London Latest News August 2008

                         Carnival riot as police battle 180-strong gang                 

Stand off: Police block off the streets as the gand in rounded up

More than 1,500 riot police were attacked with missiles as they encircled 180 youths who planned violence at the Notting Hill Carnival. Scenes turned nasty outside the Oval cricket ground in south London as the pre-emptive swoop took place and running street battles started. At least one police officer was reportedly left bloodied and injured. Police had been tipped off that the group were planning to cause trouble. Last night, officers wearing riot gear were also deployed to deal with a group that had been causing trouble in Ladbroke Grove for more than two hours, Scotland Yard said. Chief Insp Jo Edwards said: "Whilst thousands of people came to join in with the fun and spectacle of carnival, once again the event ended with a small minority of people determined to fight and cause trouble. "For over two hours our officers were faced with a hardcore, mainly of young men, who came to carnival not to enjoy the event but to fight, commit crime and cause trouble. "Officers had to work hard and deliver a strong interventionist style of policing late into the night to make sure that these criminals were not allowed to take over the streets of Notting Hill. "This is not the way anyone can want to see the carnival finish." She continued: "Through our stop and search, use of screening wands and seizures of dangerous dogs we sent a clear message that carnival is no place for such behaviour as this. "A fast time intelligence-led operation in Oval managed to stop a large group we believed were headed for the carnival to commit such scenes of disorder. "No-one wants to see this unique event being overshadowed by such unacceptable behaviour." There were also 334 incidents of reported crime. Chief Insp Edwards said: "The number of arrests is up on last year, but that is predominantly because of proactive policing." Police used stop-and-search tactics throughout the carnival and at entry points to catch potential criminals.

"The message is that there is no place for knives at the carnival," she said.

Seeds attends a Church Service

The Seeds visiting team concluded their tour of London by attending a church service on Sunday 17th August, 2008 at Memorial Community Church, Plaistow, former Memorial Baptist Church, to thank God for the good and blessed time He has given to them while here in UK. While speaking and greeting the members of the church, Uncle Derek Kibe said that he was pleased to be in a diverse community based Church where many races were represented, and spoke one Godly language of love.

Mum Seed, Mrs. Margaret Nyathira Mwarangu, centre, Uncle Derek Kibe, right, and Baba Chiku-Duncan K. Kamanu, left, singing a Kikuyu song 'E-muoyo Jesu e-muoyo' during the Church service at Memorial Community Church, Plaistow.

On the left, Seeds being welcomed to the Church by the Church Minister-in-charge's wife, (right) Mrs.Debbie Janes and Lady Joyce Walker (2nd right). They later posed for a group photograph with them on the right.

Mum Seed, Margaret Nyathira, left, Rosemary Cookerel, centre, and Ivy Patterson, right, enjoying the Church service and on the right Mum Seed posing for a photograph with the Associate Pastor and his wife, Rev.and Mrs.Steve Acott and Mr Derek Kibe after the Church Service.

Mum seed gets a 'Peck on the cheek' from a  Church lady admirer, Josephine, who said that she enjoyed her song very much even if she could not understand the words.' You are a smart, beautiful and Godly Kenyan lady, she said, and on the right Mum Seed and Uncle pose for a group photograph with her grand children, Solomon K. Kamanu Snr, right, Kevin K. Kamanu, 2nd right, Solomon K. Kamanu Jnr, 5th right and Mrs Dorcas Waithaka, 2nd left back low, her three children- Eva Waithaka -holding a young child, Ryan, 2nd left, and her youngest daughter Damaris (small girl with red dress). Also in the picture are Newton Karanja, standing at the back and her sister Faith Karanja of Coventry. The Karanja's had come to pay a visit to Waithakas.

                         Mr Derek Kibe, (2nd  left-standing), poses for farewell-group photograph with his grand children-Jack Karanja(bending), Solomon K. Kamanu Jnr-right, front low, Margaret N. Njiiri, right, Joseph M. Njiiri and Mr Kibe's brother-in-law Charles Gichiri Kiruthi, and on the right Mr D. K. Kamanu, 2nd right, tells Mr Derek Kibe, 'I wish you a very save and blessed flight back to Kenya. God be with you 'til we meet again'. Looking on is Solomon K. Kamanu Jnr.

