News from M.B. in Eldoret [my comments in caps].

Just down the road last night we could hear the Kikuyus [the ethnic group of President Kibaki] are being chased out of their homes, but so far the violence has been tribal. I. talked to her family in Kapenguria, and they said that Kalenjins were going house to house in search of Kikuyus and Kambas. It is a very sad situation.

The direction and depth of the troubles will be determined by the government reaction to the ODM [Raila Odinga’s party] rally in Nairobi today. There are rumors that Pentagon members [the opposition leaders] have already been arrested. If Raila and the rest of ODM are arrested it is hard to imagine how people will react. We are hoping for the best.

Later, things quiet down but the roadblocks and call for all young men to go to town are ominous:

We left our house today to go to Eldoret around 9am this morning, and the town was quiet. There were groups of young men hanging out, and a large encampment of refugees inside the grounds at the police station, but no signs of burnt buildings or destruction. The military and police were around, but not in great numbers. Only a few shops were open, but the market in the middle of town was bustling, though only about half-full, our friend J. reported.

Somewhat humorously, a Kikuyu business man across the street from the police station had one of the only open shops, and was trying to sell 250 shilling Safari airtime cards for 500 shillings. We decided we would try to make the trip to Kitale, where I.’s family is currently staying, but we only made it about three or four miles north of Eldoret before we ran into a civilian roadblock. The whole road was impassable- broken glass and other debris in the street.

We got out and watched the roadblock from about a quarter mile away, along with over a hundred other spectators. Over fifteen minutes, six cars attempted to pass, and all but one turned back; the only truck that went through drove down into a ditch on the side of the road to get past. The people we talked to were all nice, but laughed at the idea of traveling all the way to Kitale. Apparently a number of roadblocks of this sort were in the way, some manned by more aggressive individuals.

A few miles past the roadblock a heavy plume of smoke was rising, and grew bigger
as we watched. We started to worry about being cut off from our house on the other end of Eldoret, and turned back. There is a feeling of quiet before the storm throughout the town, but no one knows for sure what will happen.

Other than that, there is not much to report. The media blackout is complete- there is no news outside the internet, and I can only load one page before it cuts me off.

We have heard a variety of rumors: Ruto has been shot; Ruto and Raila have been arrested; the rank and file military in Nairobi are revolting, and intend to support Raila (that one is probably too optimistic); the head police commissioner has resigned in protest; Kikuyus have decided to fight back, and are organizing groups of young men to kill Kalenjins and Luos… KBC is the only station reporting news, and all they say is that the country is peaceful, and all the disturbances have quieted.

Just now, Mama S., our host, came into say that messages are going out to the villages around Eldoret, mobilizing the young men to come into the town center. So I guess we are stuck here for a few more days. We’ll let you know what happens. Almost certainly the events at the rally this afternoon in Nairobi will dictate the mood of the people.

Just now NTV returned to the air, but only to announce that Riala and Ruto have not been arrested, and that anyone attending the rally in Nairobi will be arrested. Though NTV presented a lot of Kibaki-biased information the night before the election, they have been the bravest station, by far, as they were the only media group to continue to report news after the blackout last night, albeit for only an hour or so, and with constant references to a tape delay.

Thank you for all of your kind words and concern. We feel safe here, and intend to wait a few more days before abandoning our intention of getting to Kitale (and giving me a chance to meet I.’s father, and two brothers for the first time.) If things get worse we will try to get a flight out of Eldoret airport back to Nairobi.