Turmoil in Kenya Affects Navigators
by Rebecca K. Grosenbach, staff writer
(read updates below:
Update Jan. 14, 2008
Update Jan. 16, 2008
Update Feb 1, 2008)
Navigator staff in Kenya are facing what has been described as the country's "gravest crisis" following disputed elections held in late December. Violence has left 600 people dead. Another 250,000 have fled their homes. Some areas have been burned, including the homes of staff friends and relatives. One staff member said he has never been more alarmed by unrest in his country.
In the week following the December 27, 2007, elections, some Navigator staff needed to go into hiding while others sought police protection to distribute food to the needy. Some took friends and family into their homes for safety—as many as 50 people in one home. One Navigator heard gunshots and wailing near his home for several nights. Another woman heard displaced people wandering outside her house late in the night.
"Fuel and food prices are rising rapidly," says Stanley Mukolwe, The Navigators' Kenya Country Leader. "Before the violence I bought a loaf of bread for KES 25. Today it was KES 40. The shilling lost 10 percent against the dollar in one day. We don’t know what it will look like in the days ahead."
A special fund has been set up to assist Navigators in Kenya (the fund is called "Kenya Office"). Stanley says, "Finances are a great need. Staff have spent personal funds to help those in need. Others have had to take flights to get home—some for the very first time—because roads were unsafe to travel." There is also a great need for food, clothing, gasoline, and other necessities. Navigator staff are eager to see the Gospel of Christ advanced as they care for those in need all around them.
"Some staff will lose income as a result of their donors being affected by the chaos. Some donors have lost their homes. The true picture of the need will not fully emerge for months," Stanley says.
Alleged vote tampering spawned the country’s recent upheaval. The incumbent, Mwai Kibaki, was declared the winner and sworn in as president. While the violence seems to be divided along tribal lines, Stanley believes there is more to the story. "We have a very angry society," he says. "Those from the slum areas feel deprived and think the rich are to blame. When the rights of one of their own are violated, the group reacts violently. They have nothing to lose."
Navigators were planning to hold an International Leadership Group meeting outside Nairobi beginning January 7. They decided to postpone the meeting to ensure the safety of those involved. International President Mike Treneer urged prayer for the situation, saying, "Pray for peace and stability to be restored. Pray for our many friends and colleagues in Kenya to know the Lord’s presence, peace, and safekeeping. Pray the political leaders find a way of reaching some kind of settlement."
After a week of clashes, apparently the unrest is beginning to settle. In Nairobi, some businesses reopened and limited bus service has been restored. "I'm hearing mixed reports from Kenya hour by hour," says David Lyons, The Navigators' director of international operations. "Things there may have calmed a bit for the moment, but remain unstable. It sounds like all [Navigators] there are okay and experiencing God’s presence in special ways. Pray that wisdom from above will prevail!"
Update January 14, 2008
The Kenya Leadership Team met Thursday through Saturday (January 10-12) for mutual encouragement.
"We had a beautiful time of prayer," says Navigator country leader Stanley Mukolwe. "I felt that many were healed of their emotional struggles with what is happening in the country."
Monday morning Stanley met with additional Navigator staff. "We interacted around the Word and prayed together for four hours," he says. "It was a very refreshing time. I went to the supermarket after the prayer meeting and met many staff buying food to help those in need. I was very encouraged."
Stanley relates this story of a man named George: "Yesterday a young man came to our gate. He has a wife and three children and was unsure of where his next meal would come from. George had done some repair carpentry work at our house last year. He recalls that while he was working, I had served him and his colleague a cup of tea (which he rarely gets when he goes out to work). In thinking who might be able to help him in these hard times, he says my name came to his mind. He walked nearly three hours to our home to look for help. He walked because he could not afford to take public transportation. I served him a cup of tea and some bread and we talked about his family budget and the security of the place where he lives. I was able to give him a little money to help him buy basic food so he can feed his family for a week. I also gave him some bus fare so he would not need to walk back another three hours. We cannot help everyone, but there are those people the Lord brings right to your door. You cannot ignore those."