Teachers authorised to carry guns

                                                                                                                                                                                         United State of America Flag

A Texas school district will allow teachers and staff members to carry concealed firearms to protect against school shootings when classes begin this month, provided the gun-toting employees follow certain requirements. David Thweatt, superintendent of the Harrold Independent School District, says the small community of Harrold in north Texas is a 30-minute drive from the Wilbarger County Sheriff's Office, leaving students and teachers without protection. He argues the lone campus of the 110-student district sits near a heavily travelled highway, which could make it a target. Mr Thweatt said in a story published on the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's website: "When the federal government started making schools gun-free zones, that's when all of these shootings started."

‘Secret’ report reveals sponsors of poll violence

                                                           One of the several IDP camps in Eldoret that sprang across the country following post election violence. Photo/FILE 

Nairobi, Saturday, August 16 2008. The state-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights had two disparate reports on perpetrators of post-election violence – one that listed politicians and business people linked to both PNU and ODM, and another that appeared to leave out most suspects linked to ODM, the Sunday Nation has learnt. Apart of the document claims a church elder had been “called upon to pray for and bless the youths before they went off to war”. That the elder “offered traditional prayers and read a verse from the Bible to the youth attackers in support of violence”. MORE

Brown 'plans £150 winter give-away'

                                                                                  Family values: Gordon Brown, and his wife Sarah               

Sunday, August 10, 2008. Millions of families could be in line for a windfall of about £150 this winter as Gordon Brown seeks to reinvigorate his troubled premiership, it emerged. Ministers are understood to be considering the one-off payment to all households in receipt of child benefit as part of a major economic package planned for the autumn. The move, which officials stressed had not yet been given final approval, would help more than seven million families hit by soaring fuel bills. It is one of a series of measures being mooted as part of an autumn fight back by the Prime Minister. Another is a temporary suspension of stamp duty, designed to give the declining housing market a boost. The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (DBERR) indicated that further help with fuel bills was being considered, but insisted no decisions had been taken.

                                                         Families are to be given help to pay their rising fuel bills

The fuel payment plan - as reported - would go to everybody with children, rather than being targeted at the neediest, signalling Mr Brown's desire to appeal to Middle England. It was apparently overheard by a commuter travelling in the same train carriage as a top Whitehall mandarin last month. Sir Brian Bender, permanent secretary at DBERR, was said to have discussed the plans in front of fellow passengers on a GNER train between Leeds and London. It follows the £120 tax cut awarded to 22 million people earlier this year as the credit crunch took hold. That was announced in response to the 10p tax row, which seriously damaged Labour's standing. But the £2.7 billion U-turn benefited all basic rate taxpayers, rather than just the four million affected by the abolition of the 10p band.

Source of Divine Mission and Spiritual Light Turned to be Spiritual Darkness

                                                      Ven. Kenneth Kahare, the ACK Mission Co-ordinator in UK, (A London File Picture)

'The one time source of divine mission and spiritual light has turned source of spiritual darkness, and time has come for Africa to re-evangelise the Western Church'. This was said by the  Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) Mission Co-ordinator in UK, Ven. Kenneth Kahare when bidding farewell to Mr & Mrs Kangethe as they prepared to leave for Kenya. Archdeacon Kahare based his statement on the current Anglican Church situation in the West. He thanked Mr & Mrs Kangethe for their commitments and effort to come all the way from Kenya to see their children, friends and other christian friends in UK. 'This is a real parental love in action', he added. Archdeacon Kahare emphasised the need for other parents in Kenya who have children abroad to emulate Kangethes and try to come/go and see their children abroad as this will enable families to remain connected even if they are living many miles away. Mr Kangethe is an Elder and a member of Fathers' Association Group in the Diocese of Mt. Kenya South while his wife, Mrs. Emily W. Kangethe, is a member of the Anglican Mothers' Union. While saying a special send-off prayer for Kangethes' safe journey back to Kenya, Archdeacon Kahare thanked the Anglican Church of Kenya for a wise notable decision of not to attend the Anglican Communion Lambeth Conference in England. 'Be assured that we Anglican Church of Kenya members in UK stand firmly with you,' he concluded. Archdeacon Kahare is the Minister in-charge of Anglican Church of Kenya , East London.

Ven. Kenneth Kahare, right, bidding farewell to Mr & Mrs Kangethe in London before they left for Kenya while Mr James Njega, 2nd right, looks on.		With Mr & Mrs Kangethe(sitted), are from left, Mr. James Njega, their daughter Elizabeth Kangethe, Archdeacon Kenneth Kahare and Mr. Duncan K. Kamanu (Baba Kevin).

