Kenya Accuses Foreign Envoys of ‘Colonial Interference’

Kenyan Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula has accused the US and European Union (EU) envoys of breaching protocol by using travel bans to compel the country’s electoral commission to resign. In a protest note to the US and EU representatives, Wetangula said their action had ‘a condescending tone reminiscent of colonial mindset.’ The US and various EU countries have issued visa bans against Kenyan Electoral Chief Samuel Kivuitu and his team of 21 electoral commissioners after an independent inquiry blamed the commission for bungling the 2007 presidential poll. An estimated 1500 people died and 350,000 were displaced in violent skirmishes that followed the controversial announcement of the election’s widely disputed results.[PE]