Categories
Letter from the Editor Opinion

Letter from the Editor

Dear KANERE readers,

It’s been many months without publication from us and this has been due to continued challenges over material support but we are back on reporting again.

Every time a new edition is out, it’s an anticipation for the voiceless camp resident. This is the thing we do, to provide uncensored stories and counter humanitarian propaganda on many issues surrounding refugee protection, by reporting facts or exposing some of the failures in the refugee operation.

In this edition, we bring diverse stories from across the camps but limited to a more critical coverage of the news items that don’t get reported in other media outlets.

There are stories as from late July where a refugee woman and her son died in a planned fire incident in the camp following a failure in the protection mechanism by the camp authority.

A story where a refugee child died in an aggressive road accident that involved a speeding humanitarian vehicle within the camp settlement vicinity was heartbreaking to many.

Additionally, a new way of census taking was launched by UNHCR through the Biometric Identity Management System (BIMS). The process emerged with new techniques and sophisticated software machines that record fingerprints and iris scanning of refugees.

And yet, KANERE met with a group of artist volunteers from Clowns Without Borders while they were bringing too much fun to school going refugee children in the camp. Our reporters followed them to their shows and interviewed the artists on why they came to Kakuma, and included their narrative in this edition.

A story on Kakuma’s fraud cases and a few others are lined up for you. Stay tuned until the next issue of KANERE for more vibrant coverage in the new year.

We would like to welcome your opinions and expert contributions by writing to us at – kakuma.news@gmail.com

The KANERE Editorial Board and the team, wish you a happy new year 2017.

Sincerely,

Qaabata Boru

Editorial Executive – KANERE

Categories
Quotes of the Month

Quotes of the Month for August, October – December edition

“We welcome the announcement to reconsider the closure of camps and we hope repatriation remains voluntary for all Somali refugees,”

– A Somali community leader told KANERE/ “Closure of Refugee Camps”

 

“They were diagnosed with second degree burns which were generalised over the body in addition to inhalation burns,”

– Reads a doctor’s statement found by KANERE at Nairobi National Hospital/ “Mother and son died in arson attack”

 

“If my personal information and location are identified, then my life will be in danger,”

–  A refugee who refused to expose his nationality said at the verification’s field post one in the camp/ “Refugee Verification Exercise”

 

“She told me that I don’t have any legal right to discuss this case of the accident with their office, that as a South Sudanese, that I don’t have any right,”

                 – Emmanuel Adah, Beatrice’s father said he had been intimidated by the Film Aid Official in an interview with KANERE/ “NGO vehicle knocked down a refugee child”

 

“Each day we do a daily show at different places all over Kakuma and we will deliver laughs and we love to see people laugh,”

                   – Gabi Winter, an actress told the KANERE reporter at camp 3/ “Resilience in Laughter”

 

“This is quite unique and we feel concerned about the security issues for the refugees,”

– Somali refugee leaders told KANERE at field post two/ “Refugee Verification Exercise”

 

“I heard some commotion, I ran out of my house only to find my daughter lying by the road side with blood oozing from her head,”

– Dola Beatrice’s mother told KANERE in an interview/ “NGO vehicle knocked down a refugee child”

 

“I feel happy to attend the shows and it boosts the amount of sleep, it feels happy in my mind,”

               – Shukria, a young Somali woman remarked/ “Resilience in Laughter”

 

“I arrived in Ifo camp in Dadaab in 1994, since then I never moved out of here. I can’t return because it’s not safe now,”

               – Abdallah Hajji told KANERE/ “Closure of Refugee Camps”

 

“The amazing thing with the physical comedy is that you can reach people across language barriers. I still have images of laughing audience flashing across my eyes when I go to sleep,”

– Henrik Bothe told KANERE in an interview/ “Resilience in Laughter”

 

Categories
Feature Reports Human Rights Humanitarian Services Kakuma Town and Kenya News Updates Peace and Security

Closure of refugee camps

The unlegislated closure of refugee camps is illegal under the Kenyan Refugees Act of 2011.

Categories
Human Rights Humanitarian Services Kakuma Town and Kenya News Updates Peace and Security

Refugee Verification Exercise

A unified refugee verification exercise in Kakuma was meant to collect refugees’ data

Categories
Human Rights Humanitarian Services News Updates

Kakuma fraud

By KANERE’s News Desk

Five UN staff indicted for fraud are airlifted to Nairobi for investigation.  

Categories
Human Rights News Updates

Mother and Son died in arson attack

A refugee woman and her son died from a fire incident that took place in Kakuma refugee camp.

Categories
Human Rights Humanitarian Services News Updates

An NGO vehicle knocked down a refugee child

A refugee child died in an aggressive road accident in Kakuma

Categories
Arts Community and Culture Education Humanitarian Services News Updates

Resilience in Laughter

By Tolasa Shome and Qaabata Boru

Clowns Without Borders bring joy to Kakuma children

Categories
Arts Opinion

I Hate My Tribe

By Addisu

A tribe is a group of people, often who live together sharing the same language, culture and history, especially those who do not live in towns or cities. (Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 3rd edn.)

According to me, in relation to modernization and social integration of global society, tribal sentiment is a backward idea that can vanish in the process of civilization.

Look at the above definition of tribe which says “Tribe is … those who do not live in towns or cities.” For those who live in rural villages in their tribe, their tribe matters a lot than – their nationhood – because their tribe is their world. It would be an amazing question to a ‘White Man’ (a European or North American) if you ask them what is their tribe. This is not because they never had a tribe but they passed the tribal stage of human evolution and abandoned their tribe long, long ago through civilization and urbanization to the extent that this question surprises them. Today, they (western civilized societies) do not have a tribe but a race of civilized people, and that is where the global society is heading to.

Civilization coupled with digital technology has speeded up the global social integration of peoples of different cultures. We are a global community who share languages, cultures, values, etc.

If we look at the origin of conflicts especially in Africa, they often have an ethnic dimension and are deeply rooted in tribal divisions. The decades-long conflict in South Sudan is one good example.

Tribalism is a precursor of racism; and a tribalist is a racist in a broader view. If we are tribalist, why should we blame others for being racist?

If we use our tribe to discriminate against, marginalize, and/or to promote hatred against others who are not our tribesmen, then do not ask me my tribe. I HATE MY TRIBE.