April 21, 2008
Things are improving on the political front. The new cabinet – though bloated in size with 40 new ministers and 52 assistant ministers – has an interesting composition. For each minister, the assistant minister was selected from the opposing political party. The hope is that they will be working together to fix some of the problems that brought us turmoil after the recent election. Please keep them in your prayers as they take on that task.
As one man commented to me last week, you sleep happy and then you may wake up to chaos. That is what happened last Monday morning. Though we were in no danger, the first thing that I heard was that school was having issues with buses because of protests around town. Of course, I was thinking, “What could they be protesting? The cabinet has been named, and things appear to be improving.” Well, the trouble came from a group of thugs that has been outlawed called the “Mungiki”. They are somewhere between an inner city gang and the mafia. They are allegedly part of the paid criminals that were causing some of the unrest in the country after the election. Two politicians were recently arrested for funding their escapades. Last Monday, they declared a week of mass protest because their leader has been held in jail on a weapons charge. The leader’s wife was murdered last week, and the group is blaming the police. However, it is speculated that she was probably killed as a result of fighting within the organization. At the end of the week, the government announced that they wanted to “dialogue” with the Mungiki, and the protests were called off. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens with that.
While we did not witness any trouble, we did cancel one of our classes due to uncertainty of safety on the roads. The school that our children attend had to cancel after school activities that Monday, but otherwise, it seemed to be a normal week. Thika did have quite a bit of trouble as businesses were threatened not to open because of the protest. Murang’a also experienced the troubles with businesses being forced to close. All reports are that things are back to normal now.
This week, we will try to get back on track with a make-up class. We are also beginning the task of sorting out the loan particulars for the groups in the different areas. Lots of number crunching is ahead in the next few weeks as we sort it all out.
We will write more later to update you on our groups. For now, please pray for continued peace and a willingness to let the healing process continue in this country. As always, we appreciate your prayers.
Blessings,
Anne
Showing posts with label security. Show all posts
Showing posts with label security. Show all posts
Monday, April 21, 2008
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Finally! A new posting!
Hello All –
Happy Super Tuesday to all those in the US! I hope you voted. I started trying to write this Saturday, but things have evolved into quite a busy weekend and beginning of the week, so here I am Tuesday night trying to get it finished. I just don’t seem to be able to get a blog written and posted before things change a bit – or we don’t have working internet – or we don’t have electricity.
We had a town hall meeting today with the American Ambassador and members of the Embassy staff. It was a helpful update. They are very encouraged by the reports they are getting from Kofi Annan’s mediation efforts. The two agreements that have already been signed came more quickly than expected. Granted, they are now in the more seriously contested issues, but he felt that both sides will be open to negotiation and compromise eventually.
They spent quite a bit of time answering questions from the audience, and overall, they were frank, but optimistic. They gave us helpful information about Warden contacts. Being with so many Americans in Nairobi, our ward is actually quite a small area and the warden lives just behind us a few streets. The warden is the person who delivers emergency information via cell phone, although we all receive emails directly from the Embassy.
Their advice was to proceed with our work here and be aware of our surroundings, avoiding known areas of trouble – which we are already doing. They do not forsee our current situation of relative security in Nairobi to change any time soon. They did qualify that with the advice to stay away from the known trouble spots, including Kabera and other slum areas. For some in ministry, this is quite difficult because that is where all of their work is. However, for us, it does not pertain.
I know that it is hard to look at Kenya’s situation as having hope for some of those not as familiar with this country or the continent of Africa, but the reasons the Ambassador gave for optimism were encouraging to me, reminding me of the basic stability of the people. First, Kenya has a well established community of business people and civilians who have invested quite a bit in the basic democratic structure of this country. While it is obviously far from perfect, they are more established here than most countries. Second, Kenya has a very high literacy rate which makes citizen more likely to assess the situation at hand for themselves without blindly following leaders. Third, Kenya has the best media outlets in Africa that are dedicated to the free press and are free from intimidation from outside sources. Fourth, both sides have a tremendous amount to lose and gain in this process. Kibaki does not want to be viewed by the world as a leader who stole power, and Odinga does not want to have the legacy of tearing this country apart. Lastly, he said that from his personal conversations with all parties, he has come to the conclusion that they will work toward agreement.
The Ambassador also told us that the US is privately putting some pressure on individuals who they believe are involved in supporting violence. They have received spoken and written warnings that their visa status is to be reviewed if peace does not come soon. Many of these individuals have children who are living and working or going to school in the US, and many of them were educated in the US, so that is having a tremendous impact on them. It seems they have evidence pointing to certain individuals and their part in funding the violence. The positive about that disgusting bit of information is that intelligence is yielding valuable information for finding those responsible. Once the funding dries up, for many of these “bands of youth”, the violence will be discontinued. These wealthy individuals seem to be exploiting the large population of unemployed youth for their causes, so it appears that the “chaos” may just well be a paid show without true commitment to the causes.
We, of course, continue to watch what happens in our community and the country as a whole. We are thankful for the organization and communication we get from the Embassy. They have an policy that states we as private citizens receive the same information that Embassy employees and their families receive.
The last few days have been a bit busy, but it was topped off yesterday in the first three minutes of Mary Shea’s basketball game. She fell backwards onto her elbow and was in quite a lot of pain. We took her straight to the Children’s hospital where our pediatrician’s office is. Thankfully, he was just finishing up his day and was available to take a look. He sent us for a quick x-ray and then called the orthopedist to see us. The orthopedist waited for us even though he was also finished with his normal office hours. He said that she had a slight crack in her elbow and put her in a cast right then and there. He checked it this afternoon, and he expects her to be in a cast only two weeks. The timing was an absolute blessing as another Mom took Horace, Jr. home after his basketball game and we were only about 30 minutes later picking him up from their house on our way home (2 and ½ hours from injury to home). The bad news is that she will have to sit out of swim team for about three weeks. She is disappointed, but we are all thankful that it was not any more serious. Horace’s team won their game 22-10 with the second string mostly, so we did not even miss seeing him play very much. Mary Shea broke her arm last year, but it was simply a fall outside her classroom. She says that saying she hurt it in basketball is a much better story to tell. She is in MUCH better spirits tonight, and the pain is almost gone.
I feel like if I actually get this on the blog, it will be a miracle, so say a prayer of thanksgiving if you have been able to read it. Please continue to pray for peace and stability. Please also pray for Mary Shea’s arm.
Blessings,
Anne
Happy Super Tuesday to all those in the US! I hope you voted. I started trying to write this Saturday, but things have evolved into quite a busy weekend and beginning of the week, so here I am Tuesday night trying to get it finished. I just don’t seem to be able to get a blog written and posted before things change a bit – or we don’t have working internet – or we don’t have electricity.
We had a town hall meeting today with the American Ambassador and members of the Embassy staff. It was a helpful update. They are very encouraged by the reports they are getting from Kofi Annan’s mediation efforts. The two agreements that have already been signed came more quickly than expected. Granted, they are now in the more seriously contested issues, but he felt that both sides will be open to negotiation and compromise eventually.
They spent quite a bit of time answering questions from the audience, and overall, they were frank, but optimistic. They gave us helpful information about Warden contacts. Being with so many Americans in Nairobi, our ward is actually quite a small area and the warden lives just behind us a few streets. The warden is the person who delivers emergency information via cell phone, although we all receive emails directly from the Embassy.
Their advice was to proceed with our work here and be aware of our surroundings, avoiding known areas of trouble – which we are already doing. They do not forsee our current situation of relative security in Nairobi to change any time soon. They did qualify that with the advice to stay away from the known trouble spots, including Kabera and other slum areas. For some in ministry, this is quite difficult because that is where all of their work is. However, for us, it does not pertain.
I know that it is hard to look at Kenya’s situation as having hope for some of those not as familiar with this country or the continent of Africa, but the reasons the Ambassador gave for optimism were encouraging to me, reminding me of the basic stability of the people. First, Kenya has a well established community of business people and civilians who have invested quite a bit in the basic democratic structure of this country. While it is obviously far from perfect, they are more established here than most countries. Second, Kenya has a very high literacy rate which makes citizen more likely to assess the situation at hand for themselves without blindly following leaders. Third, Kenya has the best media outlets in Africa that are dedicated to the free press and are free from intimidation from outside sources. Fourth, both sides have a tremendous amount to lose and gain in this process. Kibaki does not want to be viewed by the world as a leader who stole power, and Odinga does not want to have the legacy of tearing this country apart. Lastly, he said that from his personal conversations with all parties, he has come to the conclusion that they will work toward agreement.
