How do you discern an enemy from a friend? How do you recognize evil when it is wrapped in light? When our perceptions fail us, how do we find our way? These are exactly some of the questions facing Christians in Kenya right now. Is a refugee really a refugee, or is he a member of Al-Shabab? Is this person in need of help, or is this a trap? How do we know? In our own power and strength, we will never be able to discern between truth and fiction. But the Holy Spirit within us can guide us and direct us, if our hearts are attuned and listening to Him. Discerning friend from foe is not an easy task, but the Lord is ever with us. As we pray for Kenya this month, let us ask the Lord to grant wisdom and discernment to His people as they minister to those in need. May He ever direct their paths as they walk this uneasy road before them.
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Kenya
Basic Info: Kenya is located in Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Somalia and Tanzania. The country is slightly more than twice the size of Nevada, and has a population of 44,037,656. Of that population, the ethnic break down is: Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other African 15%, non-African (Asian, European, and Arab) 1%. English and Kiswahili are the official languages, but there are numerous indigenous languages. Kenya is also known for its geographic features. The Kenyan Highlands comprise one of the most successful agricultural production regions in Africa, and glaciers are found on Mount Kenya, Africa's second highest peak. Unique physiography supports abundant and varied wildlife of scientific and economic value. Kenya also served as an important mediator in brokering Sudan's north-south separation in February of 2005. Kenya provides shelter to almost a quarter million refugees, including Ugandans who flee across the border periodically to seek protection from Lord's Resistance Army rebels. Kenya works hard to prevent the clan and militia fighting in Somalia from spreading across the border, which has long been open to nomadic pastoralists. The boundary that separates Kenya's and Sudan's sovereignty is unclear in the "Ilemi Triangle," which Kenya has administered since colonial times. The country supports 34,800 refugees from South Sudan; 34,000 from Ethiopia; 11,500 from the Democratic Republic of Congo; 6,000 from Sudan; and 494,704 from Somalia. There are also at least 300,000 internally displaced persons from the 2007-08 post-election violence. These people how ever were absorbed by host communities rather than camps. Kenya also does not have information on the IDPs displaced through natural disasters, drought, development and environmental projects, land disputes, cattle rustling, and inter-communal violence. In 2012, inter-communal violence displaced approximately 118,000 people and floods displaced an estimated 100,000 people in 2012. There is widespread harvesting of small plots of marijuana. Kenya is a transit country for South Asian heroin destined for Europe and North America, and Indian methaqualone in route to South Africa. There is significant potential for money-laundering given the country's status as a regional financial center, its massive corruption, and relatively high levels of narcotics-associated activities.
Government: Jomo Kenyatta was the founding president of Kenya in 1963, and he led the country until his death in 1978. President Daniel Moi then took over power in a constitutional succession. The country was a de facto one-party state from 1969 until 1982 when the ruling Kenya African National Union (KANU) made itself the sole legal party in Kenya. President Moi acceded to internal and external pressure for political liberalization in late 1991. The ethnically fractured opposition failed to dislodge KANU from power in the 1992 and 1997 elections, which were marred by violence and fraud, but were viewed as having generally reflected the will of the Kenyan people. President Moi stepped down in December 2002 following fair and peaceful elections. Mwai Kibaki, running as the candidate of the multiethnic, united opposition group, the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC), defeated KANU candidate Uhuru Kenyatta and assumed the presidency following a campaign centered on an anticorruption platform. KIBAKI's NARC coalition splintered in 2005 over a constitutional review process. Government defectors joined with KANU to form a new opposition coalition, the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), which defeated the government's draft constitution in a popular referendum in November 2005. Kibaki's reelection in December 2007 brought charges of vote rigging from ODM candidate Raila Odinga and unleashed two months of violence in which as many as 1,500 people died. African Union-sponsored mediation in late February 2008 resulted in a power-sharing accord bringing Odinga into the government in the restored position of prime minister. The power sharing accord included a broad reform agenda, the centerpiece of which was constitutional reform. In August 2010, Kenyans overwhelmingly adopted a new constitution in a national referendum. The new constitution introduced additional checks and balances to executive power and significant devolution of power and resources to 47 newly created counties. It also eliminated the position of prime minister following the first presidential election under the new constitution, which occurred on March 4, 2013. Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of founding president Jomo Kenyatta, won the March elections in the first round by a close margin and was sworn into office on 9 April 2013. The country is a republic with a bicameral parliament. The new constitution introduced in 2010 introduced major institutional, electoral, and structural reforms, including the handing over of power to 47 counties and establishment of a bicameral legislature. Implementation of all elements of the constitution is scheduled to take five years and requires significant legislative action, much of which has been taken. There is a mixed legal system of English common law, Islamic law, and customary law.
Economy: Kenya has been hampered by corruption and by reliance upon several
primary goods whose prices have remained low. Despite being the largest East African economy, low infrastructure
investment now threaten Kenya's long-term position in that field. In the key December 2002 elections, Daniel MOI's
24-year-old reign ended, and a new opposition government took on the
formidable economic problems facing the nation. After some early
progress in rooting out corruption and encouraging donor support, the
Kibaki government was rocked by high-level graft scandals in 2005 and
2006. In 2006, the World Bank and IMF delayed loans pending action by
the government on corruption. The international financial institutions
and donors have since resumed lending, despite little action on the
government's part to deal with corruption. Unemployment is very high; about 40% are unemployed.
