VOA标准英语2008年-Kenyan President Invites Rival for Talks

Kenya's main opposition¹ party has canceled planned nationwide protests, saying it wants to give international mediation² a chance to resolve a post-election dispute that plunged³ the east African country into chaos⁴ eight days ago. As the death toll⁵ from the ethnic⁶ and political unrest rose to 500, the top U.S. envoy⁷ to Africa said the vote-counting was rigged and urged Kenyan leaders to quickly find a solution to the crisis and to implement⁸ political, social, and electoral reforms. VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu has details from the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

The leader of the opposition Orange Democratic Movement party, Raila Odinga, called off the planned protests after his second meeting in three days with the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer in Nairobi.

The U.S. envoy has been meeting with Mr. Odinga and Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki to encourage a political reconciliation⁹ between the two men, who fought in the closest race in Kenya's history.

The opposition leader accuses Mr. Kibaki of rigging the December 27 presidential vote and has called for his resignation. The president says he will not step down, but is willing to discuss a power-sharing deal with Mr. Odinga.

The opposition leader has rejected the offer and says international mediation is needed to break the political impasse¹⁰.

Speaking to reporters, Assistant Secretary Frazer criticized Kenya's electoral commission, calling it a flawed institution that needed reform.

She said that she believed both political parties were guilty of rigging the vote-counting and did not blame Kenyans for feeling cheated.

"They have been cheated by their political leadership and the institutions. The principle here is really that Kenyan institutions be respected and strengthened and that political dialogue is necessary for fundamental reconciliation. In that dialogue, we, the United States, hopes that they will do more than accommodate each other, that they will actually work on the institutional challenges and the social grievances¹¹ that this crisis has clearly demonstrated have existed," she said.

Allegations of vote-rigging by Mr. Kibaki unleashed¹² a wave of political violence in the country of nearly 35 million people. The violence quickly degenerated¹³ into tribal¹⁴ clashes, particularly between the president's majority Kikuyu tribe and Mr. Odinga's Luo tribe.

Last week, more than 30 ethnic Kikuyus were burned to death in a church in the western Rift¹⁵ Valley town of Eldoret, prompting the government to accuse the opposition of inciting¹⁶ genocide. The opposition is no less angry, accusing government security forces of committing crimes against humanity for using excessive force to put down the violence.

The diplomatic talks in Nairobi come amid U.N. warnings that 250,000 people, uprooted¹⁷ by ethnic violence, need urgent humanitarian¹⁸ assistance.

Assistant Secretary Frazer says the United States is concerned that even if a political solution is found, lingering tension and anger between some tribes may still leave the country divided and uncertain about its future.