With the rise in popularity of Raila Odinga, who is a member of the Luo tribe, it was felt that a more populist government might be in Kenya's future. Thus, when Kibaki was declared the winner under what many considered suspicious circumstances the frustrations of many years percolated into mass violence.
The violence that erupted was the result of a lack of ethnical pluralism within Kenya. As pointed out earlier, Kenya has been ruled essentially by members of the Kikuyu tribe since Kenya's declaring of independence in 1963. The other tribes inside Kenya have been anxiously awaiting to take part in the Kenyan government and with the rise of Odinga it was felt that this would occur. Unfortunately when it did not years of frustration led to violence. In order for this to be avoided in the future efforts must be made to increase ethnic pluralism, that is, an increase in respect for and fair treatment of all tribes within Kenya. There must also be increased communication between leaders of all tribal units and a movement toward developing a commitment of a common good. Tribal loyalties must be put aside and developing a...
Through the work of the Ushahidi staff and bloggers throughout Kenya who contributed material the problems within Kenya were shared with interested governments and humanitarian groups throughout the world. As a result, efforts were likely intensified to assist in the settlement of the difficulties within Kenya which led to a more expedient resolution of the conflict that brought stabilization to Africa's most successful democracy. Ushahidi's continued participation in Kenyan politics will hopefully assist in developing the ethnic pluralism necessary to insure the continued success of said democracy.
References
Amnesty International. Amnesty International Says Kenya Must Investigate Post-Election Violence and Hold Perpetrators Responsible to Prevent Future Unrest. 15 February 2008. 13 January 2011 .
Ongiri, I. "Kenya: I Acted Under Pressure." The Standard 2 January 2008.
