Nairobbery
 
You may have heard some stories of late about robberies and carjackings in Nairobi. This is the news from here. Two American women were shot dead by five young carjackers wielding AK-47s off of a major road at 2pm on a Saturday. One of Kenya’s leading AIDS researchers was killed by thugs who had blocked the road on a Sunday evening. The Regional Director of CARE, also Kenyan, was shot in the heart in front of his wife on their way back from a prayer meeting on a dark stretch of road near Karen. The robbers took his wallet and cell phone, but left the car. A Dutch diplomat had his eye gouged out by a machete as a thug stole his car. These several examples have received the most publicity, in part because they involve either white expats or well-known Kenyans, but most of the crime and violence in Nairobi is perpetrated upon innocent and mainly poor Kenyans. The US Embassy has issued a travel advisory warning Americans to be careful while driving and to avoid places where expats tend to congregate, like shopping malls, hotels, and fancy restaurants. The UN has issued a similar warning. The Kenyan government, responding to increased pressure from foreign governments to stem the violence, has announced a massive effort to round up thugs and their multitude of weapons. They even offered a reward of about $30 for every gun that is confiscated. Unfortunately, this incentive has yielded some unintended consequences, like the police officer who was shot dead by civilians trying to confiscate his gun. As far as we can see, some of the major causes of the violence include a massive influx of guns from Somalia (which is not a new problem), incredibly vast disparities between rich and poor, rampant corruption amongst the police, and a general incompetence of the government to organize an effective deterrent to stop the violence. The ironic thing is that day-to-day life for most people in Nairobi does not seem all that dangerous. Walking around Westlands (where we live), City Centre, and many other parts of town during daylight hours is no more dangerous than walking around many large cities. In fact, one of the official responses of the government is that most of the attention being given to the dangers of Nairobi of late are unfair, as similar random crime and violence exist in New York or Paris. Whether that’s true or just a defensive smokescreen intended to mask their ineptitude is anyone’s guess as there is probably little reliable statistical data on crime in Kenya with which to compare. What is important from our perspective is that there seem to be some clear trends in when and where the violence - especially the carjackings - seem to occur, so there are ways to minimize the risk. So, we are being careful and keeping a low profile. However, contrary to several requests from our loving families, we do not plan to leave anytime soon nor have we heard of anyone else leaving for security reasons. We moved here because this place has more problems than it can handle and we hope that our small efforts can make a positive impact. Of course, living in Africa certainly dulls even the most idealistic of folks and we realize full well that our work is likely to make little difference in the overall scheme of things. However, if our presence here leads to the reforestation of a few rural areas and access to clean water and medicine for people who otherwise may not have it, then isn’t it worth it? After all, we could truly be in death’s crosshairs in the Green Zone in Baghdad with no chance of improving anyone’s life anytime soon. Things will mellow out here, both in reality and perception, and soon enough people will be clamoring to come visit. In fact, three of those people are coming in March. Sunday, February 11, 2007
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