Children

Internally displaced persons (IDPs) at the Jamhuri grounds, Nairobi, Kenya. January 2008 © Julius Mwelu/IRIN

The battle for a peaceful Kenya is far from over as a semblance of everyday life remains a distant dream for most Kenyans. While this month saw the signing of a power-sharing deal, the fight for peace and stability in the country is no where near complete. The “Real work” begins after political deal, while the power-sharing agreement between Kenya’s two main political parties may be set, humanitarians working in the country state that the real work hasn’t even started yet, as reconciliation and resettlement is the true priority and test of peace. “We still have 200 camps [for the displaced],” Bob McCarthy, regional emergency coordinator for the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), said. “People are being assisted to meet their immediate, short-term needs. The challenge now is to establish whether conditions are conducive for IDPs to return to their homes…”.

It is the IDP children falling through protection cracks amid the ciaos and displacement. Children in the camps lack access to proper education, healthcare, and lack the basic necessities of childhood including play. With some 150,000 displaced children in dire need of support and care to cope with the mental trauma they have endured. Many children who have; witnessed the unspeakable, are now parentless, separated from their families. Healing the children is the biggest challenge of Kenya in the wake of the post-election violence.

“The future of Kenya is very dark because the children are bringing up, the things they saw, we don’t know how those things are going to [affect] their lives,” said James Riako, a counselor with the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS), working in a transit camp for displaced people in the grounds of St Stephen’s Cathedral in Kisumu, the capital of Nyanza Province in western Kenya.

While it appears the countries focus is shifting to recovery, resettlement of IDPs, and while many IDPs are ‘voluntarily’ able to return home it seems unlikely that many will make quick returns as the infrastructure remains crippled and the feeling of security has not completely returned for most in the country. According to the UN’s guiding principles on internal displacement those displaced may go back to the homes from where they fled, be resettled in another part of the country or reintegrated into the area of displacement. This has sent many Kenyans searching for their ‘ancestor’s’ homes, others have sought to return home, but it has left many to remain in IDP camps as the fear of renewed clashes remain. According to the UN’s principles;

“Competent authorities have the primary duty and responsibility to establish conditions, as well as provide the means, which allow internally displaced persons to return voluntarily, in safety and with dignity, to their homes or places of habitual residence, or to resettle voluntarily in another part of the country. Such authorities shall endeavour to facilitate the reintegration of returned or resettled internally displaced persons.”

The words safety and dignity stand out the most, and one can imagine this is the battle that will be the hardest for most looking to return home.

Sadly violence in the country has not completely subsided with the signing of the power-sharing agreement, and peace still looms in the distance. This week has been met with more out brakes and tension is high as hundreds flee clash-torn Laikipia where it has left some 300 houses destroyed by fire, leaving some 3,000 people to flee and resulted in some 14 deaths in the last 3 weeks.

So can Kenya’s children be healed? The truth is something only time can tell, as the country continues to remain in shambles despite the loosely painted image of peace. The children more than anyone need the return of normality, and for their sake one can only hope that it will come soon, and end their suffering. When peace finally covers Kenya the children will continue to be the ones in most need of rehabilitation and psychological care.

The words of Martin Luther King, Jr., ring as true today as they did they did then. It is our silence that allows suffering to continue. As a society we cannot remain silent about the injustices that plague our world, the injustices that children face daily, for if we speak then we can hear not only our voice but that of the voiceless child.

Photo by Omar

Every man, woman and child has a voice and it is those voices that are the first steps to fight hunger, disease, hate and violence.

As spring peeked its sleep head though the last days of winter, the sun shown on the steps of the Senate Building as a group converged to demand that America fight to end slavery in its fields.

Today Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin from Illinois, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers of Michigan, Congressman Dennis Kucinich from Ohio, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights (RFK Center) Director Monika Kalra Varma, and supporters from various citizen groups and NGO’s converged just outside the Russel Senate building to support the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’.

The event was opened by Senator Durbin who boldly stated;

“Burger King argues that a penny a pound is too much. I wanna tell Burger King thats a ‘Whopper’!”