TAKE A TOUR OF HOST CITY BEIJING

                                        The impressive National stadium or 'Bird's Nest' (left) and the stunning Aquatics centre (right)

MORE than half-a-million visitors are expected to descend on Beijing for the Olympics when they start tomorrow. But unlike Athens four years ago, there’s no last-minute panic. The stunning architecture of glistening Olympic buildings  - many of which were finished months ago - dominate the ever-expanding Beijing skyline. Thirty one sports venues have been built throughout the city, the centrepiece of which is the incredible Beijing National Stadium – dubbed the ‘Bird Nest‘. 100,000 all-seater bowl, which will host the athletics and opening and closing ceremonies, is a stunning vision of 36km of steel wrapped endlessly around itself. Just as impressive, and even cooler, is the Beijing National Aquatics Centre – just a stone’s throw from the stadium in the north east of the city. The city is changing all the time. It’s more expensive now, but the quality of our lives is so much better The huge ‘Water Cube’, again completed months ago, is made of foam and looks more like huge pile of bubble wrap than a sports stadium. The 65,000 sq m venue, which holds 17,000 people, has a translucent blue-toned skin which ‘breathes’ like a greenhouse, warming up the swimming pools inside naturally.

Nyahururu eyes sanctuary to ease conflict

A Hippo in the water

The Nyahururu Municipal Council is seeking funds aimed at establishing a hippo sanctuary and resolving a growing human wildlife conflict. The sanctuary planned for Manguo estate has been on the council's itinerary for years but hippos roaming villages at night for food and elephants searching for water have added urgency to the project. The Kenya Wildlife Service is also considering a corridor between Rwathia Forest and Uaso Narok River for the animals as a way of resolving the conflict. The menace has been caused by a spring in the forest drying up, forcing elephants and hippos to fend for themselves beyond the natural habitats. A KWS hippo count in 2006 set the number of hippos at the river at 206 but the number is believed to have tripled since. 

Four BA bosses charged over price-fixing scandal

British Airways aeroplanes

London, Thursday, August 7th, 2008. Four former and current British Airways executives were today charged with criminal price fixing. In only the second - and easily the highest profile - case of its kind ever seen in Britain, the men were charged by the Office of Fair Trading with "having dishonestly agreed with others" to fix fuel surcharges for long-haul passengers. The four - head of sales Andrew Crawley, former commercial director Martin George, former head of communications Iain Burns and former head of sales for the UK and Ireland Alan Burnett - could each face up to five years in prison and unlimited fines. They are due to appear before City of London magistrates' court on 24 September. The OFT charges concern conversations alleged to have taken place between the BA executives and their counterparts at arch rival Virgin Atlantic between July 2004 and April 2006. It is the latest dramatic legal move by a far more aggressive OFT determined to use its powers to stamp out cartels in British business. In June three former oil industry executives were given jail sentences of between 30 and 36 months for running a cartel that illegally set the price of marine hoses. However the BA charges are the first to be brought over business dealings carried out after price fixing was criminalised by the 2002 Enterprise Act. The fact that the charges are being brought in Britain means the quartet are far less likely to be extradited to America, where the potential sentences could be far more severe. The alleged price fixing is said to have caused 11million BA passengers to pay more for their flights than they needed to at a total out-of-pocket cost of around £100million. Mr Burnett retired from BA in 2006 and Mr George and Mr Burns resigned in the same year. In his resignation letter, Mr George said that he was aware of "inappropriate conversations" that had taken place in his department "in violation of company policy" although he denied direct involvement. British Airways has already been fined more than £270 million for its role in the alleged cartel by the OFT and the US Department of Justice. Virgin Atlantic avoided a fine because it blew the whistle to the regulators. Prosecutors claim that the surcharges - imposed to cover the rising cost of aviation fuel - went up in step for a year and a half following illegal collusion between the competing carriers, which are Britain's two biggest long- haul airlines. The airlines have since established a £100 million compensation fund for passengers who believe that they were ripped off. Customers in Britain are entitled to a payout of up to £20 per return ticket depending on the size of the fuel levy when the ticket was booked. MORE

