A couple of days ago I read a piece on some residents of Kibera, which is a Nairobi slum/shantytown, who took it upon themselves to clear a small dump and use the waste and garbage to start a farming project. The biological garbage was used as fertilizer, and PVC piping was used to drill seed-holes. The folks were helped out by an organization called Green Dreams, Ltd., an organic farming company in East Africa. I shared this stuff with social anthropologist Dr. Carolyn Nordstrom at a UT Knoxville lecture and she just loved the concept. Hopefully it'll make it into a paper!

This all gave me an idea. For a while now I've been hearing about this new tech called Vertical Farming, which would allow hydroponic farms to be placed in dense urban environments, taking pressure off the highway-seaway supply line and lowering prices for produce.

So, my idea was this: vertical farming is a great concept, no doubt, but it needs capital to get started, capital that is not likely to be invested anytime soon. Why? Because of prevailing social and political attitudes.

One of the things I'm always struggling with in my ruminations is how to spark this kind of social change. After all, Margaret Mead once said "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

I was thinking, why not try something like the Kibera farms here in America and Canada? Think of how many vacant lots there are all across those two countries, in cities and rural towns alike, that could be utilized in the same way. Obviously the major hurdle for this is the fact that in a Nairobi shantytown the peasantry have so thoroughly reclaimed the land they essentially own it - nobody can tell them to leave or how to use it. Here in North America though we have large government mechanisms to mete out and inforce the ownership of land by private interest and the state. In a place like, say, the Bronx, even the scuzziest plot of undeveloped land is owned by someone and worth millions probably.

I say: fuck'm. If you are not going to properly take care of real estate property, than it should revert to neutral ownership. Get in there, start a community farming project. The cops or whoever may come and knock it down, but dammit you've got to get back in there and just start it up again. And again. And again and again. Spread the word across your city, across your state, across your nation.

I can see it having one of two effects, maybe both: one is that it'll spark a widespread move to this kind of behavior and eventual cultural adaptation - after a couple of years/decades it'll just become normal to pitch into your neighborhood farm. The other is that it could lead to a larger push for Vertical Farming research and implimentation. Either way, it's something to try and ween this continent off the huge supply lines that currently sustain it, at least when it comes to food.

Imagine the scene - you're at home enjoying an evening meal. Your family is sitting outside talking and eating. Then suddenly a plastic bag lands in the middle of the group. That's exactly what's happening in the Kibera slum in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

More - Radio Netherlands

Last Friday, I accompanied a fellow community member to visit a family that she has been going to visit 2x a week for the last few years, ever since they moved out of our neighborhood. She goes to check up on the kids, and to generally be a light to this "family." I put family in quotation marks because the family itself is hardly that. The mom of the children lives in one house, usually with a boyfriend, and all the kids live across the street with the father of the first two of the kids. Two of the kids are obviously not his-the mother is white and these kids are half black. When Dad and mom were together (married I think), Dad got mom into stripping and prostitution, which mom did for years after. The oldest girl has traumatic experiences of being in the car during "business" meetings. Mom shot at another boyfriend years later while the kids were in the house. Dad owns the house where Mom now lives, and sometimes they "re-convene" to the dismay of her other live-in boyfriend. Mom is a mess. Dad, who has no job, is racist, and has other issues, has been awarded custody of the kids. Someone thought that "some dad is better than no dad." Yet, the condition of the house these kids live in is as bad or worse than some places I saw in Kibera.

The house is covered from bottom floor to top with trash. You cannot walk into a room where there are not food stains, dirt, bugs. Cockroaches live there in legions. The upstairs is an absolute pig-sty. The kids often go to school with boils, while the youngest of the kids each have mental disabilities because their mother was on crack when she gave birth to them.

I say all this not to expose the fact that there are some pretty terrible parents and families out there, but really just out of shock at what I saw. It made me weep to think of this being a place kids call home, and that someone somewhere saw what they were living in and who they live with and thought that this was any sort of place for kids to be. My housemate Leah says that she lost all faith in the system while being  around this family. My first reactions in Kibera were numbness, partly because of TV and movies I'd seen. This time, it was pure shock, because nobody talks about this in the U.S. Sure, it's not that common to live in such conditions, but how many families have the same kinds of brokenness, and how many kids grow up in places just as emotionally and spiritually unhealthy? There are no documentaries about that.

