Politics

Truth and Reconciliation Commission for Kenya?

18 Feb, 2008

One of the proposals under consideration by negotiators seeking a political settlement to the crisis sparked by the disputed 27 December presidential elections is the formation of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to address historical injustices that have been exposed by the post-election violence. These include struggles over precious land resources particularly in the fertile Rift Valley and the biased distribution of resources by the authorities. The proposed commission would be modelled on the one set up in South Africa after the end of apartheid in 1994. However, it is not clear exactly how it would function and the negotiation team is working on the modalities.

The land question dates back to colonial times when British settlers displaced the original Maasai and Kalenjin inhabitants from the area. Following independence in 1963

much of this land was taken over by members of Kenya