Date: Fri Nov 28 17:07:32 2014
Terrorism hits education, health in Kenya's marginalized Mandera
NAIROBI, 28 November 2014 (IRIN) - People in northern Kenya's marginalized
Mandera County face a devastating loss of basic services as teachers,
healthcare workers and other state employees face calls to leave in the wake
of a terrorist attack which claimed 28 bus passengers.
The victims, who included 24 teachers, were shot in the head on 22 November
after being made to lie on the ground. The Somali insurgent group Al Shabab
said it carried out the attack.
In the aftermath of the <http://www.un.org/sg/statements/index.asp?nid=8215>
widely condemned killings, several civil servants' unions urged their
members who are not indigenous to the larger northern Kenya region to leave
until their security could be guaranteed.
"It's a painful scenario to comprehend what has constantly befallen our
members. Many have undergone painful deaths. We don't want to contemplate
what will happen next to them should they continue serving there," Wilson
Sossion, secretary-general of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT),
told IRIN.
"We have called for better security for our members in the past but the
government has failed to provide it. Now we want all teachers to move out
from insecure regions and relocate to places deemed secure."
According to local media reports, an exodus of civil servants has already
begun on roads leading south. And soon after the attack, dozens of people
gathered with their suitcases at Mandera airstrip, waiting in vain for a
government air lift.
Sossion said teachers had been targeted before. "We have witnessed cases
where terrorists, [who] move from house to house, profile and target
teachers. We want to avoid a similar thing once and for all by completely
moving out from volatile regions. We are not talking of Mandera alone, but
we want them [teachers] to move out from all insecure regions of the
country."
But others think this is wrong-headed.
"If you leave," public service chief Joseph Kinyua told civil servants holed
up in an army base in Mandera, "it will as appear as if we have surrendered
our sovereignty to Al-Shabaab.
"Withdrawing labour will not help solve the region's security problem,"
Francis Atwoli, secretary-general of the Kenyan chapter of the Central
Organisation of Trade Unions told IRIN.
"We are still insisting that the government provides security to ensure the
safety of our workers. It has taken [the government] a lot of effort to
create employment and they should do the same to protect the jobs by beefing
up security. We want a situation where workers can work in any part of the
country.
"Withdrawing will mean that we are defeated and thus falling into the traps
of the enemy. We cannot accept defeat and succumb to their demands. What
happened is unacceptable and we condemn it."
Limited access to education, health care
The
<http://www.irinnews.org/in-depth/87469/83/another-kenya-the-humanitarian-co
st-of-under-development> northern Kenya region has historically been
marginalized by successive governments, leaving access to basic social
services such as education and healthcare limited. While demand for teachers
stands at 20,000, there are only about 12,000 in the region, according to
KNUT.
<http://www.unicef.org/kenya/overview_4616.html> UNICEF says about 80
percent of girls in North Eastern Province are not enrolled in school.
The doctor-to-patient ratio is 1.0 to 100,000 in the larger northern Kenya
region, according to Fredrick Oluga, a member of the advisory council at the
Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPPDU).
Nationally, according to government figures, the ratio is 1.0 to 20,000. The
global recommendation is one doctor for every 1,000 patients.
Indicative of the level of need in northern Kenya is the dependence on civil
servants from other parts of the country.
KMPPDU's Oluga added that there are just 41 doctors in northern Kenya,
forcing them to be on call 24 hours.
"Our members have been attacked while walking to hospital to attend to
emergency cases. In
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/100394/analysis-conflict-dynamics-on-kenya-s
-coast> Lamu, for instance, we lost one member, while in Mandera, a
pharmacist was killed. It is a very sad situation where you don't know what
will happen next," he said.
Meanwhile, some workers have already abandoned medical facilities. "Our
health facilities are the most affected. Elwak, Arabia, Libahie hospitals,
close to the border, have all been deserted by the staff," said Ibrahim Ali,
an official with the Mandera County public service board.
Few staff remained at Mandera Referral Hospital, added Ali. "All units are
feeling the pinch. The outpatient department is congested, diagnosis is a
problem in cases where tests are required, and patients are suffering in the
wards too."
Most of those who opt to work in the region are fresh graduates embarking on
their careers. Several newly-graduated teachers were among those killed in
the recent bus attack.
The region is prone to banditry and attacks as well as intercommunal
conflict. The
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/89060/kenya-your-guns-or-your-freedom-please
> proliferation of weapons, as residents seek to defend themselves, has
worsened the situation.
Growing insecurity
In the past three years, insecurity in the borderlands, especially in
regions adjacent to Somalia, has taken on a new dimension. Al-Shabab has
been the main perpetrator with deadly attacks, including raids on police
stations, restaurants and churches, and abductions of government personnel
and aid workers.
In North Eastern Province, security officials and businesspeople have been
accused of colluding with Al-Shabab,
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/98059/briefing-restive-northern-kenya-sees-s
hifting-power-risks> increasing insecurity.
