Election violence is regarded as a subcategory of political violence that is primarily distinguished by its timing and motive. Dismissing the violence that followed kenyas previous election as mere tribalism is too simplistic an explanation. An abuja gov ernment paralyzed by postelection sectarian violence or a resultant military coup would be unable to collabo rate with the obama administration in. The conviction to integrity and the proper organization of elections by electoral management bodies is fundamental to success. Electoral violence is a subtype of political violence in which actors employ coercion in an.
Soon afterwards, opposition politicians claimed that the election was rigged and foreign observers noted serious irregularities european union election observation mission, 2008. The recent 2016 post election crisis in gabon12 that left scores dead seems to shows that electoral violence is an intractable phenomenon on the continent. What are the latest theories of political and electoral. Understanding electoral violence to better prevent it unowas. Kenya held its fourth multiparty election on 27 december 2007. This incidence of election violence in africa is so high that even an election considered being free, fair and transparent the outcome may not have been free of violence. Media, elections and political violence in eastern africa. Best practices for the prevention of electoral violence reliefweb. Causes of electoral violence in africa written by ngah. The postelection violence that shook kenya six years ago may have included 40,000 incidents of sexual and genderbased violence, according to amnesty international, which is calling on the.
Disputed vote plunges kenya into bloodshed the new york. The kenyan commission of inquiry into post election violence background the commission of inquiry into post election violence cipev was the outcome of the kenya national dialogue and reconciliation accord of february 28, 2008, negotiated by kofi annan and the panel of eminent african personalities, and its sister agreement of. As i detail in this book, more than half of all elections held in africa experience some form of violence or intimidation either before or after election day. Preventing and managing violent electionrelated conflict in africa. Emerging trends and challenges of electoral democracy in africa 5 accountability that would be relevant for the continent. It looks at the use of abusive language in politics, election observation, gender related violence and the role of the youth in ghanaian politics. Dealing with electionrelated violence in fragile and. Analysts warned of mass violence and a repeat of 200708. Kenya national dialogue and reconciliation, agreement establishing a commission of inquiry on postelection violence pdf file 3 pages, 614 kb.
The kenyan commission of inquiry into postelection violence. This paper, like others, such as goldsmith 2014 and h oglund 2009, focuses on election violence, as separate from other types of political violence, and starts with the. In ghana, every election since 1992 has experienced some level of violence, however, the level and intensity of the violence varies from election to election. Election violence education and resolution ever ifes. Protests were called and became increasingly violent after the release of election results on 30 december.
International election observers and diplomats celebrated the march 20 general elections as peaceful. Electoral violence in nigeria council on foreign relations. The international media looks at this crisis through the lenses of ethnic cleansing and a fight for tribal supremacy between the luo and the kikuyu. As observed, electoral violence can take place in any stage of the electoral process. The kenyan commission of inquiry into postelection violence background the commission of inquiry into postelection violence cipev was the outcome of the kenya national dialogue and reconciliation accord of february 28, 2008, negotiated by kofi annan and the panel of eminent african personalities, and its sister agreement of. This also prompted the kaduna state government to disburse n140 million. The fighting resulted in 1,3 casualties, at least 350,000 internally displaced persons idps, approximately 2,000 refugees, significant, but unknown, numbers of sexual violence victims, and the destruction of 117,216 private properties and 491 governmentowned. Using round 4 afrobaromter survey data from 20 african countries in. Methodology focus of the study was restricted on the role played by women in conflict management following the 20072008 postelection violence. It is often assumed that governmentsponsored election violence increases the probability that.
Explaining and mitigating electoral violence hosted by. The 2011 presidential election witnessed the height of physical electoral violence with more than 800 fatalities beside properties that were destroyed mainly in the core northern states orji. Economic hypotheses suggest that less wealth and slower growth should increase the likelihood of electoral violence. Kenyas disputed presidential election triggers an explosion of violence that has killed more than 275 people, including dozens burned alive as they sought refuge in a church. Elections, violence and conflict prevention ace electoral. Nature of the violence the majority of kenyas post election violence took place in january and february, 2008. Physical election violence including physical attack, resulting into assault, afro asian journal of social sciences volume vi, no 1. Kenya failing postelection violence victims, says amnesty.
Postelection violence in kenya and its aftermath center. First is the perception of historic marginalization by certain ethnic groups as a consequence of. One way of understanding postelection violence and the possible mediarelated imperatives is to look at the variety of contexts in which it can occur. Post election violence where there is persistent and sustained sense of election fraud. When widespread conflict did not erupt, international, regional, and domestic actors lauded the elections as successful. Election violence prevention tools in continuity with the past, competition for power was the principal motivation behind electoral violence. Tens of thousands of houses and businesses were looted or destroyed. Election violence has worked well for the ruling new azerbaijan party, which routinely arrests journalists and activists, tries to prevent the opposition from campaigning and sends security forces.
