In brief: Kenya after the March 2013 elections

The 4 March presidential elections saw Jubilee Alliance candidate Uhuru Kenyatta win a narrow victory in the first round. , Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto, are both due to be tried by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in connection with the violence that followed the December 2007 elections. The victory of Kenyatta and Ruto has presented Western governments with a dilemma. Kenya is an important Western partner in terms of trade (oil was recently discovered), anti-piracy and counter-terrorism (where it has 5,000 troops in southern Somalia as part of African Union Mission there). While Western rhetorical support for the ICC remains strong, many in Kenya and beyond believe that pressure is being exerted on it ‘behind the scenes’ to soften its position so that the cases do not excessively impede Western cooperation with the new Government. The ICC has recently indicated that it is willing to allow parts of the trials to be held either in Kenya or Tanzania. Independent Kenya turned 50 on 2 June. Much uncertainty still hangs over its future. Anti-corruption campaigner John Githongo has claimed that “as a nation-building exercise, the election failed badly”. The International Crisis Group has said: “Many of the conflict drivers that fuelled violence in 2007 are yet to be adequately addressed.”