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UUSC responds to the crisis in Kenya
Background
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Mainstream media consistently cited ethnic divisions as the underlying cause of violence in Kenya. In reality, the violence arose from long-standing economic and political inequalities that were institutionalized during colonization and perpetrated by succeeding governments. One ethnic group's dominance of political and economic leadership has led to unresolved grievances and inequalities that have been exacerbated by poor governance and socio-economic insecurity. Today, 60 percent of Kenyans live on $1 USD a day.
Before the outbreak of violence, Kenya was often cited as a stable country where ethnic diversity was successfully institutionalized in schools and offices. More than 40 ethnic groups intermarry and live and work alongside each other. Members of various ethnic groups from chronically under-developed areas routinely moved to other areas to seek employment in a variety of sectors.
However, as the violence continued, people of different ethnicities no longer felt secure living with each other, particularly where violence had taken place between ethnic groups, including in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps.
By January, people were being bused back to their "ancestral homelands," either for their own safety or because they were pressured to do so. While humanitarian relief organizations provided assistance to the visible displaced who remained in IDP camps, tens of thousands of people who returned to their ancestral homelands were left with almost no assistance. As "dispersed displaced," they had become invisible to groups providing aid.
Ongoing impacts
The resulting humanitarian crisis in Kenya continues. Hundreds of thousands who have moved back to their ancestral homelands face great hardship. There are shortages in housing, land, food, services, and employment in many areas, and there is no comprehensive program in the provinces to deal with the influx of people, many of whom only came with what they could carry.
Family and community coping systems are very strong in Kenya, but they are severely overstretched. Many families have lost their livelihoods and still must cope with caring for returning displaced relatives and friends. Because so much violence happened in poorer areas and in markets, informal traders (who make up a significant portion of workers in Kenya) lost their wares and have no means to take out new loans to replenish them. The crisis also prevented families from farming their land. As a result, the region faces looming economic collapse and severe food shortages. Thousands of families have been uprooted, and a large number of children can no longer attend school. Mistrust and fear govern many interactions. People from different ethnic groups often are afraid to trade in the market, work with each other, or return to live among each other. People are still afraid of a resurgence of violence.
UUSC's approach
UUSC sent a three-person delegation to Kenya in January to assess the situation and meet with our longstanding partners from our Economic Justice Program: the Rock Women Group and KENASVIT (the Kenyan National Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal Traders). Upon returning, the delegation went to Washington, D.C., to speak to staff of congressional committees and the World Bank about the situation in Kenya.
Focusing on the most vulnerable groups in any emergency, UUSC's Rights and Humanitarian Crises Program is working to support huge numbers of invisible dispersed displaced, people who have returned to their ancestral homes and are beyond the reach of groups providing aid. We are also working in concert with UUSC's Economic Justice Program to support our long-term partners as they cope with the aftermath of the violence.
Working with KENASVIT (the Kenyan National Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal Traders), UUSC has created a three-fold project that:
- Implements a revolving loan fund for informal traders so that they can replenish their stocks and earn enough funds to survive and continue organizing;
- Sets in motion a market-level interethnic conflict-resolution, peace-building, and reconciliation process;
- Works to reestablish the recognition of informal workers' rights through policy and legal advocacy.
Working with the Rock Women Group, UUSC is responding to the impact of the postelection crisis on children in Kenya, many of whom have been orphaned — or forced to work to earn badly needed income or to pay for school. The project:
- Inventories the impact of the crisis and its effects on children;
- Trains youth and their parents in community conflict resolution and organizing;
- Reaches out to child workers and their families to counsel and guide them on hazards, such as sexual exploitation and illness;
- Provides training for children in healthy, safe, and sustainable trades and networks them with cooperatives and alternative schools;
- Helps child workers return to school so they can complete their studies and be eligible to earn higher wages;
- Strengthens the rights of child workers, as well as our partner's capacity to undertake this work.
Working in Kenya's western province, where there is neither international aid nor government support, UUSC is partnering with church groups and grassroots organizations to address the needs of the newly arrived displaced population. This includes:
- Income generation and livelihoods projects, such as planting short-term crops to avert the food crisis;
- Conflict-resolution and reconciliation initiatives that promote peace among community members; and
- Family-reunification activities to locate parents and children who were separated in the violence and its aftermath.
Kenyans remain deeply concerned about their physical security and their ability to meet basic needs. Community reconciliation across ethnic lines and sustainable access to the means of subsistence are critical if further crisis is to be averted.
