Today's Headlines - 1/30/2008

Brief summary:

The situation in Kenya continues to be volatile and unpredictable. The murder of an opposition MP yesterday caused escalation of the violence in areas in Western Province and some slum areas of Nairobi. Official negotiations between the government and the opposition, facilitated by Kofi Annan, are underway. The region of western Kenya, where most Kenyan Quakers live, is still experiencing violence and destruction of property by angry crowds armed with crude weapons.

FUM Field and Project Staff are carefully assessing the situation and are in close contact with the Richmond administrative office. Separate posting will appear here from the Richmond office (an update on the Kenya Relief Fund), from the Graces, and another from AGLI informing you of a recent publication focusing on the crisis, including interviews with FUM Field Staff in Kenya.

Thank you for your generosity and quick response to provide for the needs of Quaker projects in Kenya and to alleviate the suffering of those affected by the violence and displacement.

Please consult the convenient links at the right for the current breaking news on the situation in Kenya today. Reuters and BBC have created "special coverage" web pages where they post links to all the articles relating to Kenya's post-election crisis.

Google News (lower down on the right sidebar, under "International news sources") is another excellent resource. Goggle News will give you links to all the major media sources. Each post indicates the time elapsed since posting, so you can quickly note how recent the news is. It's interesting and helpful to read news out of Kenya, the UK, India, South Africa, to get a broader perspective on the crisis.

Your efforts to raise awareness about the crisis at the monthly meeting level, to write letters for editorials or to elected officials in the US, and to raise funds for relief efforts all make an enormous difference to the staff and projects in Kenya.

Our friends in Kenya are not able to close their eyes to the unfolding situation. They say in Swahili, "Tuko pamoja." It means, "We are together."

Let us continue to "stand with" Kenyan Friends, remember Kenya in prayer and keep our eyes and hearts open.

Be blessed,
Barikiwe,
Mary Kay