While the morning was full of supporters from all sides and all ages, there where some distinctive members missing. Those represenatives from Florida were invited, however their support was not found at todays signing. According to CIW when asked about their support stated that the reach of the agricultural industry in Florida is strong and far, and they have “not shown real or sustainable support”.

Lucas Benitez, farmworker and co-founder of CIW, took the stand today in honor of all of those who fight for freedom and fairness in the feilds, his voice was strong and loud, but most of all he was determined that these crimes would come to end. He told of not only the struggles of the workers, but of the progress and hope they have thanks to their supporters and their courage. Mr. Benitez also spoke of those who stand in the path of freedom; “…Burger King and it’s allies stand in our path and threaten the important progress we have made.”

“Together we are stronger than Burger King and the handful of backward growers and their lobbyists!” -Lucas Benitez

Photo from CIW

What is truly sad is that in a day and age where most in America are more concerned with buy cars, toys, clothes and so many other needless items, men, women and whole families are fighting for freedom. What makes this beyond intolerable and incomprehensible is that freedom and a better wage cost a merer penny a pound. The CIW, the farmworkers of Immokalee and all the slaves with in the midst of the ‘Land of the Free’ are the true Americans fighting for justice, freedom and survival. The next time you buy a burger, a container of tomatoes, a new shirt, remember that in many cases someone literally ’slaved’ for that item in your hand.

Even a child knows right from wrong; Issiah , just 3, was the youngest supporter in the crowed. He boastfully repeated the key points from the speakers, and yes, while he may not have comprehended the matter at hand, when I asked him; “Is not treating the people who work for you a bad idea? “, he quickly answered “Yes!”. Issiah’s mother told me that just this week he told his father, that “fair trade coffee is a good idea because they treat their workers good, but Burger King is bad because they don’t.” Children learn from their parents examples, and we can all teach our children that slavery is a bad idea. It is with steps like these today, and young minds like Issiah’s that will lead us to a slave free America…a slave free world! It’s time we stood for what is right so our children and their children no longer have to suffer and fight for freedom.

Add your name to the National Petition to End Sweatshops and Slavery in America’s Fields!

Please see yesterdays article for more information on CIW and their fight for slave free fields for America’s farm workers.

To hear the todays press conference and petition signing click here or to hear the press conference, click here.

America is many things, as are Americans, and our culture is as diverse as they come and when one thinks of America and our modern culture one of the things that pops into your mind is inevitably fast food. We are all touched by the reach of the fast food industry. While for some of us fast food is a staple of our busy lives, for others it is a rare treat, but, regardless, at some point and time no matter how much we may want to avoid it, we all eat it. When one eats fast food guilt often comes into ones mind, however the guilt that one usually feels is that based more on glutinous pleasure, and not that of one who is contributing to the harm of another persons well being. However it is here at the fast food counter that one unbeknownst is contributing to the enslavement of others.

When one thinks of modern slavery or forced labor, one rarely thinks of America, despite the fact that there are 17,500 persons trafficked into the US each year according to US government figures (, however the true numbers are unknown. These numbers do not reflect the numbers of domestic and international victims, among us in the US.) Nor does the use of tomatoes, which is a staple of most of our diets, more likely than not does not make you think of injustice. Nonetheless both are realities in our ever- expanding ideological world, where democracy is seen as the path to freedom.

In the south Florida county of Collier lies Immokalee, once a bustling pre-civil war farm community of full of slaves and slave owners. However for many modern- day farm workers treatment and conditions in the fields has changed little since the outlawing of slavery in the United States.

Founded in 1993, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), was established to fight against the abuses occurring in the fields – abuses that range from labor exploitation to actual modern-day slavery. The CIW works to protect those who find themselves in those most extreme conditions; being are forced to work in the fields in against their will, in conditions that don’t diverge that far from those of ‘slave like conditions‘, often appearing no different than their historical slave counterparts. Comprised of more than 4,000 farm labors, mostly Mexican, Guatemalan and Haitian migrant workers, the CIW is ready and poised to fight for the rights of those who fill Immokalee’s orange groves and tomato fields. The CIW received the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award in 2003 in recognition of its work to end modern-day slavery and exploitation of migrant workers in the U.S. agriculture industry. The 2007 Anti-Slavery Award was given to the CIW for their exceptional contribution towards tackling modern-day slavery in the US produce fields.

