afrol News, 20 May - Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga has joined a number of the opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) ministers and deputies that wanted amnesty to be granted to the party's youth supporters arrested during the post-electoral violence.

Mr Odinga, who spoke in both Tinderet and Kisumu, said he had held consultations with key government officials, including President Mwai Kibaki and Internal Security Minister George Saitoti on the youths' release.

Odinga expected the issue to be addressed "expeditiously" because it would not do any favour for the youths to be languished in jails in Nyanza, Rift Valley and Nairobi.

Mr Odinga party's dispute over December presidential poll results sparked off violence which soon snowballed into "ethnic cleansing". More than 1,000 people were killed and tens of thousands displaced.

And after months of tedious and painstaking mediation, a power-sharing government was formed in Kenya. Under this arrangement, Odinga was appointed Prime Minister.

Supported by his loyal cabinet ministers, Odinga said the amnesty would be in the interest of the country's peace and reconciliation drive.

But Kibaki's allies, including the Justice Minister, Martha Karua, would not agree with calls for amnesty, insisting that those found culpable of taking part in the orgy of violence must face the full force of the law. Ms Karua and her colleagues feared the action would encourage and condone "a culture of impunity".

Industrialisation Minister, who was thrown a homecoming party, wondered why the state had ignored their demand. He asked the state to hold talks with "our arrested supporters" instead of only the outlawed Mungiki sect. Mr Kosgey said that was tantamount to double application of the law.

His arguments were based on the fact that some suspects had been allowed to go scot-free while those in Nyanza and in the North Rift were held and charged with incitement.

Political observers feared that failure to resolve this issue could threaten the future of the grand coalition meant to cool down political and ethnic tensions in a country once seen as the oasis of democracy.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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