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Kenya: We Must Go Beyond Resettling Refugees
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The Nation (Nairobi)
EDITORIAL
6 May 2008
Posted to the web 6 May 2008
Nairobi
The resettlement of the internally displaced people started in the Rift Valley Monday despite resistance from certain quarters. That, of course, was inevitable given the intricacies associated with land-ownership and the underlying political differences.
But the starting point is that resettling the thousands of internal refugees is urgent. It is immoral that thousands of Kenyans continue to languish in camps, contending with harsh weather, poor sanitation and material deprivation just because some people do not want them to go back to their homes.
It is equally dehumanising to see able-bodied adults scrambling for food rations and sharing tents with their grown-up children, or young children huddled in make-shift structures in the name of schools.
Questions, however, persist concerning the Government's approach to the resettlement process. Use of force to bulldoze the process is hardly advisable.
First, it is essential to take an audit of those willing to go back to their land and resettle them.
Second, there are those who do not want to go back at all because of the traumatic experiences they went through.
A huge number witnessed the murder of their family members and their houses and property being torched. Taking such people back is like forcing them to undergo another round of punishment. The Government must find alternative land for such people.
The third point is to provide adequate security for the resettled and secure the goodwill of the dominant communities to live in peace with them.
As we have said in the past, the land issue is a time-bomb, and this is the moment to address it conclusively. This country cannot continue operating in a situation where a tiny clique owns vast tracts of land while the vast majority are landless.
Discussion about redressing historical imbalances in terms of land and property ownership is not merely academic. It is a serious issue that must be resolved.
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After the resettlement, the Government must quickly deliver a new Constitution that comprehensively tackles socio-economic and political questions like land-ownership and inter-community relationships, issues that caused the violence in the first place.
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