The Ambassador also told us that the US is privately putting some pressure on individuals who they believe are involved in supporting violence. They have received spoken and written warnings that their visa status is to be reviewed if peace does not come soon. Many of these individuals have children who are living and working or going to school in the US, and many of them were educated in the US, so that is having a tremendous impact on them. It seems they have evidence pointing to certain individuals and their part in funding the violence. The positive about that disgusting bit of information is that intelligence is yielding valuable information for finding those responsible. Once the funding dries up, for many of these “bands of youth”, the violence will be discontinued. These wealthy individuals seem to be exploiting the large population of unemployed youth for their causes, so it appears that the “chaos” may just well be a paid show without true commitment to the causes.
We, of course, continue to watch what happens in our community and the country as a whole. We are thankful for the organization and communication we get from the Embassy. They have an policy that states we as private citizens receive the same information that Embassy employees and their families receive.
The last few days have been a bit busy, but it was topped off yesterday in the first three minutes of Mary Shea’s basketball game. She fell backwards onto her elbow and was in quite a lot of pain. We took her straight to the Children’s hospital where our pediatrician’s office is. Thankfully, he was just finishing up his day and was available to take a look. He sent us for a quick x-ray and then called the orthopedist to see us. The orthopedist waited for us even though he was also finished with his normal office hours. He said that she had a slight crack in her elbow and put her in a cast right then and there. He checked it this afternoon, and he expects her to be in a cast only two weeks. The timing was an absolute blessing as another Mom took Horace, Jr. home after his basketball game and we were only about 30 minutes later picking him up from their house on our way home (2 and ½ hours from injury to home). The bad news is that she will have to sit out of swim team for about three weeks. She is disappointed, but we are all thankful that it was not any more serious. Horace’s team won their game 22-10 with the second string mostly, so we did not even miss seeing him play very much. Mary Shea broke her arm last year, but it was simply a fall outside her classroom. She says that saying she hurt it in basketball is a much better story to tell. She is in MUCH better spirits tonight, and the pain is almost gone.
I feel like if I actually get this on the blog, it will be a miracle, so say a prayer of thanksgiving if you have been able to read it. Please continue to pray for peace and stability. Please also pray for Mary Shea’s arm.
Blessings,
Anne
Friday, February 1, 2008
Good News Breaking in Nairobi
Today was a quiet news day for us – not by choice. We were without electricity from midnight last night until the middle of this afternoon. Power outages here are more the norm for our lives. We always have plenty of candles and flashlights handy, but we are without the TV. There were scheduled sports events at school which I will write more about later.
Ban Ki Moon, the Secretary General of the UN was in town today to give assistance to the peace process. He must be quite effective because it appears there might just be some good news tonight – which is a very welcome event in our household and across this country. On both the CNN and BBC websites, they are reporting “BREAKING NEWS” that the two sides have reached an agenda for a peace deal. This is not the peace deal, but it is an agreement on how to move forward. Apparently, this spells out exactly what issues will be covered in the next 2 to 4 weeks as they broker peace.
The really good news is that there has been an immediate agreement to end inflammatory language, break up gangs who are using violence, and the right to peaceful assembly for all citizens. These gangs are actually being referred to as “militias”; however, one of these groups in particular, the Mungiki, has been in Kenya for some time. They operate more like the gangs that we read and hear about in the US, committing crimes and operating on the fringes of society.
I heard a story today that yesterday the Mungiki attempted to enter a community to rid it of Luo people. But, both the Luo and the Kikuyu people in that community refused to be intimidated and chased them out. If that kind of cooperation could spread throughout Kenya, the political negotiations would not be necessary. I believe the good and decent people of Kenya are weary of the intimidation and fear. I believe they are acting in faith to fight against corruption.
Prayers are being answered, and it certainly seems to be positive. Please pray that the negotiations will continue to be productive. Also, please pray for the people of this country. They need stamina and courage to continue.
On a family note, Sports Day was a great success. Mary Shea was first in the high jump and second in both of her races. She did quite well in the long jump, but we are not sure if she placed. Horace did quite well in his races also – coming in second and third place. I helped Parent Teacher Fellowship make and sell sandwiches for a fundraiser – we didn’t do so well as we were competing with Korean lunches. It was a wonderful day for me – just to return to a bit of the normal routine of family and school.
We appreciate your prayers and encouragement every day. Please keep them going. If you could also add our families in the U.S., that would also be greatly appreciated. They are stressed from what they see on the news, and our ability to convince them of our safety seems to be lacking somewhat.
We will continue to update you as we know more.
Praying for a peaceful weekend for you and for us,
Anne
Ban Ki Moon, the Secretary General of the UN was in town today to give assistance to the peace process. He must be quite effective because it appears there might just be some good news tonight – which is a very welcome event in our household and across this country. On both the CNN and BBC websites, they are reporting “BREAKING NEWS” that the two sides have reached an agenda for a peace deal. This is not the peace deal, but it is an agreement on how to move forward. Apparently, this spells out exactly what issues will be covered in the next 2 to 4 weeks as they broker peace.
The really good news is that there has been an immediate agreement to end inflammatory language, break up gangs who are using violence, and the right to peaceful assembly for all citizens. These gangs are actually being referred to as “militias”; however, one of these groups in particular, the Mungiki, has been in Kenya for some time. They operate more like the gangs that we read and hear about in the US, committing crimes and operating on the fringes of society.
I heard a story today that yesterday the Mungiki attempted to enter a community to rid it of Luo people. But, both the Luo and the Kikuyu people in that community refused to be intimidated and chased them out. If that kind of cooperation could spread throughout Kenya, the political negotiations would not be necessary. I believe the good and decent people of Kenya are weary of the intimidation and fear. I believe they are acting in faith to fight against corruption.
Prayers are being answered, and it certainly seems to be positive. Please pray that the negotiations will continue to be productive. Also, please pray for the people of this country. They need stamina and courage to continue.
On a family note, Sports Day was a great success. Mary Shea was first in the high jump and second in both of her races. She did quite well in the long jump, but we are not sure if she placed. Horace did quite well in his races also – coming in second and third place. I helped Parent Teacher Fellowship make and sell sandwiches for a fundraiser – we didn’t do so well as we were competing with Korean lunches. It was a wonderful day for me – just to return to a bit of the normal routine of family and school.
We appreciate your prayers and encouragement every day. Please keep them going. If you could also add our families in the U.S., that would also be greatly appreciated. They are stressed from what they see on the news, and our ability to convince them of our safety seems to be lacking somewhat.
We will continue to update you as we know more.
Praying for a peaceful weekend for you and for us,
Anne
Thursday, January 31, 2008
We Really Are OK
Yes, it is bad. But we are safe.
I can’t lie and say things are normal here, because they are not. There is always the “what if” in our minds as we go about daily activities. But, we do feel it is as normal and safe as possible for us right now. Please know that if we thought we were in danger, we would not be here.
That being said, there are things that we cannot and will not do. I don’t have a wild desire to drive across town, but our normal routes are OK. I won’t be visiting the Nairobi Game Park anytime soon – as you would drive right by Kibera, one of the slums that has had the most violence. However, we drove to Westlands today to take a diseased passion fruit plant for testing at the KARI labs, and that was OK. Yesterday, Horace drove two hours north to Murang’a to visit one of our projects. He felt fine about the drive and the area in which he was working.
Mary Shea started swim team practice this week. Other than being totally exhausted (in a good way), all was fine. Horace had two basketball games. They won one and lost one – by two points from a last second shot. We have Sports Day tomorrow – which is a day with track and field events for Grades K – 8. The high school is having a Luau tomorrow night at the new pool. All these things seem quite normal, and they are.
I, however, am not traveling outside of Nairobi for the time being. This is not because our work areas are unsafe; it is because there is always a possibility that school would have to dismiss early one day due to trouble in some parts of Nairobi. Though our school is in a very safe location (around the corner from the UN and the US Embassy and next door to US Embassy housing), they have to consider navigating buses all over Nairobi. They simply will not take any chances.
What this means is that we are behind schedule on our work. The passion fruit and flowers don’t know that, so they aren’t going to stop growing. The farmers still need technical assistance along the way. We are postponing the business classes for now until we can be assured that school is on schedule.
I read a list today of the “possible signs” of stress which was published in our school email newsletter. It said we aren’t supposed to beat ourselves up if we aren’t very productive right now, so I guess I will have to go with the expert advice. It also said that watching the news can cause increased stress in an already stressful environment (OK – a clear statement of the obvious). I am sure you can relate somewhat that the news media does tend to focus on the most graphic and horrific images they can possibly find. I am finding that they repeat these particularly disturbing pictures regularly on both BBC and CNN International. I am sure what you are seeing is just as bad, and I do realize that you worry for us. We are blessed to have many at home praying and caring for us – not only now, but also the past three years of our work here.