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/94018/kenya-somalia-a-risky-intervention>
Kenya sent its forces into Somalia in October 2011 in a purported bid to
secure its borders and its tourism sector. But critics of the operation,
dubbed Linda Nchi (protect the country), warned that it could boost popular
support for the Islamist insurgents.
Since then, a spate of deadly attacks claimed by Al-Shabab have been
recorded across the country.
In June, dozens of people were killed in a
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/100394/analysis-conflict-dynamics-on-kenya-s
-coast> string of attacks in Mpeketoni in Lamu County on Kenya's coast. In
Mombasa, fears of
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/97982/countering-the-radicalization-of-kenya
-s-youth> the radicalization of increasingly disenchanted youth are on the
rise.
Recently, the government announced the discovery of a cache of arms,
including grenades and ammunition, in several mosques in Mombasa leading to
their temporary closure. At least 21 Muslim clerics, of whom 20 were linked
by the government to Al-Shabab,
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/100412/gunned-down-in-mombasa-the-clerics-th
at-have-died> have been killed over the past two years in Mombasa, according
to human rights group Haki Africa.
Resentment due to historical grievances especially over land, has fuelled
the creation of groups such as
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/96630/briefing-kenya-s-coastal-separatists-m
enace-or-martyrs> the Mombasa Republic Council (MRC), which, according to
some analysts, could be an Al-Shabab sympathizer.
On 22 September 2013, Al-Shabab militants
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/98814/kenyans-donate-blood-for-westgate-vict
ims> stormed an upmarket shopping mall in Nairobi where they killed 67
people and injured many others.
To protest growing insecurity, citizens recently held peaceful
demonstrations outside President Uhuru Kenyatta's office, on Harambee Avenue
in Nairobi. The <https://twitter.com/hashtag/occupyharambeeAve?src=tren>
#OccupyHarambeeAve hashtag is still trending on Twitter in Kenya.
<http://www.irinnews.org/Photo/Details/201407170958140394/In-June-dozens-of-
people-were-killed-in-a-string-of-attacks-in-Mpeketoni-Lamu-County>
http://www.irinnews.org/photo/Download.aspx?Source=Report&Year=2014&ImageID=
201407170958140394&width=490
Photo: <http://www.irinnews.org/photo/> Jimmy Kamude/IRIN
Dozens of people died in the Mpeketoni attacks, in Lamu County (file photo)
- People in northern Kenya's marginalized Mandera County face a devastating
loss of basic services as teachers, healthcare workers and other state
employees face calls to leave in the wake of a terrorist attack which
claimed 28 bus passengers.
The victims, who included 24 teachers, were shot in the head on 22 November
after being made to lie on the ground. The Somali insurgent group Al Shabab
said it carried out the attack.
In the aftermath of the <http://www.un.org/sg/statements/index.asp?nid=8215>
widely condemned killings, several civil servants' unions urged their
members who are not indigenous to the larger northern Kenya region to leave
until their security could be guaranteed.
"It's a painful scenario to comprehend what has constantly befallen our
members. Many have undergone painful deaths. We don't want to contemplate
what will happen next to them should they continue serving there," Wilson
Sossion, secretary-general of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT),
told IRIN.
"We have called for better security for our members in the past but the
government has failed to provide it. Now we want all teachers to move out
from insecure regions and relocate to places deemed secure."
According to local media reports, an exodus of civil servants has already
begun on roads leading south. And soon after the attack, dozens of people
gathered with their suitcases at Mandera airstrip, waiting in vain for a
government air lift.
Sossion said teachers had been targeted before. "We have witnessed cases
where terrorists, [who] move from house to house, profile and target
teachers. We want to avoid a similar thing once and for all by completely
moving out from volatile regions. We are not talking of Mandera alone, but
we want them [teachers] to move out from all insecure regions of the
country."
But others think this is wrong-headed.
"If you leave," public service chief Joseph Kinyua told civil servants holed
up in an army base in Mandera, "it will as appear as if we have surrendered
our sovereignty to Al-Shabaab.
"Withdrawing labour will not help solve the region's security problem,"
Francis Atwoli, secretary-general of the Kenyan chapter of the Central
Organisation of Trade Unions told IRIN.
"We are still insisting that the government provides security to ensure the
safety of our workers. It has taken [the government] a lot of effort to
create employment and they should do the same to protect the jobs by beefing
up security. We want a situation where workers can work in any part of the
country.
"Withdrawing will mean that we are defeated and thus falling into the traps
of the enemy. We cannot accept defeat and succumb to their demands. What
happened is unacceptable and we condemn it."
Limited access to education, health care
The
<http://www.irinnews.org/in-depth/87469/83/another-kenya-the-humanitarian-co
st-of-under-development> northern Kenya region has historically been
marginalized by successive governments, leaving access to basic social
services such as education and healthcare limited. While demand for teachers
stands at 20,000, there are only about 12,000 in the region, according to
KNUT.
