The Wall Street Journal-20080129-Politics - Economics- Kenya-s Ethnic Clashes Widen- On Eve of Meeting- Toll Presses Rivals To Ease Stances

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Politics & Economics: Kenya's Ethnic Clashes Widen; On Eve of Meeting, Toll Presses Rivals To Ease Stances

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NAIROBI, Kenya -- Rival ethnic groups fought with clubs and machetes in a pair of once-peaceful towns, before a second scheduled meeting today between President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga.

After late-December elections ended in a political stalemate between the two, violence has spiraled into ethnic clashes. Fighting escalated over the weekend after a lull earlier this month and continued yesterday.

As the two sides prepare to sit down again, Mr. Odinga and his Orange Democratic Movement appear to face dwindling options for ending the bloodshed. Hard-line supporters insist that their leader should refuse to negotiate with a "thief," as Mr. Odinga has often called Mr. Kibaki, after election officials named the president the winner of the voting.

When Mr. Odinga, a member of the Luo tribe, was shown on television shaking hands with Mr. Kibaki last week, youths in the town of Kisumu, an ODM stronghold, torched tires in the street and accused him of betrayal.

The death toll has climbed past 800. The violence is putting pressure on both men to ease their stances over the election stalemate. As clashes intensify, the country risks fragmenting along ethnic lines.

For weeks, the violence has largely been perpetrated by Kalenjins and Luos pursuing Kikuyus -- Mr. Kibaki's tribe -- burning their homes and forcing an estimated 225,000 to flee to refugee camps. The police have fired tear-gas canisters and sometimes live ammunition at ODM supporters protesting in the streets.

Small groups of Kikuyus have defended themselves or in some cases pursued Luos or Kalenjins unprovoked, but today's attacks appeared to be the first wide-scale acts of reprisals. Even Mr. Odinga's allies are starting to predict more-dire consequences if a solution isn't reached. "I can see this country breaking apart," ODM spokesman Tony Machoka said. Mr. Machoka said Mr. Odinga would consider three options: new elections in three months; an interim government that would enact election reforms; or a forensic audit of the results.

Mr. Kibaki has made it clear he has no intention of standing down and challenged critics to prove the vote was rigged. Last week, standing beside Mr. Odinga and former United Nations chief Kofi Annan, who flew in to mediate the talks, Mr. Kibaki angered opposition officials by referring to himself in a joint appearance as "your duly- elected president."

Starting over the weekend and continuing yeseterday, ethnic Kikuyus charged through two towns that previously had escaped violence -- Nakuru and Naivasha. Attacking with machetes and clubs, they hunted down Luos and other non-Kikuyus, burning homes and shops and killing people.