More AIDS risked in Kenya as poor women trade sex for food

MEXICO CITY, Aug 4, 2008. Rising food prices around the world are likely to drive poor women to trade sex for basic goods like fish and cooking oil, raising the risk of new AIDS infections, U.N officials said on Monday. Delegates at a major AIDS conference in Mexico cited the cases of fisherwomen in the Pacific and women in Kenya desperate for food being forced to sell their bodies, adding to concerns of a new twist in the spread of the deadly pandemic. "Food is such a basic need that you can see people really going to great lengths," said Fadzai Mukonoweshuro of the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization in southern Africa. Climbing food prices -- due to increased use of biofuels, the growing demand for grains to feed a booming Asia, droughts and market speculation -- caused 50 million more people to go hungry last year compared to the year before, the United Nations said. "That might lead to various distress responses, one of which on the part of women is having transactional sex to feed their kids," Stuart Gillespie of the International Food Policy Research Institute said. "Recent studies in Botswana, Swaziland, Malawi, Zambia and Tanzania have shown associations between acute food insecurity and unprotected transactional sex among poor women," he said. Overfishing of tuna in the Pacific has forced Papua New Guinea fisherwomen to abandon their smaller craft and join the crew of larger boats, where they trade sex for food scraps, the officials and delegates said. Such "fish for sex" deals are also common in Kenya on the shores of Lake Victoria, where women fish traders meet incoming boats and sleep with fishermen for a favorable price. Experts at the conference, a biennial gathering of global medical experts and government officials, also said malnutrition increased the risks for people already infected with AIDS, experts added. HIV drugs can upset the stomach if taken without food and AIDS patients, many also infected with tuberculosis, need more nutrients and calories. Without enough food they are more likely to die, said Martin Bloem, chief nutritionist at the World Food Program. Soaring food and other commodity prices might hinder the fight against AIDS. "We really need to watch this very carefully. We are in a situation of rising oil prices, rising food prices and at the same time the cost of AIDS is going up along with new infections," said Kevin De Cock, director of the anti-AIDS program at the World Health Organization. Attacking both hunger and the disease at the same time can bring special challenges. In Zimbabwe, some villages will reject food aid if they think it is destined for AIDS patients, claiming it is contaminated, Mukonoweshuro said. The human immunodeficiency virus infects 33 million people globally, half of them women, and kills 2 million annually.

Rise of men who were arrested over 1982’s failed coup

Some of the students arrested and charged with treason or taking part in illegal demonstrations in connection with the August 1, 1982, coup.  

It is exactly 26 years today since the country was rocked by coup attempt in 1982. Some of the people arrested in connection with the plot have since risen to prominent positions in politics, private and public sectors. At the time of the coup, most of those arrested were either students or lecturers at the University of Nairobi. Among those who have since risen to prominence are:

Raila Odinga

At the time of the coup, he was a deputy director of the State-owned Kenya Bureau of Standards. Today, he is the Prime Minister and leader of ODM, the party with the largest number of MPs in Parliament. Shortly after the 1982 coup, Mr Odinga was arrested and charged with treason alongside journalist Otieno Mak’Onyango and University of Nairobi lecturer Alfred Vincent Otieno.After several mentions, the State withdrew the treason charges and put the three in detention without trial. Mr Odinga was freed in February 1988, but barely six months later he was detained at the height of the crackdown on dissident movements. He was released in June 1989.Last year, Mr Odinga vied for the presidency. The Electoral Commission of Kenya declared President Mwai Kibaki the winner, a decision that sparked countrywide protests from ODM, which claimed its candidate had been robbed of victory. After months of peace negotiations, Mr Odinga was named Prime Minister in April. Musalia Mudavadi

Today, he is the Deputy Prime Minister and minister for Local Government. But in 1982, he was a second year student studying Land Economics when the University of Nairobi was sucked in the coup. His father, Mr Moses Mudavadi, then the Local Government minister, was on an official visit to Mexico. The senior Mudavadi cut short his trip on receiving news of the coup. Arriving in Nairobi a day later, he found his son missing.On the third day, Musalia appeared at his father’s home in Mululu, Vihiga District. The younger Mudavadi was picked up by police two days later but was released after three days, unlike his compatriots who went on to spend six months in custody before the State withdrew sedition charges against them.

Moses Wetang’ula

He is now the minister for Foreign Affairs. He was just another city lawyer until 1984 when he decided to represent the coup ring-leader, Senior Private Hezekiah Ochuka, during his court martial trial. At the time, Mr Ochuka paid him Sh20,000 to handle the protracted and highly sensational case. But the trial gave Mr Wetang’ula much publicity. In 1992, he was nominated to Parliament, where he often served as temporary deputy Speaker.He captured the Sirisia seat in 2002 on a Narc ticket and was later named assistant minister for Foreign Affairs. Mr Wetang’ula was made Cabinet minister (Foreign Affairs) when President Kibaki formed his first Cabinet after last year’s General Election.

