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| US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs |
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie
Carson's comments on the upcoming elections in Kenya has kicked off a storm with the Kenyan authorities demanding a clarification over what they call a contradiction of President Obama's statement earlier on.
Kenya's Minister for Foreign Affairs Prof Sam Ongeri sent a protest note to the US embassy in Nairobi seeking "clarification" over America's position on the polls. He has also summoned European Union diplomats based in Nairobi to express concern over what the government claims are attempts to "meddle" in Kenya's internal affairs.
Predictably, a section of the Kenyan leadership has taken issue with both the US position and similar statements from Western diplomats, notably UK, France and the EU. The envoys have indicated that they will be reluctant to deal with Kenya if Uhuru Kenyatta and his running mate William Ruto, now facing crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague, are elected as president and vice president respectively at the March 4 2013 polls.
Head of Public Service Francis Kimemia, a public officer, curiously, waded into the debate, joining the chorus of condemnation of the US and the Western diplomats over their alleged attempt to "dictate to Kenyans who to elect" at the March 4 polls. Kenyatta and Ruto, who will be required to attend court regulatory, have argued they will be able to run the country fro The Hague whenever they were required to attend court.
Carson, in a briefing to journalists emphasized President Obama's position and wish for for a free and fair polls and in the process, addressed the importance of building on the progress of the new constitution; the prevention of violence that occurred in 2007-2008; and the need for free, fair, and transparent elections all of which will help ensure stability and economic growth.
Assistant Secretary Carson made an opening statement and then answered questions from the press. Please find below the Transcript of his speech which has rubbed a section of the Kenyan leadership up the wrong way.
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Briefing on the Upcoming Kenyan Elections
Africa Regional Media Hub
Via Teleconference
February 7, 2013
Via Teleconference
February 7, 2013
MODERATOR: Good morning and good afternoon to
everyone from Johannesburg, from the Africa Regional Media Hub with the United
States Department of State. A warm welcome to our participants calling
from across the continent and to the media gathered in the room in Embassy
Nairobi. Today, we are joined by Assistant Secretary of State for African
Affairs, Johnnie Carson, who is speaking to us from Washington DC. We
begin today with remarks from Assistant Secretary Carson and will then open it
up to your questions. To ask a question press "star, 1" on your
phone to join the queue. Today's call is on the record and will last approximately
40 minutes. And with that I will turn it over to Ambassador Johnnie
Carson.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Carrie, thank you very
much for the introduction and good afternoon to all the participants in this
call. I am extraordinarily pleased to have the opportunity to speak with
you today about Kenya's upcoming elections. These elections are vitally
important to that country's future. Kenya has been a long standing friend
and partner of the United States and probably our closest partner in East
Africa, in the Horn.
These elections are vitally important. The choices that Kenyans make
on March 4 will affect the stability, prosperity and reputation of Kenya for
many years to come. As President Obama said earlier this week in his
message, Kenya must reject intimidation and violence and allow a free and fair
vote. Kenyans must resolve disputes in the courts, not in the
streets. Most importantly President Obama urged Kenyans to come together
even further towards a true democratic Kenya defined by the rule of law, and
strong institutions which respects the rights and dignity of all Kenyans.
President Obama clearly stated that the choice of who will lead Kenya is up
to the Kenyan people, but it is also important to note that choices have
consequences. We live in an interconnected world and people should be
thoughtful about the impact that their choices have on their nation and on the
world. All Kenyans, no matter their gender, ethnicity, or geographic
affiliation, have the responsibility, through their own actions, to help ensure
Kenya's elections are free, fair and peaceful, and through the election process
to select the country's leaders.
National leaders are responsible for their actions before, during, and after
the elections. Accountability for political violence, including that
perpetrated during the 2007 / 2008 electoral crisis is an important part of
building a peaceful and prosperous country. We know very well the
negative economic impact that past violence has caused Kenya. Kenya needs
successful elections to ensure a stable and secure environment that will
continue to attract foreign investment and to fuel the country's economic
growth and prosperity. The United States support free, fair, and peaceful
elections that will help ensure Kenya's stability and prosperity.
Since 2010, the United States government has contributed more than $35
million to support electoral reform, voter education, and elections
preparation. The United States elections observation effort will
complement domestic observation and other international observation
programs. With this election, Kenyans have a wonderful opportunity, an
enormous opportunity to build positively on the recent constitutional reforms
and demonstrate to the world the vitality of Kenya's democracy. As the
president said, to all that are willing to walk this path of progress, he will
continue to have a strong friend and partner in the United States of
America. I am going to stop right there and thank you for listening to my
opening remarks. I will take a few questions.