Yesterday I was back in Kibera after a year and one month.  I had forgotten that pull of that place. 

Yesterday it was dry and didn’t smell so much.  I think in the past year I have spent so much time in so many different places in and around Nairobi that Kibera doesn’t shock me anymore.  It’s just another place. 

Yet there is something so intriguing about Kibera, something that grabs a hold of my heart, thoughts, and imagination and won’t let go.  It’s indescribable and impossible to fully understand what that something is.

Kibera is a place of contrasts.  People come to Nairobi with high hopes, believing that they will find a better life and with all those hopes still beating in their hearts they end up in Kibera, a place of pure poverty and hopelessness.  Yet in the midst of all the dirt, grime, waste and depression, the people don’t give up hope.  They still dream of a better life.  The women set up their small vegetable stands next to the ditch full of wastewater and refuse.  The children laugh and play and study hard in school.  The older youths look for ways to find money here and there. 

Yet in direct contrast to those who refuse to give up hope are the hopeless, those who have nothing to live for but just living through one more day.   The street boy, who leaves Kibera in the morning, begs and sniffs glue on Ngong road and returns to an alleyway at night.  The father who works all day, wastes all his money on local brew, and assaults his two daughters at night.  The young girl who excelled in school, but can’t continue her education because there is no money, so she finds a man she thinks will care for her and ends up with a tiny burden instead. 

The problems and possibilities in Kibera are endless…larger than I can ever comprehend.  Yet something compels me to find one problem and explore the possibilities for solving it.  To do my tiny part to make that land of contrasts a little bit better. 

Não faltam instrumentos para reduzir de forma drástica os gastos com a preparação e a publicação de materiais impressos. Com a profusão de programas de código aberto e ferramentas de publicação web 2.0, comunidades e ONGs já podem viabilizar seus projetos de mídia impressa. E, em alguns casos, sem custo algum.

Veja o exemplo da Five Minutes to Midnight (FMM). A organização sem fins lucrativos fundada em 2003 ajudou a lançar um livro de fotos produzido por jovens moradores de Kibera, uma favela localizada nas proximidades de Nairobi, Quênia. Kibera é considerada a maior favela da África, com uma população estimada em um milhão de pessoas.

A publicação foi totalmente preparada com programas de código aberto pelos participantes de workshops realizados pela FMM. A ONG também usou o CreateSpace, editora de livros on demand da Amazon.

O livro é atualmente vendido pelo site da Amazon e pela e-store da FMM. O dinheiro obtido com as vendas é investido na organização de outros workshops oferecidos pela ONG.

Se você quer mais detalhes sobre essa história, leia a seguir o relato de Wojciech Gryc, da FMM, publicado no iCommons.

"O que foi mais supreendente em nosso trabalho é que o custo inicial da preparação do livro foi zero. Isso permitiu que nós criássemos um instrumento de arrecadação de recursos para nossos workshops sem o risco de perder o que nós já tínhamos".

"A idéia inicial era publicar o livro em julho de 2007, enquanto estávamos fazendo capacitações em tecnologia e jornalismo em Kibera, no Quênia. Localizada perto de Nairobi, Kibera é a maior favela da África e quase sempre tem uma cobertura negativa por parte da mídia. Não há serviços de mídia com foco na comunidade e muitos dos jovens estão desempregados. Fizemos, então, uma parceria com a
Shining Hope for the Community (SHOFCO), um pequeno grupo de jovens da comunidade, como forma de oferecer tecnologia e capacitações para que eles pudessem fazer um jornal e obter conhecimentos que pudessem ser úteis para sua vida profissional.

Nos workshops foram usados "computadores reciclados, programas de código aberto e tutoriais técnicos livres."

"Durante os workshops, os participantes usaram câmeras digitais e foram orientados a explorar o ambiente da favela - ou seja, a visitar áreas da comunidade que eles considerassem importantes. Centenas de fotos foram retiradas, muitas com foco nas pessoas e nas comunidades que formam Kibera."

"Como os participantes aprenderam a usar GIMP (editor de imagem), OpenOffice (editor de texto), and Scribus (editoração eletrônica) [programas de código aberto, podem ser baixados de forma gratuita pela Internet], a FMM usou os mesmos programas para editar a capa, trabalhar com as fotos e editar textos. Tudo foi finalizado com Scribus e exportado como um arquivo PDF, permitindo que nós tivéssemos um livro eletrônico de fotos".