The country has experienced chronic budget deficits, inflationary
pressures, and sharp currency depreciation - as a result of high food
and fuel import prices. The discovery of oil in March 2012 provides an
opportunity for Kenya to balance its growing trade deficit if the
deposits are found to be commercially viable and Kenya is able to
develop a port and pipeline to export its oil. The average life expectancy is 63 years, and 50% of the people are below the poverty line. The fixed line telephone system is small and inefficient, but there was an expantion of mobile-cellular telephone usage reaching 65 out of 100 persons in 2011. There are about a half-dozen privately owned TV stations and a state-owned TV
broadcaster that operates 2 channels. Satellite and cable TV
subscription services are available.
Religion: Christian 82.5% (Protestant 47.4%, Catholic 23.3%, other 11.8%), Muslim 11.1%, Traditionalists 1.6%, other 1.7%, none 2.4%, unspecified 0.7% (2009 census)
Despite being a nation where the majority of people are Christians, persecution of Christians is on the rise in Kenya. Part of the problem is the refugees. The Institute for Security Studies in Kenya reported that as many as one in every ten refugees that cross the border into Kenya from Somalia are members of the Al-Qaida linked terrorist group, Al-Shabab. According to the CIA, Al-Shabab is large and well funded compared to most other terrorist groups. They have also attracted and trained hundreds of foreign fighters, including scores of Americans and dozens from other Western countries. Al-Shabab is known for implementing Sharia law, such the amputation of hands of thieves, the stoning of adulterous women, and the murder of many Christians.
Al-Shabab has a stronghold in the suburb of Nairobi, Eastleigh. Eastleigh is now primarily a community of Somali immigrants, and Kenya's police leave the area ungoverned. Guns are sold in the market and restaurants lock their doors even when open for security reasons. Only one church remains in the area because the rest have been destroyed. Not all Somali immigrants who come to the country are poor; some come with thousands of dollars acquired through piracy. Since it is dangerous for the immigrants to hold onto this money, they invest in property and housing. It is well known if a Somali comes and offers you twice the amount of your property's value, you had better sell or else you will be killed. This is happening not only in Eastleigh, but has now spread to other districts as well. Saudi Arabia also funds the building of mosques and schools, as they spread their agenda and Arabic Islam.
St. Polycarp's Church near Eastleigh, was attacked on September 30th of last year. The worship service was being help for children age 6-10. A grenade was thrown into the church and a 9 year old boy was killed, and a total of 9 children were hospitalized. Police believe the attack was in retaliation to the UN ousting Al-Shabab from Kismayo, its last stronghold in Somalia, the day before. Another predominantly Muslim area is Garissa. On November 4th, a church was attacked with a grenade and the chaplain was killed while 11 others were wounded. On July 1st, two attacks were carried out simultaneously at two different churches. In the first attack, grenades were thrown into the church before gunmen entered and started shooting. Others were shot as they tried to flee the building. A total of 17 people were killed at the location, including two police officers who were on guard as a precaution against extremists. The second attack was only 2 miles away, and 3 were seriously injured by the grenades. More than 70 people were injured in all between the two attacks. The governement has noticed that attacks against churches have increased since Kenyan troops went into Somalia in October 2011. In late August in Mombasa, Muslim rioters attacked five churches and killed two people, including a police officer, after an unknown gunman killed a radical Muslim cleric. Al-Shabab supported the rioters by saying that "Muslims must take the matter into their own hands, stand united against the Kuffar [non-believers] and take all necessary measures to protect their religion, their honor, their property and their lives from the enemies of Islam." In the city of Mtwapa, hundreds of Christians were at an outdoor service when a hand grenade was thrown towards the pastor's podium, killing a woman and an 8 year old boy. More than 30 people were wounded. Only 300 meters away, Muslims were holding their own meeting and the Islamic speakers were vilifying Christianity in their message to the crowd.
Political issues are also increasingly impacting the churches. Examples are intimidation of the press, human rights abuses, ethnic discrimination and, above all, the controversial points in the new constitution. Christianity is increasingly politicized as many churches seek to transform Kenyan politics with new parties and fresh vision. Mainstream Christian leaders in Kenya object to the constitution on four major points. The first is that the Proposed Constitution of Kenya in Sec 26(4) reiterates and reaffirms the current Kenyan penal code by stating: Abortion is not permitted unless, in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law. The church insists that the weak drafting of the clause, especially the last two parts, could allow for the same clause to be used to enact laws or justify procurement of on-demand abortion. The second issue is that the Proposed Constitution of Kenya in Sec 24(4) exempts a section of society that profess Islam as their religion from broad sections of the Bill of Rights that relate with Personal Status, Marriage, Divorce and Inheritance. The last two issue are that the Proposed Constitution of Kenya in Sec 170 provides for the establishment of Kadhi Courts, and the Proposed Constitution of Kenya in Sec 170 (2)a discriminates against all other sectors of society by limiting the Kadhi's Job opportunity only to persons that profess the Muslim religion. The church leaders also insist that for the clarity of the separation of religion and state doctrine and equality of religion, the Kadhi courts should not be in the constitution at all.
Info compiled from CIAWorldFactBook "Kenya", VOMC "Kenya", ICC "Kenya"
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The Last Taboo-Kenya (About Hygiene; Feb 2013)
Al-Shabab recruiting Kenyan youth (Nov 2011)
Latest on Kenya War on Al-Shabab (Oct 2011)
Latest on Kenya War on Al-Shabab (Oct 2011)