We do appreciate the prayers, and they are a great comfort to us. There are so many people here in dire straights. There is a flower farm in Naivasha that we know of that has been inundated with refugees. As one of the managers told a friend of ours, they are farmers and business men, not aid workers. They feel totally overwhelmed with the responsibility to help and clueless about how to do it. At one camp in Limuru last week, in just one night, 15 babies were born. We have options – such as a safe place to live, transportation readily available, food, water, electricity, clothing and all our possessions. There are people here that are not so fortunate, and they truly need your prayers.
We pray that politicians will be able to put greed and pride aside as they negotiate a deal for peace. This is a miracle for any politician to do, but more so in this case, it seems. That will truly take the power of prayer, of course, but we do feel that it would be God’s will for this to happen.
We will try to keep you updated as much as possible. Thank you for the emails and the prayers. Keep ‘em coming!!
Blessings,
Anne
I can’t lie and say things are normal here, because they are not. There is always the “what if” in our minds as we go about daily activities. But, we do feel it is as normal and safe as possible for us right now. Please know that if we thought we were in danger, we would not be here.
That being said, there are things that we cannot and will not do. I don’t have a wild desire to drive across town, but our normal routes are OK. I won’t be visiting the Nairobi Game Park anytime soon – as you would drive right by Kibera, one of the slums that has had the most violence. However, we drove to Westlands today to take a diseased passion fruit plant for testing at the KARI labs, and that was OK. Yesterday, Horace drove two hours north to Murang’a to visit one of our projects. He felt fine about the drive and the area in which he was working.
Mary Shea started swim team practice this week. Other than being totally exhausted (in a good way), all was fine. Horace had two basketball games. They won one and lost one – by two points from a last second shot. We have Sports Day tomorrow – which is a day with track and field events for Grades K – 8. The high school is having a Luau tomorrow night at the new pool. All these things seem quite normal, and they are.
I, however, am not traveling outside of Nairobi for the time being. This is not because our work areas are unsafe; it is because there is always a possibility that school would have to dismiss early one day due to trouble in some parts of Nairobi. Though our school is in a very safe location (around the corner from the UN and the US Embassy and next door to US Embassy housing), they have to consider navigating buses all over Nairobi. They simply will not take any chances.
What this means is that we are behind schedule on our work. The passion fruit and flowers don’t know that, so they aren’t going to stop growing. The farmers still need technical assistance along the way. We are postponing the business classes for now until we can be assured that school is on schedule.
I read a list today of the “possible signs” of stress which was published in our school email newsletter. It said we aren’t supposed to beat ourselves up if we aren’t very productive right now, so I guess I will have to go with the expert advice. It also said that watching the news can cause increased stress in an already stressful environment (OK – a clear statement of the obvious). I am sure you can relate somewhat that the news media does tend to focus on the most graphic and horrific images they can possibly find. I am finding that they repeat these particularly disturbing pictures regularly on both BBC and CNN International. I am sure what you are seeing is just as bad, and I do realize that you worry for us. We are blessed to have many at home praying and caring for us – not only now, but also the past three years of our work here.
We do appreciate the prayers, and they are a great comfort to us. There are so many people here in dire straights. There is a flower farm in Naivasha that we know of that has been inundated with refugees. As one of the managers told a friend of ours, they are farmers and business men, not aid workers. They feel totally overwhelmed with the responsibility to help and clueless about how to do it. At one camp in Limuru last week, in just one night, 15 babies were born. We have options – such as a safe place to live, transportation readily available, food, water, electricity, clothing and all our possessions. There are people here that are not so fortunate, and they truly need your prayers.
We pray that politicians will be able to put greed and pride aside as they negotiate a deal for peace. This is a miracle for any politician to do, but more so in this case, it seems. That will truly take the power of prayer, of course, but we do feel that it would be God’s will for this to happen.
We will try to keep you updated as much as possible. Thank you for the emails and the prayers. Keep ‘em coming!!
Blessings,
Anne
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Tuesday, January 29th
Several people have written today very concerned for our safety, so I write to clarify what is going on in the country and with us in particular.
The situation is indeed serious, but we are following the lead of the U.S. embassy. When they say move, we will indeed move, but at this point they have given no such indication. I know it is hard to believe, but everything in Nairobi seems normal. There was some violence surrounding the death of the M.P., but it calmed before noon. In fact, Anne and I were in downtown Nairobi this morning (also a long way from the violence today) and had no idea anything was going on today until we got a phone call informing us of the clashes.
There are some hotspots around, and we are avoiding them at all cost. In the suburbs where we live, we are no where near any of this. (For those of you in the Memphis area, try to imagine being in Marion, AR, if Orange Mound were in a riot. It is a real concern, so the best thing to do is to stay away from there.) In fact, people in other parts of the city who do live nearer to the bad parts are planning on sending their kids to our house if there is trouble with school closures or something. But right now that has not happened.
The kids’ school – to which we live very close – is also being extra careful. They sent some kids home at noon today being fearful of certain bus routes, but at the end of the day, everyone felt it was – while still a necessary precaution – more or less a false alarm, as there were no incidents on the road.There is one small ray of hope in this situation. Tonight, the opposing parties "agreed to agree" in negotiations led by Kofi Annan, setting down criteria for talks which are to begin tomorrow. Prior to this, both parties’ leaders denounced the violence and called on officials below them to do the same and to be physically present in their constituencies to see that there is no violence. If they do follow through with this, then we pray things will calm down soon.I know what you all see in the news is shocking, and I don't want to belittle it; however, I do think a lot of the news paints with a pretty broad brush. I travel to and work with people who really aren't even aware that much is going on. While they are not near Nairobi, it is still apparent that there are many peaceful parts of the country, which at this point, seem untouchable. I pray it stays that way.
Horace
The situation is indeed serious, but we are following the lead of the U.S. embassy. When they say move, we will indeed move, but at this point they have given no such indication. I know it is hard to believe, but everything in Nairobi seems normal. There was some violence surrounding the death of the M.P., but it calmed before noon. In fact, Anne and I were in downtown Nairobi this morning (also a long way from the violence today) and had no idea anything was going on today until we got a phone call informing us of the clashes.
There are some hotspots around, and we are avoiding them at all cost. In the suburbs where we live, we are no where near any of this. (For those of you in the Memphis area, try to imagine being in Marion, AR, if Orange Mound were in a riot. It is a real concern, so the best thing to do is to stay away from there.) In fact, people in other parts of the city who do live nearer to the bad parts are planning on sending their kids to our house if there is trouble with school closures or something. But right now that has not happened.
The kids’ school – to which we live very close – is also being extra careful. They sent some kids home at noon today being fearful of certain bus routes, but at the end of the day, everyone felt it was – while still a necessary precaution – more or less a false alarm, as there were no incidents on the road.There is one small ray of hope in this situation. Tonight, the opposing parties "agreed to agree" in negotiations led by Kofi Annan, setting down criteria for talks which are to begin tomorrow. Prior to this, both parties’ leaders denounced the violence and called on officials below them to do the same and to be physically present in their constituencies to see that there is no violence. If they do follow through with this, then we pray things will calm down soon.I know what you all see in the news is shocking, and I don't want to belittle it; however, I do think a lot of the news paints with a pretty broad brush. I travel to and work with people who really aren't even aware that much is going on. While they are not near Nairobi, it is still apparent that there are many peaceful parts of the country, which at this point, seem untouchable. I pray it stays that way.
Horace
Monday, January 28, 2008
Monday, January 28
There is much going on here in Kenya, but we want to assure people we are in no danger in the suburbs of Nairobi. As one friend told me, “We don’t really live in Africa. We live 15 minutes outside of it.” Everything we are seeing is on the news, just as you are seeing it too.
However, things seem to be going from bad to worse. I wish I could put a positive spin on it, but when people are killing one another for the way they were born, it speaks volumes about the situation. Yet it is deeper than just ethnicity. Poverty is playing a huge part in all of this. We don’t see the middle or upper classes involved in any of this. These are the people who have nothing fighting against the people who have just a little bit (so says the BBC).
Several cities and towns in the Rift Valley have erupted into tribal clashes in the last several days. Many have died, and many more are now homeless. One can only pray that it will all come to an end soon because certainly no one has a handle on the situation. The political elite are still preparing for the negotiating table, and this is one positive sign. Yet at this point, those who are fighting are doing so not for political reasons any more. We are pretty new here to be commentators on such matters, but apparently this sort of thing has happened around most elections, as different ethnic groups vie for the best agricultural land whenever there is a chance of change in the political elite. This is by far the worst to date. I do want to strongly emphasize, however, that this situation is no Rwanda. Both foreign and national analysts have stated this over and over. The two situations do not compare.
Many have been asking where the church is in all this, and to a certain degree some of the churches have been deafeningly silent. However, Anne and I heard a great sermon this weekend, when the preacher asked, “How can we call ourselves a Christian nation – 83 percent of the population – when we let this happen?” The preacher, a Kikuyu, also challenged the congregation when he said, “Have you invited your Luo neighbor to church?” That is really the question of the day, isn’t it?