"Para a impressão, nós decidimos usar o CreateSpace, um serviço desenvolvido pela Amazon que apresenta livros, DVDs e outros produtos que podem ser impressos ou preparados sob encomenda". Nesse caso, a Amazon cobra apenas um percentual da venda e não exige adiantamento de pagamentos.

"Criar um livro é muito simples e o conteúdo principal está em um arquivo PDF. Um outro arquivo contém a capa e a contracapa da obra. O mais interessante sobre o site CreateSpace é que, quando o livro é publicado, pode ser vendido em uma loja virtual própria ou no site da Amazon. O CreateSpace até mesmo cria o registro ISBN do livro".

Die Karten werden einzeln vor Ort an Kibera-Besucher verkauft, aber auch über die gemeinnützige englische Organisation Kibera Paper vertrieben, die das Projekt mit initiiert hat.

Zum vergrößern einmal klicken, Doppelklick für ganz großes Bild
[gallery] ]]> http://sanitationupdates.wordpress.com/?p=546 Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:19:13 +0000 Sanna-Leena http://sanitationupdates.da.wordpress.com/2008/07/07/kenya-kiberas-bio-latrine/ By Francis Ayieko, Nairobi

(...) Mary is a beneficiary of a new technology referred to as bio-latrine technology, which uses human waste and water to produce gas for lighting and domestic cooking - just like the biogas system. The gas is harvested from modern latrines that have been constructed in the slums with funding from the French government.

(...) DURING A RECENT official opening of one of the ablution blocks in Soweto-Kianda village in Kibera, Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga hailed the project, saying it would bring to an end the shame of using "flying toilets" - disposing of human waste by wrapping it in polythene paper bags and throwing it away. (...)

Read all allafrica.com

The East African (Nairobi)

Lo primero es lo primero y, para Mundo Cooperante y el grupo de voluntarios que desde 2005 promueve Barha Party, es daros las gracias a todos los que nos habéis apoyado, confiáis en nosotros y habéis querido acompañarnos en este 2008.

Para una ONGD, una de las labores más difíciles, es trascender al otro, hacer transparente el trabajo y ser capaces de transmitir lo que nos mueve el día a día, pues es así como uno es capaz de evidenciar sus principios, hacer autocrítica y revisar su cumplimiento; sin duda,  Barha Party, desde su germen mismo, logra todo esto con creces.

En resumen, la edición Aranjuez 08 ha sido un rotundo éxito. Este año teníamos como reto no sólo no defraudar a aquellos que nos vienen siguiendo desde hace años, sino también, agradar a los que llegan de nuevas, sorprender al curioso y, por último, dar respuesta a la gran cantidad de entidades que han decidido echarnos una mano para que todo esto se consolide.

Ajustados los números y echadas ya todas las cuentas, podemos comunicar nuestras cifras definitivas (“vuestras” cifras definitivas):

• 760 asistentes

• 12519,29 € netos

• 100% de gente satisfecha

De nuevo: GRACIAS. Sin vosotros sería imposible.

Sabed que todo este dinero, irá destinado íntegramente al proyecto Gospel Believers Children´s Centre, en Kibera, Nairobi (Kenia); en el barrio de chabolas más grande del mundo. Un lugar donde Mr. Patrick Kimawachi y su equipo están luchando por dar alternativas a los niños de la zona, por procurarles una educación y por unas mayores y mejores protección, seguridad y salud (http://www.mundocooperante.org/alianzas.htm)

Y nada más. Visto que esto se acaba, sólo queda emplazaros al año que viene… o a As Pontes (A Coruña), donde Barha Party ya arranca motores para presentarse allí y abrir nuevos horizontes… ¿Os esperamos?

Un abrazo muy fuerte.

När ekonomin föll sönder och alla kunder försvann började fler skyltmålare i området ägna sig åt att producera annan konst. Nu driver några av dem en kombinerad skyltverkstad och konsthall i Kibera, som dessutom blivit hangout för en massa småkillar med konstnärsdrömmar - ett slags utvecklingsprojekt, fast utan projekt. Jag var där en kort stund i helgen, håll till godo med de få bilder jag fick med mig!

Once again - a bit of a time-lag from my last post - I am not long back from a trip to Kenya. I would have loved to have blogged whilst I was there - but somehow in amongst my hectic work schedule I never quite found time. Disappointing.