Richard Onyonka

Now an assistant minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Onyonka was among the students jailed over the coup in 1982. He returned to the University of Nairobi in 1984 and completed his course in 1985. After graduation, he joined the North Carolina State University from where he graduated with a Masters degree in management in 1986. He returned to Kenya in 1992 to help his father, then the MP for Kitutu Chache and minister for Planning and National Development, who was seeking re-election on a Kanu ticket. His father died in 1996 prompting a by-election that the younger Onyonka lost. But he won the seat in last year’s elections.
Isaac Ruto

Now the MP for Chepalungu, Mr Ruto was a second-year BA student at the University of Nairobi. At the time of the coup, he was the vice-chairman of the students’ organisation, Sonu. He learned of the coup at 4am when he was woken up by Sonu chairman Tito Adungosi. Ruto was arrested the following day by Special Branch officers while going to report at the Bomet chief’s camp. He spent a month in custody. He later ventured into politics and was elected Chepalungu MP in 1997. He served as minister for Vocational Training. He lost his seat in 2002 but recaptured it last year.

Gitobu Imanyara

In 1982, he was a lawyer in Nanyuki and Meru. He shot to the limelight when he represented rebel Air Force soldiers who had been accused of masterminding the coup. Today, he is the MP for Imenti North.His most sensational case involved Corporal Bramwel Njeremani, the first soldier to be sentenced to hang.Njeremani’s case exposed the glaring negligence by the military intelligence in the countdown to the coup attempt.Later, Mr Imanyara shifted to Nairobi and joined the budding struggle to return to a multiparty democracy, for which he was briefly detained in 1990. He won the Imenti North seat on a Ford Kenya ticket in the 1997 General Election. He failed to recapture the seat in 2002 but bagged it last year.

Shem Ochuodho

Former Rangwe MP was a third year science student and a member of the Sonu council in 1982. He was whisked away by Special Branch officers a few days after the university was closed following the coup attempt.Ochuodho was charged with participating in an illegal demonstration.The case was later withdrawn but after Ochuodho spent six months in police custody.Ochuodho went on to become a successful businessman. In 1997, he ventured into politics and was an MP until he lost the Rangwe seat during the 2002 elections.He was later appointed managing director of Kenya Pipeline Company before he was removed after he was accused of irregularities.

Oginga Ogego

Now Kenya’s ambassador to the US, he was a third year political science student at the time of the attempted coup. He was jailed for 10 years on charges of sedition. Ogego had initially been jailed for six years but got four more when he told appeal judge Mathew Muli that his only regret was that the coup attempt had failed. In later years, he worked as an aide to Mr Raila Odinga and was a strategist for the defunct NDP party, which Mr Odinga led.

Wachira Waruru

Today, he is the chairman of the Media Council and managing director of Royal Media Services, one of the three leading media houses in Kenya. He was a University of Nairobi student at the time of the coup and was among students arrested and locked up for months in connection with the coup. Mr Waruru later served in various capacities in the media before joining the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation as managing director and later Royal Media. David Murathe He was a third year student and member of the Sonu council in 1982. Three days after the coup, Murathe was arrested at Gatanga chief’s camp. He spent six months in custody, during which he was taken to court for sedition and participating in an illegal demonstration. The charges were later dropped. He was elected Gatanga MP in 1997 but lost the seat in 2002. At one time, he worked as an aide to Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, now the Deputy Prime Minister and minister for Trade.

Philip Murgor

He was a third year law student when he was arrested after the coup attempt. At the time, his father, Mr Charles Murgor, was an assistant minister in President Moi’s government. On August 1, Murgor had woken up to the sound of gunfire on the street outside his university hall of residence but he would later spend six months in custody over the coup. He later become a lawyer and at one time served as director of public prosecutions under the Narc government.  

Oduor Ong’wen

The former NGO Council chairman was a second-year science student at Chiromo Campus in 1982. Ong’wen was arrested four days after the coup at his rural home in Siaya District. He was locked up at Kisumu police station but was later transferred to Embakasi GSU Training School where he remained for six months. Others arrested over the coup plot were Mr Evans Vitisia, now an assistant general manager at the Standard Chartered Bank; Mr Cornel Akello Onyango, now an aide of Immigration minister Otieno Kajwang’; Mr Frank Ireri, CEO, Housing Finance; and Mr Kibisu Kabatesi, a university lecturer, who also served at the ODM campaign secretariat last year.

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