects behind the post-election violence were handed to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The handover of these names opens an uncertain chapter in Kenya’s history of political violence. This development has generated a vibrant debate among Kenyans: What should accountable politics look like? What is the role of transitional justice in getting us there? Under what conditions might the current turn of events contribute to the country’s long term stability?

Over the coming months, this Oxford Transitional Justice Research forum will explore the social, political, and legal issues that arise from the Kenya situation, asking what these developments mean for Kenya, the ICC, and the wider realm of transitional justice. It offers a space in which concerned Kenyans can come together with a range of experts, scholars, practitioners, and commentators to discuss fundamental questions about how we got here, and the strategies necessary to move the country forward.

 

To discuss this OTJR debate on African Arguments, please click here.

To contribute an essay of 800-1500 words to this debate, please contact the discussion editor: lydiah-kemunto.bosire@politics.ox.ac.uk.

 

21. Why Kenyans Must Embrace and Support the TJRC

2 November 2009 by Godfrey Musila

Six reasons why Kenyans must support the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC).

 

20. The ICC and Moreno-Ocampo are also on trial

9th October 2009 by Gabriel Dolan

Given that the ICC's record of more errors than trials, Kenyans should be ready to monitor the Court's performance as it becomes involved in the country.

 

19. When truth-seeking efforts face challenges of credibility

25th September 2009 by Lydiah Kemunto Bosire

Truth commissions can succeed, under perform or fail depending on how credibility challenges are addressed.

 

18. Kenya’s Economic Crimes: Can a conditional Amnesty be meaningful?

18 September 2009 By Kisiangani Emmanuel

The creative use of conditional amnesty may be useful in tackling Kenya's economic crimes.

 

17. Misconceptions II - Domestic Prosecutions and the International Criminal Court

11 September 2009 by Lydiah Kemunto Bosire

The Imanyara Bill for the Special Tribunal for Kenya proposes a relationship with the ICC that is both outside the Rome Statute and the current practice of complementarity.

 

16. Leashing Kenya’s Dogs of War: A Theoretical Assessment

9th September 2009 by Korir Sing’Oei

A review of the literature on how states interact with courts suggests that in Kenya, the conduct and impact of any prosecutions policy will be inevitably linked with domestic politics.

 

15. Misconceptions I – The ICC and the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission

21st August 2009 by Lydiah Kemunto Bosire

Why the establishment of Kenya's Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) does not affect the admissibility of the Kenyan situation before the ICC.

 

14. A radical proposal to deal with our prejudices

21st August 2009 by Dr. Lukoye Atwoli

A radical proposal for Kenyans who long for ethnic homogeneity.

 

13. Decreeing and establishing a constitutional order: challenges facing Kenya

10th August 2009 by Yash Ghai

In a context where only violation of the constitution make political control possible, the absence of ethical and moral standards in politics mean that even the most robust constitutional text will 'not make a difference' in Kenya.

 

12. Saving international justice in Africa

5th August 2009 by Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

Tthe debate on international criminal trials in the African context has degenerated to a contest between 'supposed imperialists and alleged impunity apologists', neglecting important political concerns.

 

11. Incremental Judicial Reforms in Kenya

2nd August 2009 by Charles A. Khamala

Recent resolutions by the Law Society of Kenya were essential in the effort to strengthen the Kenyan judiciary.

 

10. Special Tribunal Enactment: Why Cabinet, MPs, are Misleading Kenyans

31st July 2009 by Ndung’u Wainaina and Pamela Chepng’etich

Kenya needs a Special Tribunal.

 

9. Truth, Justice, Reconciliation, and… Land Tenure Reform?

29th July 2009 by Chris Huggins

Land reform is central in the economic mandate of Kenya's Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC).

 

8. Accountability Debate in Kenya Unfolds in a Near Policy Vacuum and Ethnic Tension

29th July 2009 by Godfrey M Musila

Mr. Godfrey Musila's essay explains how the power struggle within the governing coalition polarizes and ethnicizes justice, leading to Kenya's incoherent transitional justice agenda.

 

7. Kenya: Our Possible Futures; Our Choices

17 July 2009 by Sisule Musungu

Kenya must avoid the status quo, as it can only result in fractured decline.

 

6. Watu Wazima: A gender analysis of forced male circumcisions during Kenya’s post-election violence

17th July 2009 by Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg

Forced circumcision of Luo men by Mungiki was facilitated by their feminization in the political discourse.

 

5. The Spectre of Impunity and the Politics of the Special Tribunal in Kenya

17th July 2009 by Tim Murithi

Annan handed over the Waki envelope, believing that Kenya is in a high risk category in the framework of the Office of the Special Advisor of the UN Secretary General for the Prevention of Genocide.

 

4. Kenya Post-2008: The calm before a storm?

17th July 2009 by Gabrielle Lynch

To move forward, Kenya must focus on the presidency and its zero-sum politics, impunity, the informalization of violence, and the politics of ethnicity.

 

3. DIY Violence is Corrosive of Nationhood

17th July 2009 by Daniel Waweru

Given the permeation of the majimboist ideology outside the political class, reform and accountability are incompatible.

 

2. The normalization of violence

17th July 2009 by Daniel Branch

Accounts of violence in Kenya that focus on elites must also interrogate the agency of ordinary Kenyans.

 

1. The politics of violence and accountability in Kenya

16th July 2009 by Lydiah Kemunto Bosire

Introduction to the debate: the politics of violence and accountability in Kenya.