We are very sorry we haven’t updated sooner, but we are thankful that there is not much to report right now. We were waiting for some news out of the negotiations, but it appears that all will be relatively quiet until some agreements are reached. Kofi Annan was quoted in the paper warning the media not to speculate on the contents of the talks, and, of course, the paper proceeded to speculate about the contents of the talks.
We have now lasted over a week without any school activities cancelled. Horace’s basketball team had a game cancelled Saturday morning, but perhaps they were just afraid of the competition??
It does appear that there is a possibility of negotiations producing fruit. We’ve been a bit reluctant to write this, because we know that as soon as we do, something could blow up in the negotiations, but so far so good. The two sides have apparently outlined what they propose, and it seems there may be hope after all, as there are points they do agree upon.
The problems that remain with Kenya will take some time for recovery. Not only is there the basic mistrust between ethnic groups, but there are so many people who have been displaced from their homes, work and school. There are some that feel that these people should simply be sent back to their “original tribal home land,” but for some of these people that is a foreign land. We pray that they will be able to settle in a peaceful place that is their choice and not have something forced upon them.
The economy will suffer here. Tourism and agriculture will be the most heavily damaged areas. While some problems simply stem from fear and insecurity in certain areas, others come from damaged infrastructure, such as factories and equipment. Kericho, for instance, is a major tea producing area, and processing equipment was damaged there. With the damage done to the economy, no doubt jobs will be lost and poverty will increase.
After church two Sundays ago, we were off to lunch at a tourist spot called the Safari Park Hotel, which generally has a pretty large spread on Sundays. Normally, it is packed. In fact, vacancies in the hotel are rare even in the off-season, which we are in now. However, our car was one of only a few in the parking lot, and there were only two other tables being used in the restaurant. This really made it all hit home. In fact, the latest reported figures say tourist arrivals were down 90% in the month of January. Tourism, which leads the nation with a billion dollar industry, is really and truly bottoming out.
We want to thank all of you for your e-mails and messages. Your encouraging words really lift us up, as do your prayers. Please know that everyone is safe and sound, as life gets back to normal in East Africa.
Blessings to you all,
Horace and Anne
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