As I said, in our neck of the woods, things are very peaceful. In fact, I spent all day in Thika and Mang’u, where one of our projects is located. We plan on going to Murang’a on Wednesday to teach a business class and check the farmers’ crops. So in that respect, life must move on. We are going about our business, muddling through as best we can. Please keep us as well as all of Kenya in your prayers this day. We all need them.
Horace
However, things seem to be going from bad to worse. I wish I could put a positive spin on it, but when people are killing one another for the way they were born, it speaks volumes about the situation. Yet it is deeper than just ethnicity. Poverty is playing a huge part in all of this. We don’t see the middle or upper classes involved in any of this. These are the people who have nothing fighting against the people who have just a little bit (so says the BBC).
Several cities and towns in the Rift Valley have erupted into tribal clashes in the last several days. Many have died, and many more are now homeless. One can only pray that it will all come to an end soon because certainly no one has a handle on the situation. The political elite are still preparing for the negotiating table, and this is one positive sign. Yet at this point, those who are fighting are doing so not for political reasons any more. We are pretty new here to be commentators on such matters, but apparently this sort of thing has happened around most elections, as different ethnic groups vie for the best agricultural land whenever there is a chance of change in the political elite. This is by far the worst to date. I do want to strongly emphasize, however, that this situation is no Rwanda. Both foreign and national analysts have stated this over and over. The two situations do not compare.
Many have been asking where the church is in all this, and to a certain degree some of the churches have been deafeningly silent. However, Anne and I heard a great sermon this weekend, when the preacher asked, “How can we call ourselves a Christian nation – 83 percent of the population – when we let this happen?” The preacher, a Kikuyu, also challenged the congregation when he said, “Have you invited your Luo neighbor to church?” That is really the question of the day, isn’t it?
As I said, in our neck of the woods, things are very peaceful. In fact, I spent all day in Thika and Mang’u, where one of our projects is located. We plan on going to Murang’a on Wednesday to teach a business class and check the farmers’ crops. So in that respect, life must move on. We are going about our business, muddling through as best we can. Please keep us as well as all of Kenya in your prayers this day. We all need them.
Horace
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Saturday Report
It is a beautiful Saturday morning here in Nairobi. We expect a relatively quiet weekend. Even though things are quiet for us, we realize that this is not the case in other areas. For the most part is seems our life can proceed as normal with mere avoidance of trouble spots. There are still many in this country who have fled their homes. The government is steadily pushing the refugee camps to close and force the people to return home, but it appears that most will not choose to return to their homes due to fear of continued violence. The church closest to our school has roughly 200 refugees that they estimate will be there 3 to 6 months. There is another camp in the Limuru area that reportedly had 15 babies born there last week alone. The question for these people now is where to go and what to do.
The talks continue with the opposition and the government. Yesterday’s paper had an article which was the most encouraging piece of news we have seen so far. They reported that 40 Members of Parliament from both parties had agreed to speak together for peace. The District Commissioner has agreed to lift the ban on public gatherings so that these leaders can publicly call for peace among their constituents. Today’s paper is also reporting that religious leaders from the National Council of Churches in Kenya are calling for pulpits to be used to preach peace. Sadly, this has not been occurring everywhere already. There have been many stories of inflaming messages coming from the pulpit – from all sides of the issues. We pray that both political and religious leaders will indeed be called to preach and teach peace and aid the healing that needs to occur.
Today’s paper is also reporting that the differences in the two sides are still quite obvious. Even their word choice in public statements causes quite a stir. All along, the two sides have differed on the starting point for discussion. Basically, the government has stated that the legitimacy of the President’s election is not up for discussion, and the opposition says that the recognizing his election is not an option. The mediation team has their work cut out for them. However, they appear very skilled in negotiation, as currently, they are not discussing the hard issues. They are only discussing the facts of the election, keeping all parties at the table.
Yesterday, the town of Nakuru, about three hours from Nairobi, suffered terribly. There were at least six people who died in the violence there, and the town is now subject to night time curfews. Nakuru is the fourth largest city in Kenya. Some of you may have visited Nakuru’s game park with (among many other types of wildlife) the beautiful flamingoes in the lake and obnoxious monkeys in the parking lot.
We have now made it a whole week with the kid’s school in session. The administration of the school feels that we can proceed on a normal schedule. So, Wednesday we will travel to Murang’a for a business seminar and discipleship class. The farmers there are growing passion fruit. We are looking forward to getting back to teaching our classes. Horace has been working on the phone and in Thika ordering supplies and getting things organized for the project managers, but it is not quite the same as visiting in person.
As for family life, Horace, Jr.’s experience at Middle School Model United Nations was definitely a learning experience in politics and life in general. Thursday, he was very disappointed (along with his advisor and many fellow students) that his resolution did not pass and that he was not given the opportunity to debate the issues that were presented against it. However, Friday his resolution was given the “best resolution” award in his committee. Not only that, but in the advisor’s meeting, it was singled out as a good example of a well-done resolution. So, it was a good end to a frustrating week. He did enjoy the experience, and I think he may even pursue the high school version. Still no basket ball games, but we look forward to some in the coming week.
Mary Shea made the swim team, so it looks like that will dominate things for a few months for her. She did a great job and is looking forward to it. She also will get to participate in basketball intramurals, so no tough decisions were required yet.
That is your weekend news update from the Tipton household. We look forward to sharing more with you next week as we continue the journey toward what one of my friends calls the “new normal”.
Please pray that these encouraging signs continue toward lasting peace.
Blessings,
Anne
The talks continue with the opposition and the government. Yesterday’s paper had an article which was the most encouraging piece of news we have seen so far. They reported that 40 Members of Parliament from both parties had agreed to speak together for peace. The District Commissioner has agreed to lift the ban on public gatherings so that these leaders can publicly call for peace among their constituents. Today’s paper is also reporting that religious leaders from the National Council of Churches in Kenya are calling for pulpits to be used to preach peace. Sadly, this has not been occurring everywhere already. There have been many stories of inflaming messages coming from the pulpit – from all sides of the issues. We pray that both political and religious leaders will indeed be called to preach and teach peace and aid the healing that needs to occur.
Today’s paper is also reporting that the differences in the two sides are still quite obvious. Even their word choice in public statements causes quite a stir. All along, the two sides have differed on the starting point for discussion. Basically, the government has stated that the legitimacy of the President’s election is not up for discussion, and the opposition says that the recognizing his election is not an option. The mediation team has their work cut out for them. However, they appear very skilled in negotiation, as currently, they are not discussing the hard issues. They are only discussing the facts of the election, keeping all parties at the table.
Yesterday, the town of Nakuru, about three hours from Nairobi, suffered terribly. There were at least six people who died in the violence there, and the town is now subject to night time curfews. Nakuru is the fourth largest city in Kenya. Some of you may have visited Nakuru’s game park with (among many other types of wildlife) the beautiful flamingoes in the lake and obnoxious monkeys in the parking lot.
We have now made it a whole week with the kid’s school in session. The administration of the school feels that we can proceed on a normal schedule. So, Wednesday we will travel to Murang’a for a business seminar and discipleship class. The farmers there are growing passion fruit. We are looking forward to getting back to teaching our classes. Horace has been working on the phone and in Thika ordering supplies and getting things organized for the project managers, but it is not quite the same as visiting in person.
As for family life, Horace, Jr.’s experience at Middle School Model United Nations was definitely a learning experience in politics and life in general. Thursday, he was very disappointed (along with his advisor and many fellow students) that his resolution did not pass and that he was not given the opportunity to debate the issues that were presented against it. However, Friday his resolution was given the “best resolution” award in his committee. Not only that, but in the advisor’s meeting, it was singled out as a good example of a well-done resolution. So, it was a good end to a frustrating week. He did enjoy the experience, and I think he may even pursue the high school version. Still no basket ball games, but we look forward to some in the coming week.
Mary Shea made the swim team, so it looks like that will dominate things for a few months for her. She did a great job and is looking forward to it. She also will get to participate in basketball intramurals, so no tough decisions were required yet.
That is your weekend news update from the Tipton household. We look forward to sharing more with you next week as we continue the journey toward what one of my friends calls the “new normal”.
Please pray that these encouraging signs continue toward lasting peace.
Blessings,
Anne
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Saturday Night in Kenya again
After a turbulent week, we are now having a quiet weekend. Praise God! Friday was marred with a number of deaths at the hands of police. However, some of these “peaceful” protests got out of control, as machete wielding mobs began to attack the police, who, in turn, used full force to dispel the crowds. Near the Massai Mara game reserve, a Kikuyu village and a Massai village attacked one another. I want to stress in all of this violence, it doesn’t appear to be political. In Nairobi, most of those participating are unemployed, frustrated and angry and simply spoiling for a fight. In the rural areas, tribal tensions have festered under the surface for years, and the election was the catalyst that has allowed them to explode.
