5 Feb 2008


Peaceful coexistance is a right to every citizen of all status and Nations. Every citizen regardless of his colour, race or tribe deserves the right to live in harmony. Many lives have been taken, a lot of blood has been shed, many homes torched and thousands displaced since 29th December 2007 in my beloved country Kenya.

I have lived in Kenya since early 80's and I have never witnessed a situation like the one in Kenya today. Perhaps the 1982 coup attemp found me when I was still in practical stages of being taught to stand on my 2 legs. Kenya has been viewed as a heaven of peace in the continent if not the world. It has been among the countries know to be mediators of peace in the African region. I have known this beautiful country (Kenya) as a place of hope, love and unity. I have known this heaven of peace as a place where different tribes have always co-existed in harmony, done business, inter-married and socialised together.

My fellow countrymen, both at home and in the diaspora, things have turned to be the opposite of what we have known, believed and got used to. We went to the polls on the 27th December, 2007 with a hope to bring change but a few individuals were for the status-quo. Kenyans were denied their rights after voting in the full view of the international community, observers both local and international, the presidential results were seriously flawed, thus the post election violence erupted bringing forth deaths, destruction of personal properties and evictions of tribes purpoted to support each of the political sides. That is what has become of my peaceful, beloved Kenya I knew.

I have also known the United Republic of Tanzania as a very friendly country where many women and children could move and seek refuge when calamities such as the one facing Kenya could get a place to rest their heads. As the post election violence was escalating to higher levels with deaths counting from tens, hundreds and now thousands, many Kenyan citizens commenced their journey to the neighbouring countries such as Uganda and Tanzania. These 2 countries were viewed as the best to seek refuge in as they were te senior most members of the East African Communities in the region. The Ugandan side accepted Kenyans running away due to the violence but it was later discovered that only the Kikuyu tribes were allowed in. This is what led my relatives and I to seek refuge in our supposedly friendly and peaceful Tanzania 'Kumbe' we were in for the biggest suprise of our lives.

We left Kenya on 15th Jan. 2008 on our way to Tanzania with our hopes high that we would find a place to reside as the conflict back home were being resolved. On arrival at the border, we were allowed in and arrived in Arusha, we needed to be accorded the refugee status. On this, we were directed to Dar-es-Salaam where we were to encounter more suprising episodes of the Tanzania's dark side we had not known about. There were arrests at a place called Chalinze police station, confiscation of our travel documents that were later to be returned after almost a week. The officers from Immigration department informed us that a temporary camp had been set at Arusha. Back at Arusha we had a final suprise, there were no such camp and that there can be no such camps set in towns but in Western part of Tanzania near the border of Rwanda and Burundi. There were conditions attached;

1. We accept to go to Kigoma camp but no guarantee of getting refugee status.
2. We are given 3 months and upon the expiry, Kenya will be our destination.

All these aside, I come to my question (to which I sincerely doubt if I will ever get its answer): WHAT DID THE LUO TRIBE DO TO FACE SUCH A TRIBULATION?

        - David