Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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February 6, 2008

Kenyan Humanitarian Crisis Deepens as Crisis Talks Continue
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1B2A61D:A6F02AD83191E160354EFD83DB91312898CBE7246176B735& Relief officials
appeal to political leaders to stabilize security as number of people
fleeing violence continues to rise In Kenya, the government and
opposition have resumed talks on the dispute over the elections that
sparked a month-long wave of violence. Relief officials say the
humanitarian toll continues to rise and are calling for a speedy
solution. VOA's Scott Bobb reports from Nairobi.







Displaced Kenyans line up to get porridge at Tigoni police station in
Nairobi, 05 Feb 2008Relief officials appealed to political leaders to
stabilize security throughout Kenya as the number of people fleeing
violence in some parts of the country continued to rise.

A Kenya Red Cross spokesman, Tony Mwangi, says this is aggravating the
humanitarian crisis.

"There are a lot of areas that require immediate assistance in the
form of food as well as shelter for freshly displaced people and this
is mostly in the western region of the country and a bit of the Rift
Valley," Mwangi said.

Nearly 100 people have been killed in the violence in the past several
days, mostly in western Kenya. The Red Cross says as a result the
death toll has risen to about 1,000 and the number of homeless has
grown to more than 300,000.

Mwangi said his organization has provided some assistance to most of
the displaced in the country but not enough. He said security was an
essential condition for the efficient distribution of aid.

"Our humanitarian response moves a lot faster when security is
available," he explained. "And while the Kenya Red Cross have access
to some of the areas that have been affected the speed at which we
would like to operate is not the best."

Mwangi said the best solution is for the displaced to be able to
return home where they can receive food rations while their homes and
communities are rebuilt. The camps, which are prone to disease,
criminality and social problems, are not a long-term solution.

The talks aimed at resolving the crisis resumed, overseen by former
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The session focused on the disputed
December elections that sparked the violence.

The opposition accuses the government of rigging the process in order
to install President Mwai Kibaki for a second term. The government
says the opposition should take its objections to the courts.

Several hundred business leaders Tuesday announced that industrial
production had been reduced by 40 percent during the past month.
Exports had been hard hit by the paralysis of transportation. And
hotel occupancy in tourist areas had fallen from 90 percent to 10
percent.

They forecast that economic growth would decline by several percentage
points from its recent rate of more than six percent. They said
400,000 jobs could be lost in the next six months and the country
could fall into recession if the crisis continued.


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