All in all, however, the size of the protests has been dramatically smaller, less than 10 percent the size of the previous week’s, and the violence has been much more sporadic. This tells me that the people are growing weary of this nonsense and want to get their lives back to normal. I know we do.
I attended the meeting with the US Ambassador yesterday. Many sources believe the counting process and the reporting of results of the election were flawed on both sides. While the US recognizes the limitations and mistakes of both sides on this issue, our home country is neutral in its choice of who it would support – this is an important point that we wish more of the Kenyan community were made aware of. There is, it seems, always blame for the US in international matters. There are Kenyans who blame the US for supporting the opposition and encouraging the trouble. The Ambassador reiterated that they are simply interested in a peaceful resolution that is crafted by Kenyans. The US and other outside interests are merely here to support a process of reconciliation between parties in Kenya. They are not here to issue orders and tell Kenyans what must be done. As it stands now, both sides have shown interest in talking but have not acted toward that. The EU Parliament has recommended suspending aid from European countries to Kenya. The US does not agree that this is necessary at this time. The Ambassador is very positive that a peaceful, political settlement will occur. Just how that will be is anybody’s guess.
The opposition has said it will be switching tactics from demonstrations to boycotting certain businesses. These are businesses which are owned by those who are close to the current government. Time will tell what effect this has on the country. There is a delegation of former Presidents of African countries here in Kenya, and the opposition met with them yesterday. Kofi Annan is due to arrive in the country Tuesday. He is recovering from the flu.
While our children did attend a few hours of school today to get some extra instruction on a few things, we will be back to a regular schedule beginning Monday. We are praying that we can get back to “normal”. Of course, all events are subject to cancellation. One area of concern in our household is, of course, sports. Basketball is back on the calendar with two games scheduled for Horace’s team. We have not received word on the Middle School Model UN.
I suppose the question is, “What will “normal” look like for us?” If this political stalemate muddles through a solution over the next several months, then sporadic violence is possible, as all parties become frustrated. However, if a negotiated settlement is reached soon, all parties will once again be forced to live with one another. Please pray for true reconciliation amongst all Kenyans.
We will keep you posted about further developments here in Kenya.
May God bless all of you.
Horace
All in all, however, the size of the protests has been dramatically smaller, less than 10 percent the size of the previous week’s, and the violence has been much more sporadic. This tells me that the people are growing weary of this nonsense and want to get their lives back to normal. I know we do.
I attended the meeting with the US Ambassador yesterday. Many sources believe the counting process and the reporting of results of the election were flawed on both sides. While the US recognizes the limitations and mistakes of both sides on this issue, our home country is neutral in its choice of who it would support – this is an important point that we wish more of the Kenyan community were made aware of. There is, it seems, always blame for the US in international matters. There are Kenyans who blame the US for supporting the opposition and encouraging the trouble. The Ambassador reiterated that they are simply interested in a peaceful resolution that is crafted by Kenyans. The US and other outside interests are merely here to support a process of reconciliation between parties in Kenya. They are not here to issue orders and tell Kenyans what must be done. As it stands now, both sides have shown interest in talking but have not acted toward that. The EU Parliament has recommended suspending aid from European countries to Kenya. The US does not agree that this is necessary at this time. The Ambassador is very positive that a peaceful, political settlement will occur. Just how that will be is anybody’s guess.
The opposition has said it will be switching tactics from demonstrations to boycotting certain businesses. These are businesses which are owned by those who are close to the current government. Time will tell what effect this has on the country. There is a delegation of former Presidents of African countries here in Kenya, and the opposition met with them yesterday. Kofi Annan is due to arrive in the country Tuesday. He is recovering from the flu.
While our children did attend a few hours of school today to get some extra instruction on a few things, we will be back to a regular schedule beginning Monday. We are praying that we can get back to “normal”. Of course, all events are subject to cancellation. One area of concern in our household is, of course, sports. Basketball is back on the calendar with two games scheduled for Horace’s team. We have not received word on the Middle School Model UN.
I suppose the question is, “What will “normal” look like for us?” If this political stalemate muddles through a solution over the next several months, then sporadic violence is possible, as all parties become frustrated. However, if a negotiated settlement is reached soon, all parties will once again be forced to live with one another. Please pray for true reconciliation amongst all Kenyans.
We will keep you posted about further developments here in Kenya.
May God bless all of you.
Horace
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Thursday, January 17th
Today was another day of protests in Nairobi. There are varying accounts of deaths being reported in Nairobi and Kisumu, but it looks like at least 6 people have died today. The numbers of people who are demonstrating seems to be smaller than previous days.
One of the more startling images that we have seen was the CNN reporter being hit with a tear gas canister as the police were trying to disperse the media from the protest area. This reporter grew up in Kenya, so it was a bit disturbing to her that all of this is going on in her homeland.
One of the more startling images that we have seen was the CNN reporter being hit with a tear gas canister as the police were trying to disperse the media from the protest area. This reporter grew up in Kenya, so it was a bit disturbing to her that all of this is going on in her homeland.
Horace joined the Anglican Diocese of Thika staff today as they loaded a truck full of supplies headed for the western part of the Rift Valley to a town called Molo. Planting Faith donated over 6,000 pounds of maize (corn) meal for the relief effort (finally, I was able to get the picture on this page - see above). Due to the generosity of donations we received in December 2007, we were able to make this purchase to assist the effort. Maize meal is a staple in the diet here, and can be quite useful to feed the displaced people who are going hungry. Water, clothing, soap, and diapers were among some of the other supplies going on the truck. Please pray for the safety of the supplies and the people accompanying the truck to its destination.
Tomorrow brings more scheduled protests. Horace will be attending a “Town Hall Meeting” tomorrow at the American Embassy. The Ambassador is scheduled to speak, and the American community is anxious to hear what he has to say.
Horace, Jr. was scheduled to be a part of the Middle School Model UN next week. He was selected as the Ambassador from Australia to the UN, and with his team had worked quite hard on a resolution that he wrote for road building in East Timor to build the infrastructure for the agriculture sector. (Do you think he is influenced from home???) Actually, we had nothing to do with the concept or planning of his resolution, and we were quite impressed with his work. In this program, the kids get to visit the UN offices here in Nairobi and debate their model resolutions. We think it will at least be postponed, but we pray that it is not cancelled. There would be many disappointed students here if that happens.
The general sentiment seems to be weariness with all of the turmoil. The majority of the people in Kenya do not wish their country to be in this condition. Everyone is ready for a normal life to pursue their work and studies. So, continue with us in persistent prayer that all will return to peace.
Blessings,
Anne
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Wednesday, January 16th
About 11 pm last night, we gave up watching the live coverage of the first meeting of Parliament since the election. They had argued over most everything that they possibly could. They did manage to elect a Speaker and Deputy Speaker, and the new members of Parliament were sworn in – after being told that they must pledge allegiance to the President – regardless of their feelings on the outcome of the election.
Although there was much debate, and it was a lengthy process, I was happy to see that it was relatively peaceful and civil. We honestly did not know what to expect from the process and were quite prepared to see the worst unfold. The clerk of Parliament made an exception to the ban on live news coverage to allow the media to carry this procedure on all three local television stations.
Today, we woke to rain. It is not expected to rain this time of year, but it poured early this morning and continued for quite some time. Our first conversation this morning was, “Could this be an answered prayer about the demonstrations?” It certainly diminished some of the numbers that were apparently planning to march. The rain, and fear, that is. It has been widely reported that people who would demonstrate with the opposition are avoiding the situations due to fear.
Demonstrations were held, however. In Nairobi, they were forced to disperse when the police used teargas. Police also shot three protesters in one of the slum areas. In Eldoret (Western Kenya), it has been reported that two people were shot by police. Mombassa (our beach town) also had a large protest rally. We witnessed none of the confrontations, but we did receive messages warning us of closure of major streets and areas of town as police attempted to break up the demonstrations.
I read an interview with the US Ambassador today in which he spelled out some of the positions the US holds regarding the election and the crisis we are currently experiencing. We had understood before that the US has long valued its relationship with Kenya as Kenya has been a force of stability in a part of the world where terrorism could otherwise run rampant – Kenya borders Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia. However, one of the most interesting things that he said is that by “our” (assuming he means the US) estimation of the results of the election, it would appear that the winner probably did not win by more than 100,000 votes which is a very narrow majority. In that light, the US would like to see the two opposing parties form a solution of peace together. He also said that he feels the election process was quite well done up until the tallying procedure by the election commission.
