THE STANDARD
OPINION
The High Court declared the BBI process null and void. [Samson Wire, Standard].
The dismissal of the Building Bridges Initiatives (BBI) in totality has the potential, through the judges interpretation of the law, of injuring the persona of the Kenyan voter. The judges failed to interrogate the constitutional amendment with a view to safeguard Kenyans against perennial electoral violence which the BBI attempted to cure.
Lord Alfred Denning’s would have cited their limitation as having compromised our justice system and their action as a rule of public policy which could be justified through convenience. The question is whether the ruling was made out of convenience other than progressive realisation of our common aspirations as Kenyans; protection of our primary and secondary rights.
Leaders in Africa and around the world give lip service to addressing
underlying causes of terrorism, violent internal conflicts, criminal violence and other threats. In practice,
they prioritize militarized responses that are not only
abusive of human rights but also ineffective and counter-productive.
African conflicts are most often seen in terms of simplistic
narratives and applied to the entire continent. But each country
is distinct. Most are at peace, afflicted not by war and warlords,
but by the less visible kinds of violence that prevail around the
world: violence against women or the everyday violence of crime and
discrimination against immigrants.
AfricaFocus Bulletins with Material on Politics and Human Rights April 19, 2021 Confronting Global Apartheid Demands Global Solidarity http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/ga2104.php
The COVID-19 pandemic has both revealed and deepened structural
inequalities around the world. Nearly every country has been hit by
economic downturn, but the impacts are unevenly felt. Within and
across countries, the people who have suffered most are those already
disadvantaged by race, class, gender, or place of birth, reflecting
the harsh inequality that has characterized our world for centuries. March 8, 2021 USA/Global: Taxing the Tech Giants http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/dig2103.php
How should we determine the corporate tax a big tech company should
THE STANDARD
KENYA
The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) has raised alarm over possibility of violence and chaos as the 2022 General Election inches closer.
In a document released earlier this week, the commission expressed concern of emerging trends in the infamous 2007 elections that may manifest again in upcoming 2022 polls if nothing is done. At least 1,400 people are reported to have died in ethnically-fuelled 2007/08 election violence.
In the latest report, NCIC highlights six major threats to peaceful elections. They include a deteriorated level of trust that Kenyans have for each other and towards the government and the strong sub-culture of violence.