To report or not? That’s the dilemma facing Kenya’s media today. Since being accused of fanning ethnic tension that fed the politically- instigated 2008 post election violence, the media have been going through quiet soul searching. Frank discussions have continued in newsrooms and workshops on just how the media should report political campaigns in future and rein in politicians with loose tongues.
As early as 2009, the Kenya Editors Guild retreated to Mombasa to reflect on the popular belief that the Kenyan media stirred ethnic hatred in the run up to the last General Election. In their June 14, 2009, declaration, the editors gathered resolved to commit themselves “to setting the agenda for informed public debate, foster and sustain the fullest public participation in the process of truth, justice and reconciliation”. They also vowed “to provide leadership and continue keeping the country focused on the pursuit of truth, justice and reconciliation”, and to “proactively promote moderate and reconciliatory voices amongst the public, and discourage inflammatory and divisive politics and hate speech.”
Many months later on the verge of another election, its worth pondering if the media have been faithful to their vows. My verdict is yes. That there are fewer inflammatory statements in the media today is not because our politicians all got ‘saved’ overnight. Their penchant for verbal warfare is as potent as ever despite the threats of prosecution and sanctions by the National Cohesion and Integration Commission. Credit largely belongs to the media for astute exercise of their professional discretion. Self censorship, if you will call it, is responsible for preserving Kenya from politicians at loggerheads with each other.
But is this the rightful role of the media? Should the media be protecting their audiences from the true character of their own leadership? Isn’t such censorship contrary to the constitutionally guaranteed freedom of expression and access to information? It is the business of the police and other law enforcement agencies to contain offensive speech, which they have failed to do. The National Cohesion and Integration Act defines hate speech in such clear and broad terms that no policeman needs to look over his shoulder for a signal to handcuff any offending politician. Section 13 orders the arrest, prosecution, conviction and sentencing to one year or a fine of one million shillings any person who “uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behavior, publishes or displays any written material …(etc) if such a person intends thereby to stir up ethnic hatred, or having regard to all the circumstances, ethnic hatred is likely to be stirred.”
If you attend any political rallies, such as the series by the G7, you will be assaulted by inflammatory speeches laced with ethnic hatred. Some hawkish politicians have distinguished themselves for propaganda and hate speech against certain politicians and communities but none has been summoned or reprimanded. This week, The Bulletin (www.eastafricapress.net) which monitors media coverage of issues put the spotlight on hate speech, excerpts of which I reproduce below:
“According to a Synovate poll released in February, over 60 percent of the respondents believe the next elections will be marred by inter-ethnic violence." Well, there are already signs of that which, sadly, the media is not giving much attention to. Let’s start with the “prayer rallies”. These events, as some commentators have rightly stated, are not about prayers at all. They are carefully choreographed sessions for political mobilisation along ethnic lines. If you haven’t seen or read that in the news, it is because all those bland media reports are based on selected innocuous remarks made at the usually very charged rallies.
But let’s take you back a little. In the first round of the “prayer rallies” last year, the Daily Nation carried verbatim incendiary remarks in Kikuyu language made by Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta (UK) in Kiambu County. The public reacted with consternation. Of course, UK was not as much as asked to record a statement with the police over the utterances.
For some mysterious reason, Nation has not carried any other report of that kind. Yet probable hate speech and incitement to violence continue. In round two of the “prayer rallies” currently going on, no media house has been brave enough to bring to the attention of Kenyans and the world the dangerous tribal mobilisation being carried out around the country ahead of the elections. Here is an excerpt from an international news report about the “prayer rally” addressed by Ruto, UK and their allies in Eldoret on 27 January. It is worth quoting at length:
“According to another source present at the meeting, prayers took exactly 11 minutes and immediately thereafter, the rally quickly morphed into a full-fledged political rally with all the speakers making statements laced with hate speech and/or incitement. “Speaker after speaker took the mike to yelp what was clearly a well-rehearsed script, with nearly all the speakers stating that should Uhuru and Ruto (Ocampo-2) be barred from vying for the presidency, then Kenya will not have elections.
“The speakers made incendiary statements, at times insinuating that it was not the Ocampo-2 that were on trial but their respective communities, which they said should unite to resist or defeat the ICC process, which in turn they claimed is the end product of NGOs working with Prime Minister Raila Odinga through the international community.
“Belgut MP Charles Keter kicked off the storm with a rallying call. ‘Just as we said in 2007 that ‘No Raila, No Peace’, we will say ‘No Uhuru and Ruto, No Elections.’
“Embakasi MP Ferdinand Waititu said in Swahili: ‘Lazima tufanye kila kitu kuzuia huyu mjaruo kuingia State House tuingie huko wenyewe ndio tuvuruge hii maneno ya ICC…’ (We must do everything we can to stop this Luo man [Raila] from ascending to State House as president. We must be the ones getting in there so that we can mix-up this ICC nonsense.)
“Makadara MP Gideon Mbuvi ‘Sonko’ said: ‘Hakuna vile tutakubali mtu wa jina linaanza na O asaidiwe na cousin yake huko America wa jina linaanza na O washikane na Ocampo kumaliza watu wetu….tutapambana nao’. (There is no way we can allow someone with a name that starts with O to be helped by his cousin in the US with a name that also starts with ‘O’ to work together with Ocampo to finish our people…we will deal with them).”
Perhaps those politicians were misquoted. But look at the rising political temperature in Central Kenya since the “prayer rallies” started. Lari MP David Njuguna’s home was attacked and his vehicle set on fire only days after he asked President Mwai Kibaki to endorse Prime Minister Raila Odinga for the presidency during a function in Kisumu.
Kibaki did not respond to Njuguna’s request. But what is significant is that ODM MPs attending the function had raised the same issue. For that, Njuguna was seen to be acting against the political interests of the Kikuyu community. Internal Security Assistant Minister Orwa Ojode has told the nation that the attack at Njuguna’s home may have been stage-managed. Maybe. He could know stuff other Kenyans don’t. But the Star reported last week that: “Residents and politicians from Lari constituency have accused their MP of disrespecting President Kibaki and asked him to send an apology to the Head of State.”
Asking Kibaki, a Kikuyu, to anoint Raila, a Luo, as his successor amounts to “disrespect”, right? Is it far-fetched to suppose that those same “leaders and residents” from Lari plotted the attack to teach Njuguna a lesson? There you have it. Politicians going around the country whipping up ethnic passions are setting the stage for another round of conflagration in Kenya. But no one wants to raise the alarm. Not even the media, whose solution is to ignore the inflammatory statements lest they be accused of propagating hate speech. Let no one come to tell us later that, ‘The violence was spontaneous’.”
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