Which ethnic group do you belong to?
Posted by: evesreflections on: January 21, 2008
- In: Kenya
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It takes at least two somethings to create a difference. (…) Clearly each alone is – for the mind and perception – a non-entity, a non-being. Not different from being, and not different from non-being. An unknowable, a Ding an sich, a sound from one hand clapping.
Gregory Bateson (1979: 78)
In spite of being united by one language, and myth, I’ve often heard Kikuyus make distinctions amongst themselves using their geographical origin. When talking about women in relationships for example, one may remark, “that one doesn’t take crap from her husband, she’s a Nyeri woman” or “Kiambu women are so cunning, there’s no way they can ever be rendered homeless after a divorce”. Another example is when someone says, “I’m a Bukusu”. Is that not Luhya? Apparently not, after all, Luhya is just a grouping of many different ethnic groups, with their own distinct languages and culture. There are many other examples of the way Kenyans make distinction upon distinction about their belonging. Some call it tribe. Others call it ethnic group. Read the rest of this entry »
Of Kivuitu and his instincts, or lack thereof…
Posted by: evesreflections on: January 4, 2008
- In: Kenya| Life| Politics| violence
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Instinct is a powerful thing. 10 minutes after Kivuitu chose to ignore his, he had effectively changed the course of history. We trooped patriotically to our polling stations, braving the scorching sun and torrential downpours. We voted peacefully, and those of us endowed with televisions and radios proceeded back to our homes to watch ECK fulfill its mandate. We watched and we waited. We prayed and we waited. We watched the goings on at KICC in horrified fascination. We were shocked to disbelieving silence when Kivuitu announced the winner.
Riot policemen confront protesters
Protesters confer with their coordinator
Kemilio, Bwana Orange and the rest – the leaders of Kenya?
Posted by: evesreflections on: January 3, 2008
Leaders should have integrity, that is, they should be true to themselves and their ideas. Other qualities are trustworthiness, consistency, the ability to provide direction, as well as an ability to admit to mistakes and the willingness to listen and learn. There are many others, but most importantly, and worth mentioning in light of our current situation, is that good leaders think beyond themselves, and if necessary, they make sacrifices for the greater good. After racking my brain, trying to find these leadership qualities in our politicians, my verdict is that they all fall short of these minimum requirements.
Kemilio, the chameleon who stole the presidency…He dares to look us in the eye and wish us a happy new year. Kazi iendelee? I don’t think so. Kazi imeharibika. This marionette has amateur puppeteers, who keep forgetting when to pull the strings, like when he should act to stop the carnage being experienced by hardworking Kenyans. He says all he knows is that he was declared the legitimate winner, being sworn in at dusk like a servant of the devil.
Bwana Orange can not genuinely call for peace and those that think he will should wake up and smell the coffee. Ambiguity is what will work for this demagogue, who had already ordered himself an orange carpet from Pentagon House right into State House. He’ll say that people should remain calm, and with the same breath casually state that dialogue is a soap opera in which he has no part. He’ll inflame the masses by ensuring they don’t forget the injustice that has been committed, and call for a peace rally where he’ll declare that no one should rest until he is declared the legitimate winner. I don’t think he minds being declared President of the Skeleton Republic of Kenya.
207 MPs were elected on 27th December. Where are their peace messages now? God knows they spent millions sending out election campaign messages. Now the losers are getting all the airplay. If they’re not in their constituencies, urging Kenyans to calm down and stop killing each other, may God forgive them because we won’t.
Lest they all forget, they’ll be facing the ballot again in five years.
