JUSTICE AND RECONCILIATION COMMISION DILEMMA

Kenya's Truth, Justice & Reconciliation Commission is tainted by past ghosts. Hence, Kenyans loss of confidence in its chairman, Bethuel Kiplagat. When communities have been victimized by the govt or another group during a conflict, underlying feelings of resentment & desire 4 revenge can't be alleviated unless the grp is... allowed 2 mourn the tragedy & senses that wrongs have been acknowledged, if not entirely vindicated. Kiplagat needs to understand that he was part and parcel of the past Kenyans want to forget. His tainted credibility means he has no moral authority to lead a panel of persons to look into that ugly past.Truth Commissions are increasingly being used as one mechanism in a broader strategy to consolidate democratic governance following a period of ... See More authoritarian rule. In an environment where there is no acknowledgment of or accountability by former leaders for past violent events, tensions among former disputants persist. Hence, confronting & reckoning with the past is vital to the transition from conflict to democracy. A society emerging from a regime marked by grave & serious violations of human rights faces the complex challenge of how best 2 deal with the past. The establishment of a Truth Commission has helped several countries through this process. In the course of establishing such Commissions, leaders & decision makers are faced with a variety of political & structural choices. First, Commissions must act to dismantle enclaves of authoritarian power that were transplanted from the past into the post-transition polity. The presence of these enclaves undermines the democratic qualities of the new polity and renders the transition process incomplete. Second, Commissions must simultaneously help to create new structures and values on which democratic governance can be built. I reject the idea that Bethuel Kiplagat qualifies to lead Kenya towards a successful post authoritarian political dispensation. He has numerous questions to answer pertaining to his legacy, actions, commissions and omissions while he was in govt/public service. He simply needs to step aside and let another qualified Kenyan or a reputable international figure to take the mantle. I don't understand why he has to continue to cling on this chairmanship. He is simply unqualified and needs to resign now!!>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Paul Kimathi is a political Analyst for CONNECTIO33. Visit us at www.connection33.com