It is a sad commentary when the fallout from the elections in Kenya continue to fuel riots and a general instability in a country that was once rarely heard of. What is even more unsettling is the fact that it has become something of tribal warfare, which is now threatening the very fabric of Kenya's soul. The real shame is that the poor is affected and being displaced more than anyone else. There is calm in some areas of the country, such as the capital city Nairobi, but there is complete anarchy in other parts such as Nakuru where news reports have said that furious mobs rule the streets, burning homes, brutalizing people and expelling anyone not in their ethnic group.

Herein lies the problem that has beset Africa for centuries--tribal warfare. It is said that "hundreds of men prowled a section of the city with six-foot iron bars, poisoned swords, clubs, knives and crude circumcision tools. Boys carried gladiator-style shields and women strutted around with sharpened sticks." My question is, how is this going to solve the problems with the election process which was obviously flawed from the start. Violence never solves anything, but serves to exacerbate the situation.

One month after the election, and despite international pressure on Kenya’s leaders to compromise and stop the killings, the country is tearing itself apart along ethnic lines. Nakuru is the scene of a mass migration now moving in two directions. In the past 10 days, dozens of people have been killed in Molo, Narok, Kipkelion, Kuresoi, and now Nakuru, a tourist gateway which until a few days ago was considered safe.

It seems to me that the problems in Kenya today run deep. Reports have said that there were historic grievances over land and deep-seated ethnic tensions, with many ethnic groups resenting the Kikuyus, President Mwai Kibaki’s group, because they have been the most prosperous for years. The disputed election essentially served as the spark, and opposition supporters across Kenya vented their rage over many issues toward Kikuyus and other ethnic groups thought to have supported Mr. Kibaki.

In the Rift Valley, local elders organized young men to raid Kikuyu areas and kill people in a bid to drive the Kikuyus off their land. It worked, for the most part, and over the past month, tens of thousands of Kikuyus have fled. This is eerily reminiscent of the ethnic cleansing in Rwanda that lasted for a very long time.

Nakuru is surrounded by spectacular scenery, with Lake Nakuru and its millions of flamingos drawing throngs of tourists each year. The city has a mixed population, like much of Kenya, split among several ethnic groups including Kikuyus, Luos, Luhyas and Kalenjins. In a Nakuru neighborhood called Free Area, hundreds of Kikuyu men burned down homes and businesses belonging to Luos, Mr. Odinga’s ethnic group. The Luos who refused to leave were badly beaten, and sometimes worse. According to witnesses, a Kikuyu mob forcibly circumcised a Luo man who later bled to death. Circumcision is an important rite of passage for Kikuyus but is not widely practiced among Luos. My question to all this ethnic furor, is it going to solve anything but create more chaos? This is barbaric, to say the least.

Kofi Annan, the former secretary general of the United Nations, visited the Rift Valley on Saturday. He said that “We saw people pushed from their homes and farms, grandmothers, children and families uprooted.” He is in Kenya trying to broker negotiations between Mr. Kibaki and Mr. Odinga. He called for the Kenyan government to investigate the perpetrators and increase security.

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