Enough of Jubilation; now the hard work must begin

Story by LUKOYE ATWOLI Publication Date: Daily Nation 3/14/2008

MANY KENYANS ARE STILL celebrating the signing of the political agreement between President Kibaki and Mr Raila Odinga. But amid all the celebration and back-slapping, I would like to be the voice of reason, or the wet blanket, depending on where one stands on this issue. Just before World War II, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain signed a deal with Adolf Hitler that was hailed as one that would bring ‘‘peace in our time’’. A few months later, Hitler’s forces were pounding the rest of Europe, and the British Isles were not spared. It is said that those who do not heed the lessons of history are doomed to repeat the mistakes. Soon after our elections last year, the country erupted into cataclysms of killing and plunder that were neither foreseen nor anticipated. Unless we want to believe that the key culprits, the forces behind the killings, were President Kibaki and Mr Odinga, then the status quo ante still obtains. THE TWO PRINCIPALS MAY HAVE suddenly become chummy, but the bitterness that drove someone to slash his neighbour and burn his property has not been wiped away by their handshakes. The anger and despair occasioned by the losses suffered by the survivors has not been assuaged by the agreement signed in Nairobi by people who are, for all intents and purposes, strangers to them. Even as we celebrate the political agreements and move forward with the creation of positions and rewarding of cronies, we must not lose sight of the key issues that need to be addressed as part of a lasting solution to our crisis. We must let the political developments to continue parallel to other peace-building and conflict resolution processes. A key issue is the creation of an environment that enables the displaced persons to find a place to settle, whether it is their original home or elsewhere. Dialogue between communities and leaders must begin in earnest if this is to happen quickly, and edicts from Nairobi directing people to return to their homes will just not do. Concrete steps must be taken to prepare both the displaced and their erstwhile tormentors for peaceful coexistence if this process is to succeed. People returning to their homes will find most of them ransacked and destroyed, and they will need assistance to start afresh. Their needs must be assessed and efforts made to address them if we are to avoid creating new refugee camps in the areas of return. In the meantime, it may be necessary to either continue serving the displaced within the current camps or create new ‘‘transit’’ camps to temporarily host people returning to their dwellings while they organise their affairs. Many of those displaced have suffered great physical and psychological distress, and steps must be taken to address their psychosocial needs even as their material needs are taken care of. Special attention must be paid to children and young adults, since their attitudes and lessons will form the basis of their future interactions with the rest of society. If their psychological needs are neglected, we will only have created a time-bomb that will explode again in the near future. Part of the people’s psychological needs will be met in the process of truth, justice and reconciliation, and it is important that mental health professionals be involved in this process. They can offer invaluable advice on what needs to be said, in what circumstances and by whom, to facilitate healing. The process itself does not need to wait for politicians to satisfy their power-sharing needs, it must start sooner rather than later. IT MUST TRICKLE DOWN TO EVERY village, instead of becoming the travelling circus many commissions have become. The Rwandese Gacaca courts, with all their imperfections, provide a poignant lesson on how to deal with local atrocities, and we may need to borrow a leaf from them. Finally, a reconstruction package that includes development of infrastructure, youth employment opportunities, and expansion of the education system must be implemented. Areas perceived to be underdeveloped must be given priority to prevent resentments that can grow into another conflagration in future. If these steps are taken, we will have ensured peace, not just for our time, but for all eternity. Dr Atwoli is a consultant psychiatrist working in Eldoret

Redirect anger to restore sanity

Story by LUKOYE ATWOLI Publication Date: 2/12/2008

I READ PROF WILLIAM OCHIENG’S commentary on February 4 with profound dismay. From a man who has studied and taught history for as long as he has, I expected a reasoned and less emotional dissection of our place in history and what the future holds. Instead, he bombards us with a depressing diatribe, railing against fellow man and expressing disillusionment with systems, individuals and almost the entire body of humanity. The good professor pledged never to vote again, joining the bandwagon of Kenyans who, having lost faith in present institutions, now condemn their progeny to a life of uncertainty and pessimism. Those that have a stake in the future of this country must stand up and be counted. They must speak up and say that though they feel wronged this time by those whose hold on the future is tenuous at most, they shall rise up, and like the proverbial phoenix, rebuild a beautiful land out of the ashes. Those that have little stake in Kenya’s future have lit the fires that rage across the land, and are moving only sluggishly and reluctantly to douse the flames long after lives and livelihoods have been reduced to ashes. Even as they do this, more fires are being lit, literally and figuratively, in many parts of the country. I want to be the first to say that for the sake of my children and their progeny, I shall not give up. I will keep my voter’s card as a reminder of the power of the ballot, a power that can build and a power that can destroy. I will definitely use it again in future, to elect true leaders who care about the struggles I go through daily to earn a living. If there are enough people out there who believe in the beauty of this vision, then we shall triumph and the country will be the richer for it. If, on the other hand, we are in the minority, it is a minority to which I am proud to belong. The Electoral Commission, the Judiciary, the Executive, all these shall pass on and give way to others, but the power of the ballot shall remain. Prof Ochieng’s article, however, raises many issues worthy of consideration. The issue of the perpetrators of violence and whether they are expressing any political opinions by wielding machetes, rocks and even guns has been revisited by many commentators. THE VERDICT APPEARS TO BE THAT they are criminals who would use any opportunity to commit crime, especially if it is covered by the term ‘‘political violence’’ or some such other convenient tag. That man can kill and loot does not make humanity as a whole killers and looters. Stories abound in these chaotic times of people who sheltered their neighbours, even risking their lives to protect vulnerable people from ‘‘wrong’’ ethnic groups or political persuasions. The need for firm and consistent application of the law to discourage acts of lawlessness is also self-evident. The role of the middle class, and by extension, their brothers and sisters in the Diaspora, has also become an issue that cannot be avoided in this debate. Many in these classes have felt safe enough to continue bandying about ethnic stereotypes and insults knowing that they may never be victims when riots break out. Those outside the country persist in these prejudices from a safe distance, knowing that should the country collapse, they are safe with their green cards and foreign citizenships. Those in Kenya, particularly in Nairobi, live in neighbourhoods that have remained untouched by the violence, and can therefore talk about a ‘‘sense of normalcy’’ returning. The middle class seems to be unaware of the power it wields to provide solutions in this crisis. They must examine themselves and see that their common interests supersede their ethnic loyalties or even political leanings. They need each other regardless of ethnic affiliation or political inclination. To the powers that be, expanding the middle class by providing more jobs and better incomes will reduce the number of people willing to destroy all in the name of misdirected anger.

