'It Sits On Your Conscience'.(The Last Word; AFRICA)(Kofi Annan)(Interview)

Byline: Scott Johnson

What is it with Africa? Not only do we turn on each other, but we blame the outside. This is a cancer from within that we need to fix.

More than a decade ago, when he was head of peacekeeping for the United Nations, Kofi Annan oversaw the blue helmets who failed to prevent the massacre in Srebenica and the slaughter of Tutsis in Rwanda. Those twin tragedies have tarnished his reputation ever since, even after two terms as secretary-general. Now retired, Annan has been asked to mediate in Kenya, where tribal killings that began after a disputed presidential election on Dec. 27 continue to rage. He spoke with NEWSWEEK's Scott Johnson about the talks, which showed some progress at the end of the week, and the shadow of those past crises. Excerpts:

Johnson: Where do the Kenya talks stand?

Annan: We're now at the critical item of resolving the political crisis. The two sides have stated their cases. The government side feels they won [the election] fair and square. The opposition thinks the government stole it fair and square. My problem is to bridge that difference.

How much do Rwanda and Bosnia weigh on you personally?

We are racing against the clock. The longer this goes on, the more killings go on, the more revenge killings you're going to see in reaction. If you're not careful you could have serious problems on your hands. We need to come up with a proposal to ensure we don't come back to this every five years.