Still I want to share with you a visit that I made to Little Rock - an early childhood development centre in Kibera slum. Kibera has the dubious honour of being Africa's 2nd largest informal settlements. (Soweto in South Africa has the top spot). The children at Little Rock are from poor families - some are orphans or have family members affected by the HIV pandemic. There are also disabled and deaf children. As I looked round the tiny classrooms at children keen to learn and share with us what they had learnt, it struck me that the combination of disability and poverty is a deadly one and that organisations like Little Rock are doing vital work.

Without the work of Little Rock, I wondered how many of these deaf children would have had access to so much language. How many of them would have been able to communicate with us in such a lively and enthusiastic way? Early Childhood Development centres provide nursery education but also provide basic health services and nutritious food. Attending one of these centres can be life changing for any children from one of the 1:5 Kenyan families that can't meet their basic food needs or from the 1.2million who infected with HIV.

Poverty itself is disabling. But what about the children who come from one of those families and have a disability? Where family resources are already overstretched, parents might not have time to do anything other than survive - so learning Sign Language, or spending time helping their disabled children with feeding, toileting or exercises might not be a priority. Little Rock helps children who would otherwise, in many cases, be isolated, hungry and not in school. But in Little Rock, there is hope for the future. The centre nourishes their bodies and their minds and if education really is one of the routes out of poverty, these kids will have a better start than many.

As I left, I thought about meeting the same kids in 20 years time... I wonder what the future holds for them? I can only hope that by supporting organisations like Little Rock, Deaf Child Worldwide can make it a bit brighter.

AMREF's Deputy-Director General, Dr Florence Muli-Musiime has warned that emergency institutions, both local and international, risk misdirecting their humanitarian crisis response if they are not sensitive to community dynamics that are not always visible in times of upheaval. In a powerful message to hundreds of delegates at the 35th Global Health Council Conference taking place in Washington DC, Dr Muli-Musiime described a 'silent emergency' that nobody spoke about following the post-election violence in Kenya, whose implications for healing and recovery has more serious implications for post-conflict health and social development than the more widely publicised plight of internally displaced people in the country.

'When the crisis broke out,' she said, 'the focus of the health system was to mitigate the physical injuries, while that of the donor community and emergency institutions was on the Internally Displaced People. But we realised that there was a silent emergency which none of the two groups was looking at – that of thousands of people who were caught up in their own homes, unable to go to IDP camps because they would have had to go through hostile territory to get there, and unable to access health or any other basic services. To make matters worse, they were physically assaulted and sexually abused in their own homes.'

Dr Muli-Musiime one of four panelists in a discussion on how current affairs affect health care in the community, with a specific focus on the recent crisis in Kenya. The others were Dr Sylvester Kimaiyo, Programme Director for AMPATH; MAP International's Senior Director for was Health and HIV/AIDS Policy, Dr Peter Okaalet; and Dr. Salvador de la Torre, Country Director for the Catholic Medical Missions Board, all based in Kenya.

The purpose of the session, according to moderator Sheila Mitchell, Senior Vice-President at the Institute for HIV/AIDS, Family Health International, was to draw lessons from the experiences of organisations that were working on the ground at the time of the crisis in Kenya and come up with recommendations for what to do in similar situations.

AMREF has worked for many years in one of the areas most affected by the violence and attendant humanitarian crisis – Kibera, a vast informal settlement that is home to close to a million people.

'Our northern-based partners focused on only a fraction of people in need,' said Dr Muli-Musiime. 'For example, only 5,000 of Kibera's 750,000 people were in the camps. Very few organisations – AMREF, MSF and some faith-based institutions – stayed where the majority of people were. Here, we observed the emergence of significant new health challenges. One of these was gender-based violence, which was systematically used as a tool to promote the political violence. Then there was a total breakdown of the health system, and disruption of household life. People were unable to cross from one section of Kibera to another to access even the most basic of health services.' This scenario was repeated in all the regions where the violence was intense; the Rift Valley, Nyanza and Western provinces.

'A very scary phenomenon that is difficult to explain was the psyche of the violence – it had no restraint. In Kibera, when a mob descended on a house, sexual violence was unprecedented and unrestrained: everyone – men, children and women – was raped. In Africa, it is not usual for men to admit that they raped other men, but it happened during this violence. The most frightening aspect was that it was all so silent, a silence that was perpetrated by the media, which was more interested in the bleeding, not where there was hurting and the bleeding was in secret. This was extremely sad.'