MODERATOR: Thank you Ambassador. We are going
to start today with some questions from journalists gathered in the room in
Nairobi. A quick reminder to callers to press "star 1" if you
have a question and that will put you in the question queue. So I will
turn it over to Chris Snipes who is moderating questions in Nairobi. Go
ahead, Chris.
MR. SNIPES: Thank you very much Carrie. We do
have a few questions, and we will start with a question from The Star.
QUESTION: My name is Nzau Musau, from The Star
newspaper. Ambassador, I just want a clarification. The message
which came from the President was interpreted in some quarters, some section of
the coalition of political players in Kenya, and they say that it is an
endorsement from the President that they can actually run and there would be no
action later. So you can expand on the fact if there would be sanctions
after the election of the ICC suspects? If indeed the President endorsed
any side of the coalition? Thank you.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Thank you very
much. The President was absolutely clear that the choice of who Kenyans
select as their leaders is up to the Kenyan people. We as the United
States do not have a candidate nor a choice in this election process. But
as I just said, choices have consequences. We live in an interconnected
world and people should be thoughtful about the impact that their choices have
on their nation, on their region, on the economy, on the society, and the world
in which they live. Choices have consequences.
MODERATOR: Chris, we can take another one in Nairobi.
MR. SNIPES: Thank you, yes, we do have another one.
QUESTION: Mr Ambassador, please clarify what you mean
by choices have consequences.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Let me say very clearly
that individuals have reputations, individuals have images, individuals have
histories, individuals are known for who they are, and what they do, what they
have said and how they act.
MODERATOR: Chris, do you have another, one more
question in Nairobi?
MR. SNIPES: We have one more at this time, yes.
QUESTION: My name is Antony. I am from The
People. Mr. Ambassador, I want you to clarify, or to make it
straight, what position the U.S. government is going to take if Uhuru Kenyatta
and William Ruto [inaudible] in the ICC.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: It would be presumptuous
of me to engage a hypothetical answer about an outcome about which we are not
certain at this point. I don’t know who is going to win the election, and so I
am not going to make any judgments about any actions that might be taken about
a winner or winners who are not yet known.
MODERATOR: We are going to take a question now from
callers. We are going take the first question from Peter Fabricious with Independent
Newspapers in South Africa.
QUESTION: Secretary Carson, thanks
very much for your briefing. Could you give me some sense of the U.S.
assessment of the likelihood of peaceful or violent elections? There is a
growing incidence of violence in various parts of the country and concern being
expressed about the possibility that this could have an impact on the
election.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Well, let me say that I
think that we in the United States join with many, many across Kenya to do
everything that we can to prevent a recurrence of the events that followed the
2007 elections and carried over into 2008. We have worked with groups
across Kenya to reduce the prospect of violence in the forthcoming
elections. We have worked with Kenyan groups to monitor, reduce, and
eliminate hate speech on radio and in the print media. We have encouraged
peace and reconciliation committees and communities in and across the
nation. We have reached out to religious organizations, to civil society,
to youth groups, to professional business groups, to women’s groups, and to
local leaders, all encouraging them to discourage violence, to look at this as
a peaceful process, and to avoid any kind of acts of intimidation.
There should be no place for violence in the democratic electoral process.
And we are also encouraging all political leaders to foreswear violence, to
sign pledges that they will not engage in violence, encourage or incite
violence from their followers, and they will not tolerate it. The Kenyan
justice system should not allow for impunity for those who commit violent acts
or who encourage violent acts.
We have seen some local, regionalized incidents of violence in the Tana
River area and around Mombasa. We look at these as a result of some
longstanding political and land grievances. We hope that these things
will not spill over into the political process, but it is incumbent upon all
those who are friends and partners of Kenya as well as all of those who are
citizens and politicians and civil society and religious and business leaders
in Kenya to recognize that violence should be eliminated from the political
process.
The violence that occurred after the 2007 elections into 2008 resulted in a
significant loss of Kenyan GDP that resulted in a loss of tourism, tourism revenue,
a loss of several billion dollars in earnings. And, because Kenya is a
gateway, a hub to all of the East Africa region, when the roads between Nairobi
and Kisumu were closed, it meant that there was no overland transportation into
western Kenya, into Uganda, into Southern Sudan, into Burundi, Rwanda, and into
the eastern Congo.
Kenya is a keystone state. It is an economic hub, a financial center,
an agriculture giant, a communications node. Kenya is vitally important
to every Kenyan, but it is also vitally important to the region and to the
global community. Kenya’s politicians must not allow violence to dominate
or interfere in this political process. It must be free. It must be
fair. It must avoid ‘07 and .08, and I will say again choices have
consequences. People should be thoughtful about the impact that their
choices will have on the nation, and on the region, on their image, and on the
country.
MODERATOR: The next question is from Channels TV
in Nigeria, Amarachi Ubani.
