An opposition supporter wields a rock during ethnic violence in Nairobi yesterday. President Mwai Kibaki's government accused rival Raila Odinga's party of unleashing genocide in Kenya yesterday as the death toll from tribal violence, over a disputed election, passed 300. - reuters

NAIROBI (Reuters):

President Mwai Kibaki's government accused rival Raila Odinga's party of unleashing "genocide" in Kenya yesterday as the death toll from tribal violence over a disputed election passed 300.

"It is becoming clear that these well-organised acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing were well planned, financed and rehearsed by Orange Democratic Movement leaders prior to the general elections," said the statement read by Lands Minister Kivutha Kibwana on behalf of his colleagues.

Odinga's supporters, drawn mainly from his Luo tribe, have blamed the violence on Kibaki for provoking citizens by 'stealing' a December 27 vote that international observers said fell short of democratic standards. Both sides alleged rigging.

Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe was targeted in the initial violence, but revenge killings by Kikuyus are on the rise in mayhem that rights groups say has been exacerbated by a police crackdown on rioting and looting.

Apparently offering an olive branch to the ODM, Kibaki invited all members of the new opposition-dominated parliament to a meeting at State House in Nairobi. But no opposition MPs attended as Odinga demanded outside mediation.

"We cannot dialogue with a thief," he told reporters. "We are not interested in talking with Kibaki without international mediation."

Roads

A statement by Kibaki's office later deplored the violence and vowed to secure roads "so essential goods and services can reach people in the areas and other countries in the region."

Ghanaian President and African Union Chairman John Kufuor, urged by Western nations to mediate, was waiting to talk to Kibaki before deciding whether to go himself or send a team.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Kufuor would fly to meet Kibaki and Odinga on Thursday. Odinga plans a mass rally on Thursday that the government has banned on security grounds.

The use of the word genocide will horrify Kenyans, used to being viewed by the world as a stable democracy, an investment and tourist destination and oasis of peace in a volatile region scarred by the likes of the 1994 Rwanda genocide.