HIV and TB programmes were severely affected. Systems that had been established to monitor and track patients collapsed. In Kibera for example, where AMREF had established an efficient monitoring system for TB and HIV patients, the organisation lost track, within the first two weeks, of 70 per cent of AIDS patients and 30 per cent of TB patients registered at the AMREF clinic and with community support groups for drug adherance and household support. Dr Muli-Musiime warned that the fallout from this disruption was certain to erupt in coming months as the effects of missing critical dosages took effect on hundreds of patients across the country.

Countrywide, the crisis had a heavy impact on the health system. Supply was affected between the two groups. Initially, when the crisis broke out, the health system was very quick to react, thanks to the 1998 bomb blast that hit Nairobi, leading to the creation of an emergency response plan. The plan immediately kicked in when the crisis broke out last December. Those affected were quickly evacuated and moved to hospitals, although this was hampered by the fact that medical personnel could not move about freely due to ethnic animosities. Hospitals were also able to respond to the crisis adequately for the first two weeks, but as the fighting continued, they began to run out of supplies, especially surgical equipment and drugs. People were disconnected from the services because of inability to access certain areas, because of being displaced, and the inability of service providers to move into the communities as they had been doing before. This was further complicated by the fact that the health workforce was also a target of the violence depending on their ethnic origin.

'Our response was to work on both sides,' said Dr Muli-Musiime of AMREF's activities. 'We went into the IDP camps and stepped in to do the things that emergency organisations were not doing, such as water and sanitation – building bathrooms and latrines, providing clean water and keeping the camps clean – as well as providing laboratory services. Within the communities, we responded by reaching out and going where the communities were trapped and unable to get out. This required serious dialogue and negotiation with all the actors, working with households, and creating a presence on the ground. Instead of waiting for the people to come to us, we went to them. We set up mobile clinics in each village, as people were unwilling to seek services in sections of Kibera inhabited by different communities. We also had to negotiate with the communities to allow our staff and government workers to move through Kibera to provide services.

The role of the media

Dr Muli-Musiime expressed great disappointment in the media's handling of the crisis and of the victims. 'I was deeply saddened that journalists could be so insensitive to the people they were reporting about. The media needs to report painful incidents in a manner that does not magnify the pain and trauma as a result of exposure, repetition of clips showing wanton violence, or blatant insensitivity, particularly when reporting about sexual violence. When you ask a woman whether she was raped and she is surrounded by her family, she will not tell you the truth because of shame and fear of ostracisation, but they told us in private what they had been through.'

With the increased incidence of violence and aggression in communities, she suggested integration of mental health and gender-based violence into whatever work an organisation is doing. 'The underlying principle is integration. Let us not create silos – we need to ensure that we look at the spiritual and mental, as well as physical health of the people. Similarly, we need to move away from verticalising the various responses within a crisis based on the interests of different intervention partners including donors. This only ends up creating many parallel, segregated systems within the same communities. The international community is involved in patchwork; we want to create a mosaic.'

The healing process

Dr Muli-Musiime suggested that civil society has a huge role to play in the country's healing process. 'We need to reach out to politicians, interact with them, and create avenues for dialogue. We may not always agree with them, but at least we will be talking. We must also learn as Africans to appreciate our diversity, because the friction created by diversity is necessary and is needed to drive social change. We must recognise, promote and celebrate the strengths of different communities. The onus is also on each one of us as individuals. We need to change our actions and attitudes. We cannot wait for the politicians or the government to reconcile us. We need to empower communities to be conscious of the issues that cause misunderstanding, to address them and to find solutions for themselves. AMREF believes that there can be no progress in a community, whether in health or any other field, if the people themselves are not fully involved.'

The panelists emphasised the importance of putting emergency plans in place regardless of a country's past experiences. 'Kenya has been a haven of peace in a volatile region, and a refuge for many exiled people from troubled countries in the Horn of Africa and central Africa. Nobody expected anything like this would happen there. It taught us that we must always be prepared, and that we must have a plan in collaboration with other players on the ground.'

The need for coordination, honesty and integrity were also emphasised, as many organisations and individuals were involved in the humanitarian efforts, but there was a lot of duplication of activities, and even exploitation of victims of the crisis.

