Roundup: Kenya burns 5,250 illegal firearms, urging public to surrender more

Kenya on Tuesday burnt some 5,250 illegal firearms confiscated from criminals, and urged the public to surrender more in a bid to eliminate illegal weapons and improve public security in the country.

Deputy President William Ruto presided over the event where three heaps of the weapons were burnt, saying small arms posed a threat to peace and stability.

"Most of these firearms were voluntarily surrendered while some are from violent criminals that were recovered by security personnel and others from disarmament programs," Ruto said.

A huge inferno engulfed the weapons after Ruto set them on fire, forcing a crowd that had gathered to witness to move several yards back.

The small and light weapons included pistols and rifles seized from criminals in the capital city of Nairobi, while others were voluntarily surrendered to police in the Rift Valley region.

"We are destroying small arms and ammunition so that they do not fall into wrong hands that will cause harm to the society," Ruto said.

Ruto said more than 80,000 assorted rounds of ammunition had been destroyed in Nairobi.

"I urge those in possession of illegal firearms to surrender them to police and those in custody of state weapons to maintain proper usage," Ruto said.

Officials said the move was expected to help address rising cases of insecurity in many parts of the country.

Interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery said the government will soon put into effect a new law on illicit firearms that will lead to imprisonment of those culprits holding them.

"I would like to urge citizens with firearms that are not licensed to surrender them before we come for them," Nkaissery said.

Since operations against illegal firearms started in 2003, more than 25,000 illegal firearms have been destroyed, Nkaissery said, adding they are part of UN programs aimed at eliminating illegal firearms.

The high rate of crime in Kenya has been blamed on the proliferation of small arms finding their way into the country, following civil wars in neighboring countries.

Police official Mercus Ochola said the process of marking government-owned weapons will end next year and that so far 95 percent of them have been marked to track their movements in the country.

"Studies have shown there are about 650,000 illegal firearms in the wrong hands and that is why we are taking the measures to ensure we can know government-owned weapons being misused if any," he said.

In 2007, Kenya burnt 8,000 guns in Nairobi.

Members of the public have been asked to register or surrender their guns amid the government effort to regulate the use of arms.

But many communities are unwilling to cooperate as they have had the guns for many years, using them in cattle rustling raids.

Insecurity in pastoralist counties has been attributed to the influx of the weapons, with authorities saying there are more arms in the hands of civilians in the county.

Illegal weapons are also used to commit crimes in urban areas. Many gun-related crimes remain unsolved. Endi