<http://www.unicef.org/kenya/overview_4616.html> UNICEF says about 80
percent of girls in North Eastern Province are not enrolled in school.
The doctor-to-patient ratio is 1.0 to 100,000 in the larger northern Kenya
region, according to Fredrick Oluga, a member of the advisory council at the
Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPPDU).
Nationally, according to government figures, the ratio is 1.0 to 20,000. The
global recommendation is one doctor for every 1,000 patients.
Indicative of the level of need in northern Kenya is the dependence on civil
servants from other parts of the country.
KMPPDU's Oluga added that there are just 41 doctors in northern Kenya,
forcing them to be on call 24 hours.
"Our members have been attacked while walking to hospital to attend to
emergency cases. In
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/100394/analysis-conflict-dynamics-on-kenya-s
-coast> Lamu, for instance, we lost one member, while in Mandera, a
pharmacist was killed. It is a very sad situation where you don't know what
will happen next," he said.
Meanwhile, some workers have already abandoned medical facilities. "Our
health facilities are the most affected. Elwak, Arabia, Libahie hospitals,
close to the border, have all been deserted by the staff," said Ibrahim Ali,
an official with the Mandera County public service board.
Few staff remained at Mandera Referral Hospital, added Ali. "All units are
feeling the pinch. The outpatient department is congested, diagnosis is a
problem in cases where tests are required, and patients are suffering in the
wards too."
Most of those who opt to work in the region are fresh graduates embarking on
their careers. Several newly-graduated teachers were among those killed in
the recent bus attack.
The region is prone to banditry and attacks as well as intercommunal
conflict. The
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/89060/kenya-your-guns-or-your-freedom-please
> proliferation of weapons, as residents seek to defend themselves, has
worsened the situation.
Growing insecurity
In the past three years, insecurity in the borderlands, especially in
regions adjacent to Somalia, has taken on a new dimension. Al-Shabab has
been the main perpetrator with deadly attacks, including raids on police
stations, restaurants and churches, and abductions of government personnel
and aid workers.
In North Eastern Province, security officials and businesspeople have been
accused of colluding with Al-Shabab,
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/98059/briefing-restive-northern-kenya-sees-s
hifting-power-risks> increasing insecurity.
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/94018/kenya-somalia-a-risky-intervention>
Kenya sent its forces into Somalia in October 2011 in a purported bid to
secure its borders and its tourism sector. But critics of the operation,
dubbed Linda Nchi (protect the country), warned that it could boost popular
support for the Islamist insurgents.
Since then, a spate of deadly attacks claimed by Al-Shabab have been
recorded across the country.
In June, dozens of people were killed in a
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/100394/analysis-conflict-dynamics-on-kenya-s
-coast> string of attacks in Mpeketoni in Lamu County on Kenya's coast. In
Mombasa, fears of
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/97982/countering-the-radicalization-of-kenya
-s-youth> the radicalization of increasingly disenchanted youth are on the
rise.
Recently, the government announced the discovery of a cache of arms,
including grenades and ammunition, in several mosques in Mombasa leading to
their temporary closure. At least 21 Muslim clerics, of whom 20 were linked
by the government to Al-Shabab,
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/100412/gunned-down-in-mombasa-the-clerics-th
at-have-died> have been killed over the past two years in Mombasa, according
to human rights group Haki Africa.
Resentment due to historical grievances especially over land, has fuelled
the creation of groups such as
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/96630/briefing-kenya-s-coastal-separatists-m
enace-or-martyrs> the Mombasa Republic Council (MRC), which, according to
some analysts, could be an Al-Shabab sympathizer.
On 22 September 2013, Al-Shabab militants
<http://www.irinnews.org/report/98814/kenyans-donate-blood-for-westgate-vict
ims> stormed an upmarket shopping mall in Nairobi where they killed 67
people and injured many others.
To protest growing insecurity, citizens recently held peaceful
demonstrations outside President Uhuru Kenyatta's office, on Harambee Avenue
in Nairobi. The <https://twitter.com/hashtag/occupyharambeeAve?src=tren>
#OccupyHarambeeAve hashtag is still trending on Twitter in Kenya.
<http://www.irinnews.org/Photo/Details/201407170958140394/In-June-dozens-of-
people-were-killed-in-a-string-of-attacks-in-Mpeketoni-Lamu-County>
http://www.irinnews.org/photo/Download.aspx?Source=Report&Year=2014&ImageID=
201407170958140394&width=490
Photo: <http://www.irinnews.org/photo/> Jimmy Kamude/IRIN
Dozens of people died in the Mpeketoni attacks, in Lamu County (file photo)
(image/jpeg attachment: image001.jpg)
(image/jpeg attachment: image002.jpg)