Protest Ends as Kenya's Violence Ripples through the Economy

10.05 am EST

Odinga's opposition protest went on as planned in Nairobi earlier today, but without the level of bloodshed expected by journalists and observers. This, combined with a relative slowdown of deaths over the past 24 hours, may be good news for an overall decrease in the violence. A major police buildup prior to the rally may have contributed to the relative calm seen in some parts of the country; armed with riot gear and tear gas, the police pushed back as protesters spread through the city and gradually dispersed. Some protesters were also heard to shout for calm, telling others to put down their rocks and arms.

The day was not without violence, however. As protesters spread around the city and rallied in other parts of the country, doing their best to evade the police, they set homes and businesses on fire. The New York Times's Jeffrey Gettleman reports that in one Nairobi slum, a gang of men tore through, attacking, burning, and raping as they went. One of the gang was apparently caught by the residents of the slum, and hacked to death, his body remaining in the street. Police say the area is too tense for them to recover the body.

Since Tuesday, the death toll has risen to 300.

Intense pressure is being applied by diplomats from several nations, and the UN, EU, and African Union have all been using their resources to bring an end to the violence and resolve the hotly contested election results. Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a revered figure throughout Africa and the world, arrived in Kenya earlier today with calls for peace. At 3.00 pm local time, Mr. Odinga's opposition party ended the protest; although chants of "No Odinga, no peace" continue to raise alarm, Odinga's opposition party seem to have shifted toward referring to President Mwai Kibaki, and not to the Kikuyu people, as the sole source of their discontent. The Kikuyu, who are the largest tribe within Kenya, were the privileged class in the days of British colonialism and maintain more influence over politics and business than most other tribes (among approximately forty around the country). Other tribes have banded together with the Luo (Odinga's tribe) during the recent violence, their enmity apparently shared against the Kikuyu.

What may be the bigger story today is the disruption of trade and the ramifications this violence has for Kenya's economy, one of the most important and stabilizing factors in the continent. Roads are considered too dangerous for travel, and looting & damage to businesses has severely disrupted the markets. After opening for only one hour, the Kenyan stock exchange closed again. With Kenya's roads as a major conduit for trade between several nations, including Congo, Uganda, and Sudan, this disruption is having an immediate impact and causing shortages of basic goods in other countries. Uganda has already raised concerns about the shortages along its border, where hundreds of Kenyan refugees have crossed over within the last few days. The trucks that normally bring supplies have not crossed with them.

For an very useful hour-by-hour breakdown of events, along with photos and eyewitness accounts from inside Kenya, go directly to the BBC's coverage.

For those following the forms of violence at hand, the use of rape and the growing use of machetes continues to raise alarms. The gratuitous violence engendered by these means spells trouble, for it creates more lasting grounds for stronger retaliation. Whether this and the church fire on Tuesday, whose victims are said to have been 50% children, will have further ramifications in the coming days remains to be seen.