Kenya's 2008 mediation talks were Annan's most intensive intervention
Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (centre) with President Kibaki (right) and Prime Minister Raila Odinga. On January 24, he succeeded in bringing together President Kibaki and Mr Odinga in what he said was “the first step towards a peaceful solution to the problem”. Photo/FILE
The book, Interventions: A Life in War and Peace, chronicles the behind-the-scenes manoeuvres that eventually brought back Kenya to its feet.
The former UN chief has observed with keen interest every major historic development in the country, including promulgation of the Constitution in 2010.
“The Lord had the advantage of being able to work alone”, is one of former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan’s famed quotes, and one which he largely exercised during his gruelling 41-day Kenyan mediation exercise in 2008.
In his book, Interventions: A Life in War and Peace, Mr Annan confesses he had to act solo “as some Lord of sorts” in order to save Kenya from the brink of collapse, following the bloody post-election violence of 2007 that left of 1,000 people dead and hundreds of thousands maimed and homeless.