ReliefWeb

MINUTES OF THE CCP MEETING HELD AT OXFAM OFFICES, SHELTER AFRIQUE HOUSE ON 09/05/08

CORE GROUP MEMBERS PRESENT

AOB

O A noble downstream initiative would be the commencement of countrywide prayer meetings for peace building. This would be a time for prayer and reflection of what happened especially at the church where many people got burnt. It would be a day of repentance and atonement for the atrocities committed.

Minutes compiled by Sally Murunga with assistance from Annette Majanja (smurunga@gmail.com Tel. 0722 218031)

Next meeting: Friday 16/05/08 Time: 8.30am

Convenor: To be communicated

Venue: Oxfam, Shelter Afrique, 1^st Floor

By Lisa Ntungicimpaye

NAIROBI, April 24 (Reuters) - More than three months have passed since youths stormed Mary's home in Nairobi's Kibera slum, slashing her leg with a machete as she fled.

But the single mother of five still shudders at the thought the men may hunt her down again, rape or kill her because she belongs to a rival ethnic group.

To the outside world, life in Kenya may have returned to normality as a power-sharing accord drew the line under some of the worst tribal clashes since independence from Britain. But for Mary and others like her, the terror goes on.

'We all used to live together. We don't know where this evil comes from,' said the 49 year old, nervously fingering the gash in her leg that has yet to heal.

With no sign yet that the rule of law is returning to her neighbourhood, the Kikuyu woman fears her Luo neighbours may come after her again. She is too afraid to give her last name.

Besides more than 1,200 people killed, 300,000 were uprooted and hundreds more sexually assaulted in the wave of violence and reprisal attacks triggered by President Mwai Kibaki's disputed re-election in December.

As is often the case, women and children were prime targets: the United Nations said the rate of reported rapes doubled during Kenya's crisis. The youngest victim was 1 year old.

Mary, living in east Africa's biggest slum, lost the little she had -- her iron-roofed, mud house -- and is now forced to sleep in the open air, between two ramshackle shacks soiled by garbage and human waste.

'I can't go back to my house. It was taken over by others.'

When the crisis was making world headlines, United Nations officials said the increasing sexual attacks reflected in part a collapse in Kenya's social order as Kibaki's re-election exposed decades-old divisions between ethnic groups over land, wealth and power.

But even if the attacks have subsided and Kenya's stock and currency markets have made gains since the political accord, the social wounds have yet to heal.

'There is a silent war going on the ground, whereby you have a male from one tribe raping a woman from another tribe,' said Elisabeth Muthama, a counsellor at the Nairobi Women's Hospital.

'These cases are prevalent in Kibera -- a Luo man attacks a Kikuyu woman and then Kikuyu men attack Luo women and so on.'

RAPE AND SODOMY

Advocacy group the Coalition on Violence Against Women and rights organisation the Federation of Women Lawyers Kenya (FIDA Kenya) plan to petition the newly sworn-in government for compensation for women affected by the post-election unrest, especially those who were sexually assaulted and raped.

'Militia groups capitalised on that opportunity to do all sorts of heinous things to women, whether it was raping them or inserting objects in their vaginas,' said Faith Kasova, coordinator of the Coalition on Violence Against Women.

'The experiences of women were really disgusting.'

Nairobi Women's Hospital treated 443 people in the first two months of the year, at the height of the violence. Four out of five were the victims of rape or defilement: 149 children, 193 women and 14 men.

It is still dealing with a trickle of cases motivated by ethnic hatred.

'We had cases of women and girls, who were defiled, raped, sodomised and physically assaulted -- both men and women after the post-election unrest,' said Dr Ketra Muhome.

'Lately we have been getting cases of women being raped and sodomised at the same time.'

Slums like Kibera -- where unemployment is rife, alcohol abuse prevalent and hundreds of thousands crammed in flimsy shacks -- have long been a breeding ground for attacks.

Fending for her family, Mary relies on the kindness of friends or former neighbours for scraps of food.

Like other victims of violence, Mary criticised the government for failing to stop the violence or punish the perpetrators.

'I didn't choose to be a Kikuyu. My whole life has been here in Kibera,' she said. 'We expected our government to come and see what's happening at the grassroots.'

For other victims, the government is invisible.

