Rights activists back Omar over his ethnic remarks

THURSDAY, 29 DECEMBER 2011 00:07 BY JUSTUS OCHIENG

Rights groups have maintained Hassan Omar’s article published on the Sunday Standard of November 27 titled “the unacceptable institutionalisation of ethnicity” does not amount to hate speech.

The groups asked the government to give a detailed report of employment in the civil service to challenge Omar’s article that employment in  government is based on ethnicity.

NGO Council Chairman Ken Wafula, Western/Nyanza Civil Society Organisation Network coordinator Betty Okero and Genesis for Human Rights Commission Programme officer Caleb Ng’wena said if the government report proves otherwise, it is then that the article can be deemed to amount to hate speech. “There is a great imbalance in the recruitments in Public Service and we believe Omar’s article did not miss the point by even a single margin,” Wafula said. “There is an urgent need for the report on employment in public service to ascertain that Omar had no ill intention when writing the article.”

He said Omar correctly stated that majority of offices in some government departments are occupied by individuals from a particular region.  “why then should he be condemned and vilified for telling the truth?” he posed.

 Ng’wena said Omar’s sentiments were even supported by the report by the National Cohesion and Integration Commission. He noted that as a human rights activist, Omar is within his mandate to tell Kenyans the truth without fear of contradiction. “It is true that a particular tribe has benefited immensely in senior government positions and if talking about this is what is referred to as hate speech, then Omar is guilty,” added Ng’wena. He called on legislators from the Coastal region to back Omar instead of keeping mum on the matter.

Accusation against Omar is an insult to the people of the Coast and they must be protected, he added. Okero said, “the government should not hurl accusations against Omar but instead set the record straight on employment opportunities in the civil service.”

She pointed out that tribal dominance of the State is a grave issue that has ruined many countries in Africa. We must therefore work tirelessly to end this dreadful behaviour and never to vilify the herald of truth like Hassan.

Government spokes man Alfred Mutua has been in the forefront of calling for Omar’s resignation saying his article contradicted Chapter 6 of the constitution that talks of integrity and the quality of good leaders.