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Ethnic Fault Lines Emerge in Kenya's Post-Election Turmoil
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"They were saying the plot belongs to a Kikuyu," she said, recalling the rioting mob that attacked the place on Sunday night. "They were Luos. And they were saying we cannot stay. They were saying they are going for revenge."
Similar reports poured in from across the country. As the New Year approached, people slept at friends' houses, at police stations and behind locked doors, fearing the worst.
In Washington, the State Department issued a warning, saying that "U.S. citizens should strongly consider the risks of travel to Kenya," describing conditions as "volatile and subject to change."
Kenyan security forces cracked down severely on protesters Monday under cover of a media blackout imposed by Kibaki's government, which had been praised for allowing an unprecedented degree of press freedom. Helicopters hovered over volatile areas of Nairobi where police have kept rioters, protesters and residents alike hemmed in with clubbings, bullets and tear gas. Many people there are running out of food and water.
"There is no movement here," said Lennox Ongaya, 30, an Odinga supporter who has grown angrier by the day at the police surrounding his community. "Let them kill us now rather than us dying slowly over the next five years," he said, referring to Kibaki's term.
The situation could explode or find release on Thursday, when Odinga, a master organizer, has called for a "million-person march" in downtown Nairobi.
A rally that was to have taken place Monday was canceled after police threatened arrests and turned downtown Nairobi into a no-go zone of green uniforms, riot shields and assault weapons.
Odinga's aides hope that the Thursday rally "can help let the steam out," said Salim Lone, a spokesman. "It could go the other way, too, but Odinga has been clear about wanting peaceful and democratic action."
In the late afternoon, Kangeme's streets were packed and restless with people who weren't shopping, since shops were shut, or working, because Kibaki had declared Monday a national holiday. Rather, they seemed more to be simmering, as relationships among neighbors frayed.
Martin Makokha, who belongs to the Luhya ethnic group and supports Odinga, said he had just come from a walk with an old friend, a Kikuyu.
"He's pretending everything is normal," Makokha said, referring to his friend. "Even right now, I'm so bitter. He's saying, 'Since the election is over, let's still remain friends.' "
He looked down, seeming to wonder whether that was possible. Then, with some effort, he said: "I don't blame him. I blame the election officials. Why should we fight?"
