Kenya Passes New Constitution Despite Opposition From Churches

The New York Times reports that in yesterday's referendum in Kenya, 67% of the voters approved the country's new constitution (full text of draft document) according to provisional results released today.  The new constitution limits the powers of the president, provides for land reform and creates a bill of rights. As reported by CNN, Kenya's Christian churches had opposed the Constitution because of provisions they say will permit abortion on demand and because of the document's recognition of Muslim Khadis courts. (See prior posting for details.) The U.S. government supported the draft Constitution, but some conservative Christian groups in the United States, particularly the American Center for Law & Justice, opposed the draft. Three conservative members of Congress wrote the State Department's Inspector General in May asking for an investigation of whether there has been a violation of provisions that prohibit spending of U.S. government funds to lobby for or against abortion. (Christian Science Monitor 5/14).