QUESTION: Thank you so much Ambassador. You
just answered my first question, so I will just go on to the second one.
In the meantime, while the U.S. is helping Kenya to prevent electoral violence
after the elections in March, what else is the United States doing to help
strengthen the country's democracy.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Let me say that we have
been a proud participant in efforts to strengthen Kenya’s democratic
institutions. Over a number of years we have worked very closely with the
Kenyan parliament to help strengthen the committee system in parliament, to
strengthen the ability of the parliamentary representatives to investigate and
to review legislation, to look at budgets, to develop bills and to undertake
their responsibilities as legislators.
We think that we have engaged significant efforts to strengthen the ability
of the parliament to hold accountable the executive branch for its actions and
responsibilities. We have also worked closely with the Kenyan judiciary.
We have an enormous respect for the Chief Justice of the Kenyan court, and we
have work with Kenyan jurists to help strengthen the judicial process and
judicial procedures. We recently invited a number of Kenyan jurists to
the United States to meet with members of our own federal judiciary, and also
our Supreme Court. We believe that democratic institutions play a vital
part of the democratic process. We have also worked with the media and
with other trade associations as well.
MODERATOR: Thank you, we are going to turn it back over
to journalists in Nairobi for a few questions, and just a reminder to callers,
we will come back to you, but press "star 1" to join the question
queue. Go ahead Chris.
MODERATOR: Thanks Carrie, we have a question from
Nzau Musau from the Star.
QUESTION: Ambassador, some of the U.S. allies in
Nairobi like the British, UK, have already announced they will adopt a policy
of no contact with the ICC indictees in case they get elected. So, from
the U.S., for example will you consider visa ban? Is there something
along that line?
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Let me just say again
choice have consequences. Choices have consequences. Individuals
have histories, individuals have images, individuals have reputations.
When they are selected to lead their nations, those images, those histories,
those reputations go along with them. They are not separated from
them. Again, I am not going to speculate on what our actions will be, but
we are not signatories to the ICC convention, but I underscore that we recognize
and respect what the ICC is trying to do, and we try to adhere to what its main
principles and goals are.
MODERATOR: Any more from the room?
MR. SNIPES: Yes, we have another question from the
Nation.
QUESTION: Thank you, my name is Aggrey Mutambo from The
Daily Nation. I would like to know how significant the U.S. sees
Kenya in the region and the whole of Africa?
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Thank you very
much. Kenya is our most important partner in East Africa and the Horn of
Africa. Our friendship has been strong and durable since Kenya's
independence in 1963. Today, Kenya houses our largest embassy in Africa,
not just in sub-Saharan Africa but all of Africa. Our quarters at Gigiri
are the most significant diplomatic establishment that we have in Africa.
Full stop. That is in recognition of our longstanding friendship and
partnership, but it is also in recognition of Kenya's overwhelming importance
to the region.
As I said before to you, Kenya is the financial and transportation hub of
East Africa. It is a major agriculture producer and center. It is a
major manufacturing centre. What goes on in Nairobi and in Mombasa not
only affects the people of Kenya, it affects all of the surrounding
states. What happens on the road from Mombasa to Nairobi and from Nairobi
over to Lake Victoria and Kisumu, can have enormous impact on landlocked states
in the region, on Uganda, its ability to move cargo in and out, its ability to
move agricultural supplies and capital goods. On Burundi. On Rwanda.
Mombasa is more important as a city and as a port of entry to Bukavu, to
Kisangani, to Goma, than is Kinshasa. The same can be said of Juba.
And the same can be said of many places in southern Ethiopia which have better
access through Kenya.
Kenya is an important partner. It is an important state, and this is
why we are focused on trying to do as much as we can, along with Kenyans, along
with Kenya's friends in the international community. To appeal to all of
Kenya's political class, all of the business and commercial elite, to take
seriously the need to ensure that these elections do not turn out the way that
the '07, '08 elections occurred.
This is not the time for violence. This is the time for reconciliation
and for progress. This is the time to build upon Kenya's constitutional
reforms. This is a time to take a step, a positive step forward, to make
Kenya an even greater place than it is today. But the decisions are in
the hands of Kenya's voters. In Washington we are looking at Kenya as a
partner, as I said before we do not select rulers for other countries, but we
do believe in the democratic process, we believe in democratic institutions,
and we believe that there is no place for violence or intimidation or
harassment in the democratic process. It is unacceptable.
MODERATOR: We are going to turn to our callers, and
the next question is from Richard Lough from Reuters, calling from
Nairobi. Go ahead, your line is open.
