Biden calls for Kenyans to put aside tribal divisions

Jun 9, 2010, 15:37 GMT

Nairobi - US Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday urged Kenyans to discard the tribal divisions that saw the East African nation descend into violence following disputed elections in December 2007.

Biden, speaking in Nairobi during a two-day visit, said that ordinary Kenyans must ignore politicians who used ethnic loyalties for their own benefit.

'And as you prepare to write a new history for your nation, resist those who try to divide you based on ethnicity or religion or region,' he said.

'Too many times Kenya has been ... torn apart by ethnic tensions, manipulated by leaders who place their own interests above the interests of their country.'

As many as 1,500 people died and hundreds of thousands were displaced by the tribal violence that engulfed the nation after opposition leader Raila Odinga's supporters accused President Mwai Kibaki's party of stealing the election.

Odinga became prime minister in a power-sharing deal that ended the violence, but Kenya is still in the process of carrying out reforms considered necessary to avoid more bloodshed.

A new constitution is seen as a key step, and Kenyans vote on a draft of the document on August 4.

The US has been a key supporter of reform in Kenya, the birthplace of President Barack Obama's father, and Biden urged people to vote in the referendum on the constitution.

'The ultimate responsibility, the real power ... rests with the people of Kenya,' he said. 'By your participation, by your vote ... you have before you a singular opportunity to strengthen Kenya's democratic institutions.'

Biden also slammed the culture of corruption in Kenya, where graft permeates every level of society, and the lack of accountability.

'Too many of your resources have been lost to corruption, and not a single high-level official has ever been held accountable for these crimes,' he said. 'Too many of your institutions have lost the people's confidence.'

Biden was also expected to meet Salva Kiir, the president of Southern Sudan, and take part in a meeting on Somalia - which is facing a bloody Islamist insurgency - as the US looks at ways to increase regional stability.

The vice president was expected to leave for Johannesburg on Thursday morning to take in the US national team's first game at the World Cup.