Tomorrow, we continue the process. We are carefully waiting, listening and watching to see what unfolds. We value your prayers and pray that peace will prevail.
Until tomorrow,
Anne
Although there was much debate, and it was a lengthy process, I was happy to see that it was relatively peaceful and civil. We honestly did not know what to expect from the process and were quite prepared to see the worst unfold. The clerk of Parliament made an exception to the ban on live news coverage to allow the media to carry this procedure on all three local television stations.
Today, we woke to rain. It is not expected to rain this time of year, but it poured early this morning and continued for quite some time. Our first conversation this morning was, “Could this be an answered prayer about the demonstrations?” It certainly diminished some of the numbers that were apparently planning to march. The rain, and fear, that is. It has been widely reported that people who would demonstrate with the opposition are avoiding the situations due to fear.
Demonstrations were held, however. In Nairobi, they were forced to disperse when the police used teargas. Police also shot three protesters in one of the slum areas. In Eldoret (Western Kenya), it has been reported that two people were shot by police. Mombassa (our beach town) also had a large protest rally. We witnessed none of the confrontations, but we did receive messages warning us of closure of major streets and areas of town as police attempted to break up the demonstrations.
I read an interview with the US Ambassador today in which he spelled out some of the positions the US holds regarding the election and the crisis we are currently experiencing. We had understood before that the US has long valued its relationship with Kenya as Kenya has been a force of stability in a part of the world where terrorism could otherwise run rampant – Kenya borders Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia. However, one of the most interesting things that he said is that by “our” (assuming he means the US) estimation of the results of the election, it would appear that the winner probably did not win by more than 100,000 votes which is a very narrow majority. In that light, the US would like to see the two opposing parties form a solution of peace together. He also said that he feels the election process was quite well done up until the tallying procedure by the election commission.
Tomorrow, we continue the process. We are carefully waiting, listening and watching to see what unfolds. We value your prayers and pray that peace will prevail.
Until tomorrow,
Anne
Monday, January 14, 2008
Update for January 14th
The good news is school started back today. The bad news is Mary Shea is sick. The good news is she will be able to go back by Thursday, the doctor said. The bad news is school has been cancelled from Wednesday through Friday because of proposed political rallies to be held all over the country by the opposition party. Please pray that these rallies are indeed what the opposition leader calls civil disobedience.
The government has vowed that they will not let the rallies happen. U.S. based Human Rights Watch was on the news tonight pleading with the government to let them happen. Regardless, please pray that they do not spiral into chaos and violence but remain calm and peaceful.
BBC is just now reporting that a government minister is saying that “there was no need for former U.N. Chief Kofi Annan to visit Kenya on Tuesday to lead fresh mediation efforts.”
"If Kofi Annan is coming, he is not coming at our invitation," the minister said. “We won the elections so we do not see the point for anyone coming to mediate power-sharing." Please pray that common sense will also prevail in this on-going saga.
While we are praying for peaceful demonstrations, we are still preparing for the worst. Today we stocked up on food for about the next 10 days. Our plan is to hunker down until any potential violence once again passes. We also filled up the cars with fuel and bought pre-paid air-time for our telephones. While we bought a lot more groceries than we normally buy and expected to spend more, we couldn’t help but notice how much more expensive everything is. A bag of pasta went up from 76 to 86 Kenya Shillings in a week. 16 apples cost me approximately $10. I paid over $6 a gallon for gas today. While all we have suffered are inconveniences, if they keep going like this, it is going to get pretty darn hard.
We will write more tomorrow as we hear news. Thank you for your prayers.
Horace
The government has vowed that they will not let the rallies happen. U.S. based Human Rights Watch was on the news tonight pleading with the government to let them happen. Regardless, please pray that they do not spiral into chaos and violence but remain calm and peaceful.
BBC is just now reporting that a government minister is saying that “there was no need for former U.N. Chief Kofi Annan to visit Kenya on Tuesday to lead fresh mediation efforts.”
"If Kofi Annan is coming, he is not coming at our invitation," the minister said. “We won the elections so we do not see the point for anyone coming to mediate power-sharing." Please pray that common sense will also prevail in this on-going saga.
While we are praying for peaceful demonstrations, we are still preparing for the worst. Today we stocked up on food for about the next 10 days. Our plan is to hunker down until any potential violence once again passes. We also filled up the cars with fuel and bought pre-paid air-time for our telephones. While we bought a lot more groceries than we normally buy and expected to spend more, we couldn’t help but notice how much more expensive everything is. A bag of pasta went up from 76 to 86 Kenya Shillings in a week. 16 apples cost me approximately $10. I paid over $6 a gallon for gas today. While all we have suffered are inconveniences, if they keep going like this, it is going to get pretty darn hard.
We will write more tomorrow as we hear news. Thank you for your prayers.
Horace
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Update for Wednesday, Jan. 9th
Greetings from Kenya. Things are pretty much at a stalemate as far as politics are concerned here. The African Union chairman has arrived, but he has yet to get the two parties to actually meet one another. He is shuttling back and forth between them for now. Things seemed to be going smoothly until the President decided to name his cabinet. Seen as a provocative move by the opposition, their leader said he would not attend face-to-face talks. This will most certainly be a long, drawn out process. No one ever heard of a short negotiation in Africa, and this certainly will fit that bill. However, it is my personal opinion that a large majority of people see the violence as senseless and futile and will keep up the pressure to force some sort of agreement between the two.
I rode into the country-side today to visit the farmer group in Mang’u. If I only stayed in the rural areas, I would probably never have known there was a problem. Life seemed quite normal for everyone, and no one seemed disturbed by anything. This is quite a stark contrast to western Kenya and the slums of Nairobi, where sporadic violence is making life tense for everyone.
Life in Nairobi is certainly getting back to normal. Most of the businesses are open. However, the business community is still nervous. The Nairobi Stock Exchange has taken a real beating, losing $581 million in several hours last week. One economist puts the country’s losses at nearly $1 billion in domestic output so far. This is a tremendous amount of money anywhere, let alone Kenya.
What this situation will do to the economy long-term could be devastating. Kenya had been considered one of the bright spots on the continent, with a GDP growing at a rate of about 5% over the last few years and recording a 7% growth last year. This is all turning around quickly, as investors are finding new places for their money. It all depends on resolving the political crisis. When the people are feeling optimistic about peace, the shilling gains some, and when they aren’t, it falls.
The Tipton family is certainly trying to get back to normal, even though the kids have an extended vacation. I’m certainly ready for them to get back to school, but I don’t think Mary Shea or Horace would agree with me. Shopping is still a bit problematic, however, especially for non-durable products, as the distribution lines have been disrupted all over the country, but this is merely an inconvenience for us, however. We truly have not been affected, as so many others have.
This is all for now. We will keep you posted.
All God’s Blessings,
Horace
I rode into the country-side today to visit the farmer group in Mang’u. If I only stayed in the rural areas, I would probably never have known there was a problem. Life seemed quite normal for everyone, and no one seemed disturbed by anything. This is quite a stark contrast to western Kenya and the slums of Nairobi, where sporadic violence is making life tense for everyone.
Life in Nairobi is certainly getting back to normal. Most of the businesses are open. However, the business community is still nervous. The Nairobi Stock Exchange has taken a real beating, losing $581 million in several hours last week. One economist puts the country’s losses at nearly $1 billion in domestic output so far. This is a tremendous amount of money anywhere, let alone Kenya.
What this situation will do to the economy long-term could be devastating. Kenya had been considered one of the bright spots on the continent, with a GDP growing at a rate of about 5% over the last few years and recording a 7% growth last year. This is all turning around quickly, as investors are finding new places for their money. It all depends on resolving the political crisis. When the people are feeling optimistic about peace, the shilling gains some, and when they aren’t, it falls.
The Tipton family is certainly trying to get back to normal, even though the kids have an extended vacation. I’m certainly ready for them to get back to school, but I don’t think Mary Shea or Horace would agree with me. Shopping is still a bit problematic, however, especially for non-durable products, as the distribution lines have been disrupted all over the country, but this is merely an inconvenience for us, however. We truly have not been affected, as so many others have.
This is all for now. We will keep you posted.
All God’s Blessings,
Horace
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Day of Rest and Prayer
Not much news to report. It has been a quiet day in Nairobi. Thankfully, this was largely a day of prayer in many places here. I know that there are prayers being said across the world for Kenya and the people here.
Much media attention is being focused on the different sides and what they mean by compromise. While they both say they are committed to reconciliation and peace, they still seem to be quite far apart in their expectations for how that will happen. There are many statements being made to the press, and we hope that it will turn into meaningful dialogue. There is some indication that talks for peace will continue with the help of outside sources from the US and the African Union.
