Post by Mapambano Kenya on Mar 3, 2006 3:22:29 GMT 3
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Kenya Scandinavia Democratic Movement (KESDEMO)
For International distribution
website: www.kenyasocialist.org
email: mapambanokenya@gawab.com
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March 3rd 2006
kenyasocialist.org/kswsfiles/2006/attack_on_standard.htm
Friday March 3rd 2006
KESDEMO CONDEMNS ATTACK ON THE STANDARD MEDIA GROUP
The savage attack on the Standard Media Group on Wednesday March 2nd by a terror squad officially trained by the Kenyan State should not have come as a surprise to anybody who is conscious of the fact that a group of political gangsters are in power in Kenya.
The Kenyan media is buzzing with comments and analysis about “attack on press freedom”, “Kenya moving towards a dictatorship”, “This is the last straw” and other related clichés. But for KESDEMO, the only new aspect in the situation is the magnitude of the attack because not even former Dictator Daniel arap Moi used to burn newspapers scheduled for release.
Before the defeat of the government at the referendum, KESDEMO warned the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) that if the Movement’s leadership was prepared to open a confrontation in the streets with the scared Dictatorship of Mr. Mwai Kibaki, then “The Orange leaders must be prepared to witness the ugliest face of the government and be prepared to deal with any political consequences… (KESDEMO November 20th 2006”).
ODM backed downed from mass rallies as these opportunists dropped demands for snap elections. The Standard newspaper and other sections of the media continued pursuing the government and what is happening now is that The Standard is paying the price for having overtaken ODM which has been very passive after winning the referendum.
From KESDEMO’s Socialist perspective, the attack on The Standard is based on the fear of the fragile capitalist ruling class in Kenya losing power and The Standard is currently being viewed by bandits in government as part of the conspiracy to topple the regime.
This barbaric and atavistic attack, whose responsibility the government has arrogantly taken through Mr. John Michuki (the notorious criminal heading the Internal Security Ministry), will temporarily divert public attention from the mega corruption scandals of the Narc regime but it will not halt the process of the collapse of the Kibaki dictatorship which got underway long before the referendum.
The world over, especially in the ex-colonial world, once the rotten ruling class feels that its position is threatened, these hooligans have a pathological habit of violating every rule (including the Constitution) if that is what it takes, not just to maintain themselves in power but also to protect vested political and economic interests. It is for this reason that many Socialists believe that the Constitution written by criminals calling themselves “government” is a piece of paper to be implemented by an armed ruling class, not in the interests of the exploited workers and the poor but in the interest of the wealthy and rich looters in the so called government.
In the case of the attack on The Standard, the colonial Constitution (which nevertheless protects press freedom) was set aside to open the way for police to move in and burn Newspapers destined for distribution while at the same time disabling a TV station. This process will be repeated in the future over and over again as long as iron fisted greedy capitalists rule Kenya. Obviously, ODM now feels that it should get back into the streets with mass demonstrations, something it should have continued doing after winning the referendum and which KESDEMO repeated several times in our statements and other releases.
A demo has been called for Tuesday next week “in support of press freedom”. However, ODM should expect further brutality through the instruments of violence available for the State. Once confrontations hit the streets in a sustained way, the overthrow of the Kibaki dictatorship will depend on whether ODM will be in a position to lead the “anti Kibaki revolution” through mass mobilizations using any weapons available in the situation. But if they back down once again, they will have to wait for elections at the end of next year!
While KESDEMO strongly condemns the attack on The Standard in the strongest terms possible, the Movement wishes to warn Kenyans that the worst of the Kibaki dictatorship is yet to come. The situation will become deadlier and even bloody when members of the thieving ruling class begins to see their exit from power looming in the horizon. At this point, the paramilitary General Service Unit (GSU) will be called in to deal with crowds with the Kenyan Army being on standby just in case they are needed.
With the latest attack, the Kibaki regime has sent signals that it is time to send this corrupt Mafia group packing. The dilemma facing Kenyan workers and millions of poor people around the country is that another Moi or Kibaki may be on stand by to seize power in Kenya for another cycle of struggle “against dictators” to begin. KESDEMO believes that while Kibaki must go, the whole political system that enables the Kibakis to transform themselves into dictators, attack press freedom, burn newspapers, disable TV stations and to loot the economy with impunity should also go.
The struggle against the Kibaki dictatorship and the struggle to defend press freedom in Kenya should be linked to the struggle against capitalism in our country because this is what Kibaki and opportunists in the ODM represents. The system will always be used by those controlling it to do anything, whether it is attacking The Standard, arresting Journalists doing their work, attacking workers on strike, stealing State resources through corruption, setting corrupt thieves in government free or attacking Wananchi exercising their rights to demonstrate in the streets. There is no limit to violations under capitalism.
The attack on the Standard should be the latest proof that Kenya is ripe for democratic Socialism as an alternative to a system so rotten that copies of newspapers are being set ablaze and TV stations disabled because crooks in power must have their way. Abolish capitalism in Kenya!
KESDEMO believes that those who engineered and implemented this attack should be noted so that they can be brought to justice in any post Kibaki regime because Kenyans are seeing the last of what is known as the “Kibaki Presidency”.
Although KESDEMO has no ideological connections with The Standard, the Movement is part of the many voices ready to defend the right of the Newspaper to exist. We condemn the arrest of The Standard journalists and the unpeakable State terror that the Newspaper and its Journalists continues to experience under a brutal and barbaric Narc regime that has repeatedly cheated Kenyans and confirmed that Kibaki’s election was a gigantic mistake.
Martin Ngatia:
ngatia_martin@hotmail.com
Okoth Osewe:
osewe@hotmail.com
KESDEMO Central committee
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KENYA SCANDINAVIA DEMOCRATIC MOVEMENT (KESDEMO)
Kenya People's Democratic Movement (KEPEDEMO-Mapinduzi), Kenya Socialist Democratic Alliance (KSDA), Kenya Social Forum in Norway (KSF - Norway), Muungano Ya Akina Mama Scandinavia, Organization of Kenyans in Denmark (OKD) and Association of Kenyan Students in Finland (AKSIF). ALLIES supporting statement: Kenya Socialist Community in London and Kenya Democracy Project (KDP) – Scandinavia. Statement also available at: www.kenyasocialist.org
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