Eco April Alignment
Uniting Community Honoring Life
The Eco April Alignment is a network of intergenerational and cross-cultural organizations, groups, and individuals. We are interconnected and focused on honoring all living things and uniting our community by aligning with extraordinary events in April 2008 in the Seattle area. The principles that guide our participation and partnership are as follows ...learn more
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Created: Dec 24, 2007
Updated: Nov 10, 2009
Membership: Open
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Kenyan Women Come Together to Take Back Their Country
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World Pulse Special Edition — February 15, 2008
Kenyan Women Come Together to Take Back Their Country
Braving bullets and increasing sexual assaults, Kenyan women are organizing from the mass evacuee camps to the newsrooms to save their beloved nation.
In this edition you'll read the words of Dr. Karambu Ringera, a visionary political leader working to foster peace among the displaced; Leila, a 12-year-old girl taking action in her hometown of Migori; and Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai's call for urgent reconciliation. You'll also see video messages from grassroots women activists taken by award-winning journalist Anne-christine d'Adesky who courageously caught a post-election plane to Nairobi. After taking action, dance to a stunning, just-released song from up-and-coming Kenyan spoken-word artist Neema Ngwatilo.
(UNIFEM)
This edition is close to our hearts, filled with the voices of many women on the frontlines of Kenya, embattled but undeterred in the face of rising sexual violence, mass displacement and deadly political posturing at the highest levels. These women's voices are indisputable evidence of the vibrant civil society that is mobilizing across ethnic lines.
Read more from Jensine Larsen.
Featured Articles
(Gary Lichtenstein)
"When Elephants Fight, the Grass Below Suffers"
by Dr. Karambu Ringera
"The violence in my beloved Kenya and the time I have spent
at the camp has reaffirmed my desire to participate in healing the
broken cord that joins me to my sisters and brothers, no matter their
ethnic origin. This healing begins with women."
"I have my project in the Karen
Zwickert Children's Home, in Sori, Migori
District, where I try to help girls get
sponsors for their secondary school
education." (Photo: Okeyo Bob)
by Leila Ludie Atieno
Leila is a 12-year-old girl living in Migori, Kenya. Here, she
recounts her experiences with the election violence and the actions she
is taking to help the displaced women and children of Kenya.
Read more.
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Related Articles
(The Washington Post)
Creating a Path to Peace in Kenya, by Wangari Maathai (Washington Post)
"It is imperative that we unravel the underlying causes of the
violence and not paper over them as Kenyan leaders have in the past."
Women's Memorandum to Kenyan Mediation Team (Feminist Peace Network)
"We assert that as citizens we must take responsibility for
resolving and transforming the conflict; the inclusion and
participation of civic groups, including women's groups at the
community level is critical to the success of efforts to resolve the
conflict."
Senior Women Editors Campaign for Peace (IPS)
"True peace can only exist if we talk about truth, justice, history... only then can we start healing the nation."
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Video Accounts
Women's Response Inside Kenya
Journalist and public health advocate Anne-christine d'Adesky flew to Nairobi with her video camera in the aftermath of the flawed elections, just as an unprecedented wave of violence descended upon the city.
While in Nairobi, Ms. d'Adesky met with and videotaped many aid groups, women leaders and grassroots activists to hear their responses to the crisis. After you're done watching their video messages, read Ms. d'Adesky's personal reflections on her journey in her article, Kenya Revisited.
Ann Njogu is a leading Kenyan human rights advocate, lawyer and Executive Director of the Centre for Rights Education and Awareness (CREAW) in Nairobi. Ms. Njogu is representative of the many politically moderate leaders in Kenya who are speaking out despite threats of murder.
Shailja Patel, an outspoken member of a new group called Kenyans for Peace with Truth and Justice, was in Kenya during the election violence. The organization has secured a unanimous U.S. Senate vote to support a peaceful resolution in Kenya; a similar bill is pending in the House now.
World Pulse correspondent Leah Okeyo, cofounder of Jacolo Rural Women's Response To AIDS, Migori, keeps a vigilant watch on HIV and rape crises as she comforts and cares for Kenyans in transit.
Alberta Wambua is Deputy Programs Manager at the Gender Violence Recovery Centre of Nairobi Women's Hospital (NWH), where, to date, more than 1600 cases of rape have officially been reported. She shares her suggestions for mediating and preventing gender-based violence in a crisis situation.
Go to World Pulse