Outside Kenya's big cities, thousands of Kikuyu tribes people, who were driven from their homes and had their businesses looted and torched, are clustered in makeshift camps. Those who drove them out—mainly Kalenjins and Luos—live in fear of reprisals.
Violence is expected to escalate as Kenya's sharply divided Parliament meets January 15 for its first session since the elections. Opposition leaders have called for mass demonstrations this week, dimming chances for a quick resolution to the conflict.
Please continue to pray for the safety of Navigator staff and for God to be glorified through them.
Update January 16, 2008
International news sources report two people were killed by police during protests in the capital city of Nairobi and the western city of Kisumu. Several other protesters were wounded as police fired bullets and used tear gas to disperse crowds.
Update February 1, 2008
This week, two members of parliament were shot and killed and at least six others died as violence continues in this once peaceful nation. According to the BBC, United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has called on all sides to stop the violence that has wracked the country since December's disputed presidential elections. The killings led to the postponement of peace talks between government and opposition leaders that had begun on Thursday.
A BBC web article said, "'We have postponed this afternoon's session and we will work all day tomorrow [Friday] so that the leaders can attend to urgent matters and call their constituents,' said former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who is mediating the talks."
Meanwhile, Navigator staff continue ministry as best they can. One staff member, returning home from student ministry, had to get off a bus at night before it was overtaken by young people looking to beat members of certain tribes. He spent three hours running and hiding in the dark before he could safely get a ride home.
Staff members also continue to provide safe haven to families who cannot return to their homes. One man, a doctor, is unable to return to the community where he has worked for many years because of tribal threats.
One staff member wrote, "In the midst of this, we recognize that our help comes from the Lord. Some believers compare the pain we are going through to that of a woman giving birth. It will soon come to an end and the joy that follows will make us forget the past. But for those who have lost loved ones, there are not enough encouraging words available. Indeed, we do not really know how to encourage them."
Please consider a donation to the Post Elections Disaster Fund. (Please note: the fund is called "Kenya Office" on the next page.)
Update Jan. 14, 2008
Update Jan. 16, 2008
Update Feb 1, 2008)
Navigator staff in Kenya are facing what has been described as the country's "gravest crisis" following disputed elections held in late December. Violence has left 600 people dead. Another 250,000 have fled their homes. Some areas have been burned, including the homes of staff friends and relatives. One staff member said he has never been more alarmed by unrest in his country.
In the week following the December 27, 2007, elections, some Navigator staff needed to go into hiding while others sought police protection to distribute food to the needy. Some took friends and family into their homes for safety—as many as 50 people in one home. One Navigator heard gunshots and wailing near his home for several nights. Another woman heard displaced people wandering outside her house late in the night.
"Fuel and food prices are rising rapidly," says Stanley Mukolwe, The Navigators' Kenya Country Leader. "Before the violence I bought a loaf of bread for KES 25. Today it was KES 40. The shilling lost 10 percent against the dollar in one day. We don’t know what it will look like in the days ahead."
A special fund has been set up to assist Navigators in Kenya (the fund is called "Kenya Office"). Stanley says, "Finances are a great need. Staff have spent personal funds to help those in need. Others have had to take flights to get home—some for the very first time—because roads were unsafe to travel." There is also a great need for food, clothing, gasoline, and other necessities. Navigator staff are eager to see the Gospel of Christ advanced as they care for those in need all around them.
"Some staff will lose income as a result of their donors being affected by the chaos. Some donors have lost their homes. The true picture of the need will not fully emerge for months," Stanley says.
Alleged vote tampering spawned the country’s recent upheaval. The incumbent, Mwai Kibaki, was declared the winner and sworn in as president. While the violence seems to be divided along tribal lines, Stanley believes there is more to the story. "We have a very angry society," he says. "Those from the slum areas feel deprived and think the rich are to blame. When the rights of one of their own are violated, the group reacts violently. They have nothing to lose."
