A young Dutch man challenged a group of us with a couple of questions, after listening to a debate on extra-judicial killings in Kenya. The questions he asked, which needed answering but got little owing to lack of time, were these: What do we, as Kenyans, consider just? Should morality influence our sense of justice? This…
3rd Place winner of My Corruption-Free Africa competition Look beyond corruption. What do you see? Why does corruption exist? Are all people who partake in corruption really evil? Let’s take a look at the stereotypical small-scale corruption scenario. Say I am a policeman and I take a bribe – why? I am not paid enough,…
Look beyond corruption. What do you see? Why does corruption exist? Are all people who partake in corruption really evil? Let’s take a look at the stereotypical small-scale corruption scenario. Say I am a policeman and I take a bribe – why? I am not paid enough, and, well, everyone does it. Say I am…
If you are benefiting from unequal distribution of wealth (if you are middle- or upper-class), and not doing anything to challenge the unjust system in which you ‘got lucky,’ you are as much to blame as the bystander while a bully tortures their victim. You are in a position of power as compared with those…
To be slightly more politically correct, I will refer in this post to a mystery Country X (which could be one of many oppressive countries), in comparison to my home country Kenya (which I am comfortable enough to praise and criticize openly). The citizens of Country X are, without a doubt, happier than Kenyans. They…
We Kenyans need to stop scapegoating Somali refugees. You know the phrase “blaming the victim”? It’s often used when rape victims are blamed for wearing “revealing” clothes, being out late at night, meeting the wrong people, partaking in alcohol, etc. Here’s another. Somali refugees fled the terrorist group Al-Shabaab and sought refuge in our country.…
Also Love, Culture and Dedication It hit me in the airport toilet that the lady cleaning the toilets probably never gets to fly out of the country. Neither, probably, does the security guard. Yet here I am on my way to fly to Ethiopia. I am a product of racism in an extremely unequal society.…
It hit me in the airport toilet that the lady cleaning the toilets probably never gets to fly out of the country. Neither, probably, does the security guard. Yet here I am on my way to fly to Ethiopia. I am a product of an extremely unequal society. My British accent jars me into realization…
The Turkana – a resilient people The scorching sun beats down as I trek across the hot, dry sand. Streams of sweat snake down my back and I fan myself to cool my complaining body. Looking around, I see scattered thorn trees and dry grass clumps peppering the landscape. To my left is a manyatta…
The scorching sun beats down as I trek across the hot, dry sand. Streams of sweat snake down my back and I fan myself to cool my complaining body. Looking around, I see scattered thorn trees and dry grass clumps peppering the landscape. To my left is a manyatta (family compound) with grass huts and…