It has been shocking to us to see the change in Kenya from just two weeks ago. Friends who live in other areas of town have had witnessed some of the trouble. They live in areas that are close to the pathways of demonstrations and have had to stay in their houses for several days because of the conflict. One of these families let their two children stay with us for the night last night. They are close friends with our children. It was nice for them to be away from their houses, but Horace’s friend was sick this morning. They have returned home, and we pray all will be peaceful around their house. They actually live across the street from an Ethiopian restaurant that we frequent, so it has been a bit odd to consider that a “bad” part of town.
Calls for humanitarian aid have been made for Kenya. We are only just beginning to realize what the needs will be in some areas, but the main issues seem to be supplies of food, water and medical supplies. There are many that have been displaced from their homes. I have read that there are over 5,000 refugees who have entered Uganda from Western Kenya. In order for this aid to be distributed properly, there must be some sense of peace and security for the aid workers. We pray that they will be able to carry out these missions without interference. We are also praying about the best way for Planting Faith to respond to the crisis and how we can best serve the people here.
Blessings,
Anne
Much media attention is being focused on the different sides and what they mean by compromise. While they both say they are committed to reconciliation and peace, they still seem to be quite far apart in their expectations for how that will happen. There are many statements being made to the press, and we hope that it will turn into meaningful dialogue. There is some indication that talks for peace will continue with the help of outside sources from the US and the African Union.
It has been shocking to us to see the change in Kenya from just two weeks ago. Friends who live in other areas of town have had witnessed some of the trouble. They live in areas that are close to the pathways of demonstrations and have had to stay in their houses for several days because of the conflict. One of these families let their two children stay with us for the night last night. They are close friends with our children. It was nice for them to be away from their houses, but Horace’s friend was sick this morning. They have returned home, and we pray all will be peaceful around their house. They actually live across the street from an Ethiopian restaurant that we frequent, so it has been a bit odd to consider that a “bad” part of town.
Calls for humanitarian aid have been made for Kenya. We are only just beginning to realize what the needs will be in some areas, but the main issues seem to be supplies of food, water and medical supplies. There are many that have been displaced from their homes. I have read that there are over 5,000 refugees who have entered Uganda from Western Kenya. In order for this aid to be distributed properly, there must be some sense of peace and security for the aid workers. We pray that they will be able to carry out these missions without interference. We are also praying about the best way for Planting Faith to respond to the crisis and how we can best serve the people here.
Blessings,
Anne
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Saturday Night in Kenya
Still here in Kenya, watching and waiting…. We are getting a bit weary and impatient, but each day seems a bit more encouraging. I have seen more than one news report state that Nairobi has returned to an “uneasy calm”, and I think that is pretty accurate. While we have not witnessed or experienced any of the troubles, we are still alert to possibilities of trouble.
There are reports that Kibaki and Odinga (the opposing candidates in the election) have agreed to talk. The biggest news seems to be that Kibaki has hinted at the possibility of some sort of Unity Government; that seems to have made Odinga willing to talk without conditions set for such a meeting. This is big news. While there is no guarantee of the success or result of this meeting, it is indeed a beginning that is hopeful.
The Anglican Church of Kenya issued a statement calling for a “re-tally” of votes. They are joining many in the international community calling for the same. The allegations of improper conduct during the election continue, and have even come from within the Election Commission of Kenya.
There are many alarming stories about things going on in this country. It is so difficult to distinguish fact from fiction, but it seems that there may be much more going on in some parts of Kenya than is officially reported. We are not sure the numbers will ever be accurate, as just the personal accounts we hear about “friend of friends” seem numerous. These stories seem to come from the troubled areas where assessing the damage may be quite difficult at the moment. However, whether the numbers of dead and injured are one or one thousand, the number is too great.
Kenya has enjoyed relative peace since the end of Colonial rule by England. It has been the point of stability in East Africa for business and for international relations. Economically, this crisis has been quite damaging. The shilling and stock market lose value so quickly when the markets are open that they are quickly closed to stall further losses. We are holding on to the hope that an end will be near. Kenya needs to get to a time of healing and reconciliation. The wounds seem to be old and deep, and that means the remedies may be complex.
In checking in with Planting Faith’s project leaders, two of the areas (Mang’u and Murang’a) in which we work have been fairly calm this past week. One area, Ngarendare, is experiencing tension. The area there is comprised of people of three different tribes. Before the election, this tension did not seem present. So, we need to pray for healing in this area. We are anxious to move forward with our work in these projects.
Our school has decided to open a week later than scheduled. This is mainly due to the proposed scheduled rally next week, security issues with buses driving through Nairobi and the possibility of fuel shortages. They are “playing it safe”, and we are thankful to be part of that community that looks at the big picture. On a personal note, our dog had five puppies last night. She has 4 yellow and 1 black healthy Labrador puppies now. All are doing well!
Blessings,
Anne
There are reports that Kibaki and Odinga (the opposing candidates in the election) have agreed to talk. The biggest news seems to be that Kibaki has hinted at the possibility of some sort of Unity Government; that seems to have made Odinga willing to talk without conditions set for such a meeting. This is big news. While there is no guarantee of the success or result of this meeting, it is indeed a beginning that is hopeful.
The Anglican Church of Kenya issued a statement calling for a “re-tally” of votes. They are joining many in the international community calling for the same. The allegations of improper conduct during the election continue, and have even come from within the Election Commission of Kenya.
There are many alarming stories about things going on in this country. It is so difficult to distinguish fact from fiction, but it seems that there may be much more going on in some parts of Kenya than is officially reported. We are not sure the numbers will ever be accurate, as just the personal accounts we hear about “friend of friends” seem numerous. These stories seem to come from the troubled areas where assessing the damage may be quite difficult at the moment. However, whether the numbers of dead and injured are one or one thousand, the number is too great.
Kenya has enjoyed relative peace since the end of Colonial rule by England. It has been the point of stability in East Africa for business and for international relations. Economically, this crisis has been quite damaging. The shilling and stock market lose value so quickly when the markets are open that they are quickly closed to stall further losses. We are holding on to the hope that an end will be near. Kenya needs to get to a time of healing and reconciliation. The wounds seem to be old and deep, and that means the remedies may be complex.
In checking in with Planting Faith’s project leaders, two of the areas (Mang’u and Murang’a) in which we work have been fairly calm this past week. One area, Ngarendare, is experiencing tension. The area there is comprised of people of three different tribes. Before the election, this tension did not seem present. So, we need to pray for healing in this area. We are anxious to move forward with our work in these projects.
Our school has decided to open a week later than scheduled. This is mainly due to the proposed scheduled rally next week, security issues with buses driving through Nairobi and the possibility of fuel shortages. They are “playing it safe”, and we are thankful to be part of that community that looks at the big picture. On a personal note, our dog had five puppies last night. She has 4 yellow and 1 black healthy Labrador puppies now. All are doing well!
Blessings,
Anne
Friday, January 4, 2008
Friday update from Kenya
Just a quick update to let you know how things are progressing in Kenya. Once again, the opposition tried to hold a demonstration in the city center. After a chaotic chase around the business district, police prevented it from happening once again with teargas. Other than that, I haven’t heard of anything else happening in Kenya today as far as the strife is concerned, so a sliver of normalcy may be coming back. We actually have several kids spending the night at our house tonight. I think the fact that their parents feel comfortable enough to let them be away from them speaks volumes. I know I feel considerably better about this situation.
Two friends of mine attended a meeting for employees of the U.S. embassy and told me that news was all very calm. In fact, they are not even evacuating their personnel from Western Kenya, where the violence has been the worst, and they are encouraging their employees who were home over the Holidays to return to Kenya. We are pretty much following the lead of the embassy, and we plan to go to a town hall meeting there Monday. I’ll keep you posted as to what they say.
On the political front, Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa has been here with the Kenyan Anglican Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi meeting with political leaders, and while we don’t really know what they are saying behind closed doors, it does appear that both sides at least may be willing to talk, as the top U.S. envoy for African affairs, Jendayi Frazer, is supposed to be arriving to help bring the parties to the table. It is being reported that the U.S. and U.K. are pushing for a power sharing agreement amongst both sides.
Please pray that the opposing parties will talk to one another and that the Lord’s hand will intervene in the whole process bringing peace to this land. Also pray that the political leaders are able to curtail the senseless violence of their followers all around Kenya.
On a much lighter note, our Labrador Retriever Sukari (Swahili for “sugar”) is in the process of having puppies, just two so far, one yellow, one black. So it may be a long night around the Tipton household between the kids and new puppies.
We truly appreciate everyone’s prayer support. Please keep it up. Things may be a bit better, but I don’t think we are quite out of the woods yet. We’ll let you know something tomorrow as well.
Blessings,
Horace
Two friends of mine attended a meeting for employees of the U.S. embassy and told me that news was all very calm. In fact, they are not even evacuating their personnel from Western Kenya, where the violence has been the worst, and they are encouraging their employees who were home over the Holidays to return to Kenya. We are pretty much following the lead of the embassy, and we plan to go to a town hall meeting there Monday. I’ll keep you posted as to what they say.