Navigators were planning to hold an International Leadership Group meeting outside Nairobi beginning January 7. They decided to postpone the meeting to ensure the safety of those involved. International President Mike Treneer urged prayer for the situation, saying, "Pray for peace and stability to be restored. Pray for our many friends and colleagues in Kenya to know the Lord’s presence, peace, and safekeeping. Pray the political leaders find a way of reaching some kind of settlement."
After a week of clashes, apparently the unrest is beginning to settle. In Nairobi, some businesses reopened and limited bus service has been restored. "I'm hearing mixed reports from Kenya hour by hour," says David Lyons, The Navigators' director of international operations. "Things there may have calmed a bit for the moment, but remain unstable. It sounds like all [Navigators] there are okay and experiencing God’s presence in special ways. Pray that wisdom from above will prevail!"
Update January 14, 2008
The Kenya Leadership Team met Thursday through Saturday (January 10-12) for mutual encouragement.
"We had a beautiful time of prayer," says Navigator country leader Stanley Mukolwe. "I felt that many were healed of their emotional struggles with what is happening in the country."
Monday morning Stanley met with additional Navigator staff. "We interacted around the Word and prayed together for four hours," he says. "It was a very refreshing time. I went to the supermarket after the prayer meeting and met many staff buying food to help those in need. I was very encouraged."
Stanley relates this story of a man named George: "Yesterday a young man came to our gate. He has a wife and three children and was unsure of where his next meal would come from. George had done some repair carpentry work at our house last year. He recalls that while he was working, I had served him and his colleague a cup of tea (which he rarely gets when he goes out to work). In thinking who might be able to help him in these hard times, he says my name came to his mind. He walked nearly three hours to our home to look for help. He walked because he could not afford to take public transportation. I served him a cup of tea and some bread and we talked about his family budget and the security of the place where he lives. I was able to give him a little money to help him buy basic food so he can feed his family for a week. I also gave him some bus fare so he would not need to walk back another three hours. We cannot help everyone, but there are those people the Lord brings right to your door. You cannot ignore those."
Outside Kenya's big cities, thousands of Kikuyu tribes people, who were driven from their homes and had their businesses looted and torched, are clustered in makeshift camps. Those who drove them out—mainly Kalenjins and Luos—live in fear of reprisals.
Violence is expected to escalate as Kenya's sharply divided Parliament meets January 15 for its first session since the elections. Opposition leaders have called for mass demonstrations this week, dimming chances for a quick resolution to the conflict.
Please continue to pray for the safety of Navigator staff and for God to be glorified through them.
Update January 16, 2008
International news sources report two people were killed by police during protests in the capital city of Nairobi and the western city of Kisumu. Several other protesters were wounded as police fired bullets and used tear gas to disperse crowds.
Update February 1, 2008
This week, two members of parliament were shot and killed and at least six others died as violence continues in this once peaceful nation. According to the BBC, United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has called on all sides to stop the violence that has wracked the country since December's disputed presidential elections. The killings led to the postponement of peace talks between government and opposition leaders that had begun on Thursday.
A BBC web article said, "'We have postponed this afternoon's session and we will work all day tomorrow [Friday] so that the leaders can attend to urgent matters and call their constituents,' said former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who is mediating the talks."
Meanwhile, Navigator staff continue ministry as best they can. One staff member, returning home from student ministry, had to get off a bus at night before it was overtaken by young people looking to beat members of certain tribes. He spent three hours running and hiding in the dark before he could safely get a ride home.
Staff members also continue to provide safe haven to families who cannot return to their homes. One man, a doctor, is unable to return to the community where he has worked for many years because of tribal threats.
One staff member wrote, "In the midst of this, we recognize that our help comes from the Lord. Some believers compare the pain we are going through to that of a woman giving birth. It will soon come to an end and the joy that follows will make us forget the past. But for those who have lost loved ones, there are not enough encouraging words available. Indeed, we do not really know how to encourage them."
Please consider a donation to the Post Elections Disaster Fund. (Please note: the fund is called "Kenya Office" on the next page.)
