Stories about Kenya from February, 2008
Kenya: Thank you Annan and team
After the power-sharing deal was announced, a caller to a local radio station was ecstatic and invited Kofi Annan and team to "nyama choma" (barbeque), another caller offered him two beers and another pronounced that Annan was the best angel God had sent to the people of Kenya. The level of excitement in the streets of Nairobi and Kisumu demonstrated that the worst is over, and that Kenya will possibly not tilt over the edge like it did in the last two months. The Kenyan blogosphere also paints a similiar picture.
Kenya: Dear Kofi Annan…
Following the decision by Kofi Annan to suspend peace talks in Kenya, Kenyan blogger, wheremadnessresides decided to write a letter to him: “Dear Kofi Annan: There's a rumour that you're thinking of leaving Kenya. That you're fed up with our leaders and their madness. That you're up to here and beyond with all this nonsense. I can certainly understand why you would be sorely tempted. But please please please don't. Leave Kenya that is. You can't anyway. You promised, remember?"
Kenya: Msafara Initiative
Pastor M introduces Msafara Initiative in Kenya: “The Msafara initiative continues to gather momentum. Check out the new website www.msafara.co.ke to learn more about how you can be involved. Many churches across Kenya have signed on to Msafara and many more are signing on! Churches involved so far come from...
Kenya: Democracy as a spiritual battle
Wheels of Hope in Kenya takes a spiritual path to heal the nation: “The battle for Kenya is a spiritual battle: a battle waged by the forces of darkness against the nation and fought in the spiritual realms. Demonic spells were cast over different cities in the nation in the...
Nigeria/Kenya: Why is Odinga meeting Obasanjo?
Adeola wonders why Kenya's opposition leader, Raila Odinga, decided to meet Nigeria's former President, Olusegun Obasanjo: “Why is Odinga meeting Obasanjo? Obasanjo supervised the worst election in our history as Nigerians. He perpetrated crimes similar to what Kibaki did last december in Kenya. Obasanjo is an enemy of democratic processes...
Kenyan Bloggers Outline Political Solutions
From the high street cafes to the dark alleys in Nairobi's river road (down town), Kenyans can be heard discussing what former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan should prescribe as the compromise. There are voices of hope and optimism as well as prophets of doom who see the current exercise as mere puppetry. The role of the international community has also been discussed accross the divide. This situation is also reflected in the blogosphere.
Ghana/Kenya: The bamboo Bike Project
AfriGadget writes a story about bamboo bikes in Ghana and Kenya: “The Bamboo Bike, an endeavour that aims at building bicycles in a sustainable fashion using bamboo as the primary construction material, is a joint project run by Craig Calfree of Calfree Design, a high tech bicycle design firm based...
Kenya: What is wrong with local web hosting?
“Dennis Wambugu is a very disappointed man. He is disappointed because Kenyans do not seem to host most of their websites at the local Internet Service Provider (ISP),” writes Rebecca Wanjiku from Kenya.
Kenya: The digital activist class
Ethan Zuckerman discusses “the digital activist class” in Kenya: “There’s a strong overlap between the emerging middle class in the developing world and the world of citizen media. Bloggers in Africa are highly educated, and generally are wealthier than the average African. (It’s not cheap, in African terms, to afford...
Kenya: Obama Beer
Rebekah posts a video about “Obama” beer in Kenya: “A friend sent me a link to this video, in which two jovial CNN reporters discuss Senator Beer's amusing new nickname: Obama.”
Kenya: Bloggers hopeful of Kofi Annan mediation
When Ghana's President John Kuffour handed the peace batton to former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, few people in Kenya had hope that there would be breakthrough in the negotiations. That was a month ago, when the political temparatures were so high and threatening to boil over to a full blown civil war. But with a month of continued engagement, there is renewed confidence that there will be a lasting peace deal. This confidence in the streets of Nairobi is also reflected in the blogosphere.
Kenya: Bloggers rooting for peace and reconcilliation
After blogs and other online forums had becoming new avenues of channelling tribal prejudices, bloggers are now using the same avenues to express the need for peace and justice in Kenya.
East Africa: Stay away from falling coconuts
Pernille writes about the dangers of falling coconuts in East Africa: “In East Africa people do die in relatively significant numbers each year from falling coconuts hitting them on the head. Coconuts can weigh up to four kilos and may fall 25 meters with an impact velocity of 80 km/h...
Kenya: Presidential elections after 10 years
Oscar Obonyo argues that Kenya should hold presidential elections after 10 years: “JUDGING from events of the just concluded presidential polls I opine that Kenyans ought to change the existing electoral laws to subject the holder of the Office of President to elections only after a straight term of ten...
Kenya: Music for peace
Kenyan musicians make a music video for peace: “Musicians from around Kenya join to create a music video and song to help stem the violence in Kenya.”
Kenya: 10 reasons to love Kenya
Paula explains why she loves Kenya aside from the elephants, Mombasa and the Maasai: “Kenya is probably the only country in the world whose Electoral Commission boss declares that he doesn’t know who won in the presidential race – yet statehouse continues to be occupied.”
Kenya: Tribal hatred claims its first online casualty
When conflicts erupted in Kenya after the elections, many fingers pointed at the newspapers and radio as the sources of hatred and fanning the fires of tribal hatred that have been lit over time. None focussed much on blogs and online forums. But it has proved that even online forums...
Africa: A month into 2008: Hope, Dreams, Living
2008 is one month old. Different African women bloggers are going through different spiritual experiences. For many, this is just another year, exactly the same as 2007, and 2006, all the way back to the day they were born.