On the political front, Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa has been here with the Kenyan Anglican Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi meeting with political leaders, and while we don’t really know what they are saying behind closed doors, it does appear that both sides at least may be willing to talk, as the top U.S. envoy for African affairs, Jendayi Frazer, is supposed to be arriving to help bring the parties to the table. It is being reported that the U.S. and U.K. are pushing for a power sharing agreement amongst both sides.
Please pray that the opposing parties will talk to one another and that the Lord’s hand will intervene in the whole process bringing peace to this land. Also pray that the political leaders are able to curtail the senseless violence of their followers all around Kenya.
On a much lighter note, our Labrador Retriever Sukari (Swahili for “sugar”) is in the process of having puppies, just two so far, one yellow, one black. So it may be a long night around the Tipton household between the kids and new puppies.
We truly appreciate everyone’s prayer support. Please keep it up. Things may be a bit better, but I don’t think we are quite out of the woods yet. We’ll let you know something tomorrow as well.
Blessings,
Horace
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Still Safe, But Not Much News
Hello from Nairobi –
We are still safe and sound. Things are tense, but ok for now.
The news that we get is that the opposition’s demonstration scheduled for today has been rescheduled until tomorrow. So, we need to wait and see – and we all need to pray. They tried to move toward their location today, and they were met with police resistance. The leadership of that party decided to wait. First, it was announced that it would be Tuesday, and then they changed their minds and decided upon tomorrow. From what we have seen and heard, the opposition party officials are doing their best to remain peaceful. They are willing to meet with international mediating forces, and those same mediators were scheduled to meet with government officials also. We are encouraged by some of the latest news we have heard.
We are on hold, and it can be frustrating at times. Horace and I are both thankful that we have had the opportunity to venture out to the school and see friends. The school has recently completed construction of a pool, and they have opened it for the school community. It was a much welcome and enjoyed diversion today for many of us. Don’t worry, the school is not far from our house.
The streets are quiet around us. All of what we hear and see of troubles is what you may be seeing on television as these areas are not near our home.
It has been most encouraging to read your messages of faith and perseverance. It is just a reminder of the wonderful prayer support we have had in our 3 years in Kenya. Please keep it up! Pray for peace and reconciliation with all the people here. Also, please keep our stateside family in your prayers. I am sure that you can understand their anxiety while they watch the news about what is going on here. It is hard to convey to them our safety, but we do not feel we are in danger.
We will write more tomorrow.
We are still safe and sound. Things are tense, but ok for now.
The news that we get is that the opposition’s demonstration scheduled for today has been rescheduled until tomorrow. So, we need to wait and see – and we all need to pray. They tried to move toward their location today, and they were met with police resistance. The leadership of that party decided to wait. First, it was announced that it would be Tuesday, and then they changed their minds and decided upon tomorrow. From what we have seen and heard, the opposition party officials are doing their best to remain peaceful. They are willing to meet with international mediating forces, and those same mediators were scheduled to meet with government officials also. We are encouraged by some of the latest news we have heard.
We are on hold, and it can be frustrating at times. Horace and I are both thankful that we have had the opportunity to venture out to the school and see friends. The school has recently completed construction of a pool, and they have opened it for the school community. It was a much welcome and enjoyed diversion today for many of us. Don’t worry, the school is not far from our house.
The streets are quiet around us. All of what we hear and see of troubles is what you may be seeing on television as these areas are not near our home.
It has been most encouraging to read your messages of faith and perseverance. It is just a reminder of the wonderful prayer support we have had in our 3 years in Kenya. Please keep it up! Pray for peace and reconciliation with all the people here. Also, please keep our stateside family in your prayers. I am sure that you can understand their anxiety while they watch the news about what is going on here. It is hard to convey to them our safety, but we do not feel we are in danger.
We will write more tomorrow.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
We are safe in Nairobi.
Dear Friends –
Little did I know when I started the idea of the blog that I would need it for communication. But here we are. Funny how the Lord puts these things in our heads sometimes! We will use the blog to update you on how we are doing during this stressful time here in Kenya.
The election in Kenya was held December 27th. The current President was announced the winner, and immediately sworn in. The results are in question with allegations of vote-rigging on both sides. There have been incidents of violence in some areas of Nairobi as well as Western Kenya and some of the Coastal areas.
We were out of the country on a family vacation. We had the feeling things would be rough, and we made the decision to be away. We were scheduled to return December 29th, but changed plans due to the scheduled announcement of results. We eventually returned January 1st. Things were calm when we returned to Nairobi – in a spooky sort of way. If you know Nairobi and can imagine driving through the city without traffic, you know what I mean.
We had stocked up with some supplies before we left to be on the safe side. We were able to get out some today and stock up on a few more things. Some stores have reportedly had empty shelves but were able to restock today. Petrol (gasoline) is hard to find, but we were able to find diesel and fill one of our cars. Horace went out once this morning and was able to further stock up, so that we have enough food to last for quite a while. Fortunately, by mid-afternoon, the shelves seemed re-supplied on some things.
Please be aware that most of what we are experiencing is inconvenience. We are able to stay put for the most part and not venture too far from home, but we feel no immediate danger in our home. Our Kenyan friends are not all so fortunate. Many are living in fear. While this may not be true in all areas of Kenya, there is real reason for some of them to fear just by virtue of the people group they were born into. It has become evident here in the past week that tribalism is here, and it is rearing its ugly head.
Prayers would be in order especially for tomorrow (Thursday, January 3). The opposition party has scheduled a demonstration in the City Center. While they are saying they wish it to be peaceful, the government has announced that this march will be illegal if it is held. None of us are quite sure what will happen. We prayed this morning that the Lord would touch all of those involved and turn the tide of violence towards peace. We also prayed that all would seek the Lord in all of their actions and decisions.
We will write more as we know it. For now, be assured that we feel safe in our home. We feel blessed to know about people that have been praying for us and for all of Kenya. Please continue to pray for us, but continue to pray for all the people of Kenya. It has been a peaceful place to live, and there is so much beauty in this land and in these people. As with any emergency situation, you can imagine the rumors can run rampant. Please pray that all in this country will be able to discern fact from fiction and make the best choices for their families and their circumstances.
Peace and Blessings from our family to yours,
Anne
Little did I know when I started the idea of the blog that I would need it for communication. But here we are. Funny how the Lord puts these things in our heads sometimes! We will use the blog to update you on how we are doing during this stressful time here in Kenya.
The election in Kenya was held December 27th. The current President was announced the winner, and immediately sworn in. The results are in question with allegations of vote-rigging on both sides. There have been incidents of violence in some areas of Nairobi as well as Western Kenya and some of the Coastal areas.
We were out of the country on a family vacation. We had the feeling things would be rough, and we made the decision to be away. We were scheduled to return December 29th, but changed plans due to the scheduled announcement of results. We eventually returned January 1st. Things were calm when we returned to Nairobi – in a spooky sort of way. If you know Nairobi and can imagine driving through the city without traffic, you know what I mean.
We had stocked up with some supplies before we left to be on the safe side. We were able to get out some today and stock up on a few more things. Some stores have reportedly had empty shelves but were able to restock today. Petrol (gasoline) is hard to find, but we were able to find diesel and fill one of our cars. Horace went out once this morning and was able to further stock up, so that we have enough food to last for quite a while. Fortunately, by mid-afternoon, the shelves seemed re-supplied on some things.
Please be aware that most of what we are experiencing is inconvenience. We are able to stay put for the most part and not venture too far from home, but we feel no immediate danger in our home. Our Kenyan friends are not all so fortunate. Many are living in fear. While this may not be true in all areas of Kenya, there is real reason for some of them to fear just by virtue of the people group they were born into. It has become evident here in the past week that tribalism is here, and it is rearing its ugly head.
Prayers would be in order especially for tomorrow (Thursday, January 3). The opposition party has scheduled a demonstration in the City Center. While they are saying they wish it to be peaceful, the government has announced that this march will be illegal if it is held. None of us are quite sure what will happen. We prayed this morning that the Lord would touch all of those involved and turn the tide of violence towards peace. We also prayed that all would seek the Lord in all of their actions and decisions.
We will write more as we know it. For now, be assured that we feel safe in our home. We feel blessed to know about people that have been praying for us and for all of Kenya. Please continue to pray for us, but continue to pray for all the people of Kenya. It has been a peaceful place to live, and there is so much beauty in this land and in these people. As with any emergency situation, you can imagine the rumors can run rampant. Please pray that all in this country will be able to discern fact from fiction and make the best choices for their families and their circumstances.
Peace and Blessings from our family to yours,
Anne
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