The most recent example is the postelection violence that occurred in kenya in 20072008 between the kikuyus and luos and many other socalled tribes. The fighting resulted in 1,3 casualties, at least 350,000 internally displaced persons idps, approximately 2,000 refugees, significant, but unknown, numbers of sexual violence victims, and the destruction of 117,216 private properties and 491 governmentowned properties including. An empirical examination of existing theories gregory wallsworth october 28, 2015 abstract recent studies of election violence in africa found violence mars as many as 80 percent of african elections. Causes of electoral violence in africa written by ngah gabriel sous dir. One way of understanding post election violence and the possible mediarelated imperatives is to look at the variety of contexts in which it can occur. Most of the violence occurred after the election, as the results of the presidential poll began to become. Origins and response the april 2011 elections were considered to be one of nigerias fairest polls.
By midjanuary, six hundred kenyans lay dead in an unprecedented orgy of postelection violence. The commission of inquiry on post election violence 2009 that investigated kenyas 200708 post election violence attributed the countrys history of electoral violence to a combination of longstanding conflict drivers. In this paper, i perform an analysis of the conflict to examine why widespread violence erupted in the wake of kibakis presidential reelection. Various studies on election violence in africa have found violence to mar as high as eighty percent of african elections. I am researching political and electoral violence and i need latest electoral violence theories propounded from 2011 to date because all the theories accessible to me are from 2010 and earlier and. The impact of the 20072008 post election violence on.
This research seeks to examine the causes and effects of post election violence on agricultural production in kesses division, uasin gishu county. Although electoral violence may be considered less severe in ghana than in other countries in subsaharan africa, to ignore symptoms is to create vulnerabilities which have fostered an. Emerging trends and challenges of electoral democracy in. Preventing postelection violence based on the kenyan. Dealing with electionrelated violence in fragile and conflictaffected states 3 different types of electoral violence take place, or can be triggered, in different phases of the electoral cycle. Even as there are challenges in elections in the africa, it. Elections in africa are periods in which the stability and security of african states hangs in the balance, due to. In the early 1960s, moi, muliro and ngala of kadu supported regionalism against kenyatta, odinga and mboya and kanus nationalism associated with the centralised system. The announcement of the results of the 27 december 2007 general election in kenya triggered widespread violence, resulting in the deaths of over a thousand people, thousands of people being injured, and several hundreds of thousands of people being. The election violence that wracked the country in 2007 and 2008 was, unfortunately, not an anomalynot for kenya and not for subsaharan africa.
Electionrelated disputes and political violence strengthening the role of the african union in preventing, managing, and resolving conflict report of the au panel of. Violence arising from the inherently competitive nature of elections, as well as exist ing insecure environments they frequently take place in, is a. Kenya article 19 defending freedom of expression and. It also analyses inter and intra party conflicts and further looks at the linkage between politics and violence in ghana. Like its three predecessors, the 2009 symposium was part of eisas contribution to building democracy and advancing democratic governance, human rights, peace and citizen participation in africa.
It is a coercive and deliberate strategy used by political actors incumbents as well as opposition parties to advance their interests or achieve specific political goals. Kenya has been riddled with conflict and violence throughout its brief history as a nation. Violence and armed struggle was led by the mau mau and by 1955,000 africans had lost their lives see anderson, 2007. High stakes political violence and the 20 elections in kenya. Breaking the cycle of electoral violence in nigeria united states.
A political agreement and government of national unity ended the violence and led to a host of reforms, including a new constitution passed in 2010. Although many theories of election violence exist, they and the e ectiveness of electoral violence, remain largely untested hickman, 2009. In kenya, there is rape, sexual harassment, hate speeches, eviction and displacement, as the unique examples of the nature of political and electoral violence in the country. The 2007 postelection violence in kenya, however, was of a different magnitude. Postelection political violence 5 irregularities in the electoral process. Violence has long been a feature of american elections. More than 250,000 people were internally displaced, made refugees in their own country. The 2000 referendum and general election electoral violence as it is currently manifested had its defining moment in the postelection phase of the constitutional referendum of 2000. Similarly, in the presidential election of 1996, robert mugabe was the only candidate. Conflict analysis of 2007 postelection violence in kenya.
Similarly, societies prone to experiencing electionrelated violence are normally vulnerable to. The common wananchi citizens did express relief and some pridethat mass violence similar to 200708 had been prevented. It can happen before or on the polling day, as it was the case in the guinean elections in 2010. In the winter of 2007, machetewielding mobs marauded around the kenya, hacking rival tribes to death and burning women and children alive.
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