'We are asking our leaders not to lie to people, saying there is peace,' said Catherine Wanja, another Kibera resident living off the kindness of friends after her house was torched.

'They are not thinking of the people that voted for them. We hear there is a government but we don't see it.'

(Editing by Katie Nguyen and Sara Ledwith) (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/)

Source: Reuters Foundation

According to Classic 105 FM, riot police have been deployed in Kibera to control the situation and to prevent violence from spreading outside the area. So far no casualties have been reported. Kibera is represented by ODM leader Raila Odinga, who will be Prime Minister in the grand coalition cabinet.

A coalition cabinet of 40 ministers was due for naming last Sunday but rows over the influential ministries of finance, energy, local government, foreign affairs and transport have meant continued delays. Both President Mwai Kibaki's Party of National Unity (PNU) and the ODM want to control these ministries. Yesterday, Mr Odinga brought fresh demands which include the dissolution of the present 17 member cabinet, a clear definition of his responsibilities and a greater say in appointments to the civil service, the security services and in state corporations. President Kibaki also held a press conference in which he blamed the ODM for the delay in forming a cabinet.

If wrangles over the composition of the coalition cabinet persist, there lies a real possibility of violent protests by supporters of the ODM.

Love this video including Salim Mohammed who works out of the Kibera slum in Kenya.

More than 1411 Kenyans who have fled the country after the eruption of post election violence have camped at a Ugandan camp, some 60km from Busia Town. Ms Yumiko Takashima, head of the UNHCR office in Uganda, said the refugees at the Mulanda Community Polytechnic Instructor’s College came from as far as away Kibera slums in Nairobi, while others were from Eldoret, Mt Elgon, Busia, Malaba and Nakuru. Ms Takashima said those fleeing were of different ethnic backgrounds. He assured them that Mulanda was safe for all of them. “We have decided to set up temporary tents with the hope that peace will return in Kenya so that those who have been displaced can go back to their homes once negotiations that are being headed by former UN boss Kofi Annan are complete,” she said.

Ms Takashima said there are enough food, but there was concern over the health facilities, saying they were being compelled to take patients to Tororo, about 20 kilometres away. Ms Takashima said sanitation, child protection, HIV and Aids and security committees, all headed by refugees, had been formed at the camp to address any problems that may arise. Save the Children has recruited some of the displaced teachers so that they can teach nursery and primary school pupils, but no one has come up to assist those in secondary schools.

On the other hand, the Mulanda villagers seem uncomfortable with the refugees, expressing fears over insecurity and social evils. “We want UNHCR to confine the refugees in those camps. We fear that when they are allowed to walk around, they may engage in criminal activities as well as promote prostitution,” said David Ssemaga.

The allegations are dismissed by members of the camp security team who sought anonymity. They claimed it was the villagers who were taking advantage of their plight to harass them. There should be no security concern since all refugees are normally in their camps by 11pm and Ugandan police patrol the area to ensure that no refugee is out past midnight, the team said.
Daily Nation

Pambazuka 

Kontrast nr. 2: Hvordan skal man takle en herlig gensynsglæde når omstændighederne er et dødsfald? Skal jeg være glad for at være på ferie i Danmark eller skal jeg være ked af at min sidste bedsteforælder er død? Det hele er lidt ambivalent.

Kontrast nr. 3: På vej i taxaen til lufthavnen i Nairobi kørte vi forbi Kibera, vistnok Afrikas største slumområde og et af de områder som urolighederne i Kenya er gået hårdt ud over. Efter 5 timers flyvning mellemlandede vi i Dubai, måske den rigeste by i verden: verdens højeste skyskraber, verdens største indendørs skibakke, byggeri af et nyt Eiffeltårn - bare større. Dubai er i sandhed rekordernes by. Og hvordan er det lige man skal forholde sig til sådan en kontrast!!?

The second sighting of the Garibaldi Red during Kibera's troubles came down at the railway as Luos and Luyhas gathered to take on a gang of Kikuyus. It looks to me like the shirt from the early 90s, shortly before relegation.

Derek told me he was an Arsenal supporter and wondered whether there was any chance I could procure a Gunners strip for him.

I was just about to start explaining how Arsenal play in red to this day because Forest generously donated their spare kit to the Woolwich Arsenal once upon a time. But the GSU were preparing to charge so it seemed prudent to let the matter lie and vacate the area.