Police will deal firmly with Mungiki, says spokesman

The Kenyan police force will respond firmly to threats of violence issued this week by members of an outlawed sect against those opposing their favoured presidential candidate during general elections scheduled for later this year, according to a senior police official.

On Tuesday this week, hundreds of members of Mungiki, a quasi-political and traditional fundamentalist ethnic Kikuyu sect composed largely of unemployed youths, poured into the streets of the capital, Nairobi, to demonstrate support for Uhuru Kenyatta - the son of Kenya's founding president, Jomo Kenyatta - whom outgoing President Daniel arap Moi is backing as his chosen successor.

Moi, who is the chairman of the ruling Kenya African National Union (KANU), has in recent weeks publicly campaigned for Kenyatta's nomination as the party's presidential candidate. His choice has sparked protests from others within KANU, who are also seeking nomination as candidates by the party, arguing that Kenyatta was being given undue advantage over them.

Peter Kimanthi, Kenya's police spokesman, told IRIN on Thursday that his force was prepared to "make sure" that no violent disruption took place, either in the current campaign period, or during elections. "I don't see anything happening, because we are in a position to prevent any ugly scene from occurring," Kimanthi said. "We have a duty to do, and we will do it according to the procedures and regulations. We are prepared to ensure a peaceful transition. That is our hope," he added.

Since it was formed in the late 1990s, the Mungiki group has been publicly criticised for its involvement in social and political violence in various parts of the country. In March this year, Police Commissioner Philemon Abong'o banned the Mungiki along with 17 other vigilante groups operating in the country, for security reasons. The ban followed attacks in Nairobi's Kariobangi residential suburb in which nearly 30 people were killed overnight by a gang of suspected Mungiki members.

During the Tuesday demonstration, Mungiki members announced that no one would be allowed to "again insult President Moi", the Daily Nation reported on Wednesday.

Their remarks have sparked outrage from the media and human rights groups in the country, which have criticised the police and the government for allowing the group to exist. Following the demonstration, the local media reported on Thursday that Kenya's attorney-general, Amos Wako, had criticised the police and politicians for allowing the Tuesday demonstration to proceed.

Tourism and Information Minister Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka also warned that images of illegal mobs brandishing weapons on the streets of Nairobi were detrimental to the country' economy, the state-owned Kenya Broadcasting Corporation reported on Thursday.

Musyoka warned that pictures available on the Internet portrayed the country as lawless and were likely to scare off tourists and investors intending to come to the country. "What we saw in Nairobi on Tuesday when simi- [sword] and rungu [club]-wielding Mungiki sect adherents held a political demonstration was the rule of the jungle", the minister said.

However, Ibrahim Waruinge, the Mungiki national leader, said "only God" could ban his group, according to the Kenya Television Network (KTN). Waruinge told KTN on Thursday that Mungiki had never been registered in the first place, and therefore could not have been banned. "Mungiki is an organisation that was formed and started by God himself, so it is only God who can ban Mungiki," Waruinge said.

"We did not demonstrate as Mungiki. We demonstrated as KANU in support of Uhuru Kenyatta. So the attorney-general - whatever he is trying - he is trying, he is playing some tribal politics. Mungiki was not banned. You ban what you have registered," he added.