Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/political-deal-in-kenya-raises-hopes-for-end-to-violence Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Rival leaders in Kenya agreed to a coalition government deal Thursday that would create a new prime minister role to rule with the president, raising hopes for an end to two months of post-election violence. The U.S. secretary of state for African affairs discusses the plan and the prospects for peace. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. JIM LEHRER: The Kenya agreement. Jeffrey Brown has that story. JEFFREY BROWN: After two months of violence that killed 1,000 Kenyans and displaced 300,000 more, the country's two major politicians signed a deal today that would bring them into a coalition government.President Mwai Kibaki, whose disputed re-election in December sparked the violence, will retain his post. Opposition leader Raila Odinga will be established in the new post of prime minister.The men spoke at a ceremony this afternoon. MWAI KIBAKI, President, Kenya: This process has reminded us that as a nation there are more issues that unite than divide us. We have been reminded that we must do all in our power to safeguard our peace that is the foundation of our national unity. RAILA ODINGA, Kenyan Opposition Leader: For the last two months, Kenyans have known nothing but sadness. JEFFREY BROWN: The deal was mediated by former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan. It was an arduous, weeks-long process, which included several breakdowns in the talks.Annan said the deal was just the beginning of the work to be done. KOFI ANNAN, Former U.N. Secretary-General: Today, we've reached an important staging post, but the journey is far from over. In fact, it is only beginning.The real challenge now is for President Kibaki and honorable Raila Odinga to work together to heal and reconcile this nation, working jointly to implement the reform agenda on which they agreed, they have agreed, and sustaining the effort until the job is done.But the job of national reconciliation and national reconstruction is not for the leaders alone. It must be carried out in every neighborhood, village, hamlet of the nation. JEFFREY BROWN: Kenya had long been considered a hub of regional stability and prosperity in Africa, but that image was shattered after the election that returned Kibaki to power in December, in defiance of pre-election polling and initial returns that showed him losing badly.Opposition groups alleged ballot-box stuffing; international observers called the election a fraud. Ethnic and tribal violence ensued and continued unabated until this week.