Kenyans need to unite and help in healing the nation

Letter by Dr Lukoye Atwoli DN 06 February 2008

Our politicians have developed the propensity of playing politics with the lives of Kenyans.

Every ‘enemy’ death is celebrated almost like a goal in a ball game, while every supporter’s death is held up as evidence of injustice by the ‘other’ side. Politicians are counting the lives of the dead and injured and comparing them the way people compare scores in a game.

There has been talk of genocide and crimes against humanity, and possible prosecutions to be pursued through the international justice system.

Observing these trends, one is then constrained to ask: Are these leaders of the whole Kenyan nation, or are they leaders only of their communities and regions? Are some lives more precious than others? Is one form of wrongful death more justifiable than the other?

It is instructive that one of the people who tried to be ‘objective’ depending on which side of the divide one is, Mr Maina Kiai of the Kenya National Commission for Human Rights, was pigeon-holed and judged by his previous comments and activities and chased out of a displaced people’s camp in Eldoret. This was an illustration of the kind of chasm that has now been dug by our ‘leaders’ on both sides. A member of ‘our’ community who chooses to listen to both sides is labelled a traitor and rewarded with threats to his or her life.

As the international mediators go about their business, they must realise they face a much deeper problem than just disputed election results. They face a country at war with itself, struggling to define its very identity and riven with deep ethnic divisions.

This is now a country where we can justify the shooting of a protester in the streets and describe televised footage of the same as a ‘Rambo’ movie.

It is a land where the violent mass eviction of members of one community by another, going as far as burning down churches and schools, is justified in the heat of political debate.

For a while now, many Kenyans have believed that the solution to the current crisis lies in dialogue between the president and his main rival, Raila Odinga. Perhaps it is now time we came out of our sheltered ignorance and acknowledged that the solution may need to go further than that.

The first step should be for both groups to visit all the areas affected by the violence, and offer sincere condolences to all those who have lost loved ones as well as property and livelihoods.

Some sort of compensation package for all those affected will have to be worked out without acrimony. An agreement must be reached on what to do with the identified perpetrators on both sides.

An attempt will have to be made to re-conceptualise the problem from a ‘them’ versus ‘us’ situation to one where all Kenyans stand against all those who do not respect their lives and property.

Our own basic humanity must be used as a starting point towards agreeing to coexist with each other peacefully.

Additionally, there is a need to create and strengthen the institutions that hold together the fabric of State, institutions that have been taken for granted and ignored since independence. The Judiciary, the electoral system and the architecture of the Executive need to be re-examined and improved in order to better serve the people.

LUKOYE ATWOLI,
Eldoret.

EAYPT Press Release on the Ongoing Violence in Kenya

Mental health professionals in our country have been working hard over the past one month to try and preserve and maintain our nation’s mental health under very difficult circumstances. The losses in lives and livelihoods are great, and the wound to the national psyche is greater still. It will take many years to heal the damage that has been wrought by the physical and emotional violence in Kenya.

We have taken care of people who have become mentally unwell due the on-going conflict; we have taken care of others who have had mental illness for a long time but the conflict has made it worse and disrupted their usual care channels; we are also working against all odds to help many others to deal with their current difficulties in order to avoid future psychological difficulties.

Our plea to our fellow citizens is simple: Please stop the violence. The damage goes deeper than the current issues and disagreements. Many years into the future our children will still bear physical and psychological scars as a result of our actions today. Let us all begin working together to build a truly united nation that cares about the future of its children.

To our politicians: Please sit down and talk in all sincerity, and come up with a solution that will save Kenya, not just one that will satisfy your needs and desires. Stop the posturing and the threats to one another, if you truly have the interests of all Kenyans at heart. Visit the victims of the violence together, encourage peaceful co-existence, and help initiate a process of national healing and reconciliation.

To our law-enforcers: Please exercise professionalism in carrying out your duties. This is the time your services are in greatest need, and you must provide security for all, not least our contending politicians, in order to give them the opportunity to sort out the crisis. Do not let other considerations come in the way of carrying out your duties. Live up to your motto: Utumishi Kwa Wote.

Finally, we express our solidarity with all those who have lost their relatives, friends and property. We are in this together, and we shall come out of it together. We are available to continue offering you support in this your hour of need.

DR. LUKOYE ATWOLI
Consultant Psychiatrist
PRESIDENT, EASTERN AFRICA YOUNG PSYCHIATRISTS AND TRAINEES’ ASSOCIATION

Suggested Disaster Mental Health Interventions in Kenya

The current crisis in Kenya, involving killings occasioned both by agents of state and the citizenry, has exposed how woefully inadequate our disaster mental health services are. We were ill prepared to deal with a disaster of this (or any) magnitude.
Subsequently I have put together some suggestions for the running of a disaster mental health service at least at this emergent phase. More detailed guidelines will come out after discussions of this and other drafts.
My Suggestions are available here.