KANERE - A Refugee Free PressVolume 1, Issue 2 / January 2009
Information is power, and sharing information with refugees on matters that affect their lives is vital. Refugee Status Determination Watch (RSD Watch, www.RSDWatch.org) is an organization devoted to just this purpose—disseminating information to create awareness on and advocate for refugee rights under the RSD process.
Volume 1, Issue 2 / January 2009
Our beautiful world contains a lot of good things but lacks peace. It is no surprise for refugees in Kakuma Camp to experience peace for a short time and then watch it disappear. So it is significant news that Kakuma Refugee Camp experienced nearly constant peace during the last two months.
Volume 1, Issue 2 / January 2009
Refugees were alarmed to see that the food ration package distributed in the second week of January replaced wheat flour with yellow maize meal. Yellow maize meal is rarely eaten even by communities whose staple food is maize. The current malnutrition rate in Kakuma Camp is 15.9 percent of the population, according to a recent UN survey.
Volume 1, Issue 2 / January 2009
The illegal brewing and drinking of chang’aa in Kakuma is a daily reality. With tags like “poison brew” or “kill-me-quick,” chang’aa is an alcoholic brew that can cause death and blindness to its drinkers. Each evening, people strolling in the camp can expect to encounter loud and obnoxious drunks wandering paths and loitering in markets.
Volume 1, Issue 2 / January 2009
For Kakuma Camp business persons, last December’s business slumped as the number of Sudanese customers diminished. Long-time camp residents can still remember the booming business during festive seasons of earlier years.
Volume 1, Issue 2 / January 2009
Refugees in Kakuma Camp experienced many different events relating to religion, social life, politics, education, and encampment in the year 2008. These contributed to their joys or added to their sorrows.
Volume 1, Issue / January 2009
After the disturbances of the previous year, I felt the need to recapture the spirit of the year’s most anticipated holiday, Christmas. It was another perfect excuse for me to travel and go outside the camp.
Volume 1, Issue 2 / January 2009
Only the hypocritical seekers of peace can stand out
in the market places and public places to shout
“Peace! We Want Peace!”
Two stories from December 2008 have been removed due to concerns over sensitivity of information. We seek to uphold the highest standards of socially responsible reporting in our online publication, and will continue to closely monitor our editorial decisions in this light.
Volume 1, Issue 1 / December 2008
News flow within and across Kakuma Refugee Camp is still extremely shoddy since the establishment of the camp in 1992. I refer to news of national interests and local as well.
Electronic media are available to refugees thanks to information and communication technologies developed by enterprising refugee businessmen. A refugee-owned cyber café has offered internet surfing facilities in the Somali Community for several years. More recently, one refugee businessman purchased a DSTV dish and established a system for individuals to subscribe to DSTV in the camp. These initiatives mark a turning point in information access for refugees in Kakuma, although their exposure remains low due to socio-economic factors inhibiting service expansion.