QUESTION: Ambassador, good afternoon. My
understanding is that Washington already has an essential contact only stance
with ICC indictees in general. I assume that includes Uhuru Kenyatta and
William Ruto. Could you confirm that that is indeed the case, and is it
therefore fair to assume that this stance would remain in place if Kenyatta won
the election, if it was deemed free and fair. And secondly, if I can ask
you a question on Mali. I just wondered if you are using, I understand
that you are using drones that are based in Niger, but whether the U.S. is
deploying drones that are based elsewhere over the Sahara region, whether these
drones are armed and whether you have plans in place for the deployment of
Special Forces.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Thank you. Let me
take the first Kenya-specific question. We have, in respect to President
Bashir, in individuals in Sudan who are ICC indictees, taken a position that we
will not engage with them, and we have not. And I will not speculate here
on what is not yet a fact. But I will say that it is clear that we have
taken our distance, our diplomatic distance, certainly in the case of these
individuals in Sudan who are ICC indictees, that we have not engaged with them
directly. We believe that individuals who are accused of crimes against
humanity should go before the courts to prove their innocence or suffer the
consequences of the judgment of the courts if they are found guilty.
With respect to Mali and drones, drones are not part of the State
Department's diplomatic arsenal. I will not comment on drones, their use,
or where they are located. This is not a question for public discussion
by me or my office. I will say this about Mali, that we support the
actions of ECOWAS, we support the actions of the French and the non-ECOWAS
forces that are operating there. We believe that it is important to do
everything that we can to help to eliminate the spread of al-Qaida in the
Islamic Maghreb in Mali and in other parts of West Africa.
But I will also say very clearly that Mali is a very complicated set of
issues. It is absolutely imperative that that country move back to
democracy through elections. It is important that the electoral roadmap
and timetable be adhered to and that we see a return to democracy there.
A military solution without a democratic solution is an imperfect solution.
We must also seek negotiations with the moderate Tuareg, those who
renounce violence. The Tuareg, many have longstanding political
grievances, legitimate and longstanding. They must be dealt with, but we
also must keep focus on the elimination of AQIM as a threat not only to Mali,
but the region as a whole, and we should not forget the humanitarian concerns
as well.
MODERATOR: Okay, we are going to take one question
from a caller, then we are going to go to Nairobi and take the final
question. The next question is from Jason Straziuso with the Associated
Press, calling from Nairobi.
QUESTION: Hi Ambassador, you touched on this a
little, but I want going to see if you can round it out a little bit. In
general, you were just talking about Sudan, not only the reaction to the
individuals who might be charged but what is the economic or military, security
reaction as a whole, in terms of the U.S. relations to the country if it has a
leader in place that is indicted or convicted by the ICC.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Jason, thank you for that
question. I don’t want to make a comparison with Sudan in its totality
because Sudan is a special case in many ways. We have comprehensive
economic and commercial sanctions on Sudan. Some of our most rigid and
tough sanctions in the world, but those sanctions are there as a result of
actions that occurred in Darfur and also because of Sudan's support in the past
for terrorist organizations. Sudan is on our state sponsored terrorism
list. It is against U.S. law for us to trade with Sudan, to have any
financial transactions with Sudan, to fly any commercial airplanes into Sudan
or have any American registered ships go into Sudanese ports. Many of
those sanctions deal with the government's mishandling of the situation in
Darfur, and the government's past support of terrorists and terrorist
organizations. None of that, none of that applies to Kenya. Again,
it is a different set of circumstances.
Let me just also add here, Jason, if I would, I am going to come back to
this point, choices matter. Choices matter and they have
consequences. We live in an interconnected world. People should
realize that their choices have an impact, and this impact can be in terms of a
country's image, it can be in terms of how leaders and countries are perceived,
and people make choices in a global community on the basis of images, and on
the basis of past histories, of things that have occurred. These things
are not in isolation.
MODERATOR: Thank you. We are going to take the
last question from Nairobi. So Chris, I will turn it over to you.
MR. SNIPES: Thank you very much Carrie, we have one
more question from The Standard.
QUESTION: Thank you, my name is Moses Njagi from The
Standard. Ambassador, you have repeatedly said that choices have
consequences. Is that to say that the U.S. for example would have the
[inaudible] if they go ahead and elect persons who have tainted images?
ASSISTANT SECRETARY CARSON: Again I am not prejudging
who Kenyan voters will select. That is a choice for Kenyans to
make. It is a choice only for Kenyans to make. But we do live in a
broad global interconnected community and as I said, it is difficult to
separate a person or persons from their images and from their histories and
from their actions. It's inevitable, it’s around the world, it’s not one
place but everywhere and every place.
MODERATOR: Thank you. That concludes today's
call. I would like to thank Assistant Secretary of State for African
Affairs, Johnnie Carson, for joining us and thank all of our callers for
participating. If you have any questions about today's call, please contact the
Africa Regional Media Hub at afmediahub@state.gov.
Thank you so much.