The CIW’s first big battle against the fast food industry came in 2001 as they took on the fast food chain Taco Bell in a large scale boycott, “Boot the Bell”. The CIW demanded that Taco Bell, whose tomatoes are often supplied by producers in Immokalee, take responsibility for the working conditions and wages of the farm workers that supply the company’s tomatoes. CIW won the battle of the Bell on March 8, 2005, as Yum! Brands, Inc., Taco Bell‘s proprietor, agreed to pay a penny more per pound of tomatoes in order to increase workers’ wages. In 2002 CIW then took on the king of fast food, McDonald’s, demanding they too pay a penny more per pound. The CIW’s agreement with both companies stated that they work directly with the CIW to implement an enforceable code of conduct. The code created by McDonald’s was considered inadequate and it was not until April 9, 2007 that an agreement was officially made.

The CIW is once again embattled in another fight, this time with fast food giant Burger King, and other industry leaders, who has thus far failed to use their force to ensure that farm workers receive a faira ware wage and treatment. The Burger King has announced that the company had “extensively considered the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ (CIW) ‘penny per pound’ request and has declined to accept the proposal.” Instead, Burger King offered to re-train dissatisfied tomato pickers to work in Burger King restaurants.¹ Just a few short months ago, yet another case of workers, held against their will and forced to work in the agricultural industry came to light. This is the seventh such case in little more than a decade.

The CIW has now launched a national petition drive demanding Burger King work with the CIW to ensure their consumers that their supply chain is free from slavery. The petition aims , and to show the level of support of consumers who will not support modern slavery. The campaign will show the high levels of consumers who are “prepared to stop patronizing Burger King now, and other food industry leaders in the future, should they fail to do so.”

Sadly the plight of the Immokalee workers only echoes that of some 27 million slaves around the globe, as modern slavery reaches a scale almost three times larger than that of the the Atlantic Slave Trade, which saw the transport of some 10 million people out of African in four decades. This year on January 1st marked the 200th anniversary of the US ban against the importation of slaves, and yet we still live with slaves in our midst. The slavery of our past is far from forgotten, yet the slavery of present remains hidden in the shadows. Slavery is far from being history, and its grasp has reached every corner of the globe and America is no exception to this brutal crime against humanity.

1 See: Penny-Per-Pound

Also see: BKC Penny Per Pound

Despite international rumors and reports in the last month China’s controversial one-child-per-couple law will remain in effect for at least the next decade, government officials said Monday. The Chinese governments statement ended weeks of speculation regarding the abandonment of the program to pave the way for more babies despite the largely aging population.

Zhang Weiqing, minister of the National Population and Family Planning Commission, said “Given such a large population base, there would be major fluctuations in population growth if we abandoned the one-child rule now.” “It would cause serious problems and add extra pressure on social and economic development” he said (The New York Times).

The news that the one child law will remain a hold strong of modern Chinese culture comes of great disappointment to many, and even outrage to others, as the law has caused a great gender discrimination. In a society where children are expected to dutifully care for their aging parents, boys remain the preference. Thus girls have continually been marginalized, discriminated against, aborted, and abandoned since the laws inception in 1979.

Today, March 8th is International Women’s Day, a day that was established to commemorate the struggle women and girls across the globe have endured in order to obtain their ‘full’ human rights. Sadly while I sit here and enjoy my ‘full’ rights, millions of women and young girls worldwide are still being denied. Millions of women and girls every day are faced with Gender Inequality and face specific issues such as; Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)/Female Circumcision, Child Marriage, Child Trafficking, and other gender based human rights abuses. While many women and girls still struggle, others have set forth to be industry and world leaders, and it is these female leaders that will pave the way forward for the those who still struggle to achieve their ‘full’ rights.

This month the United Nations will bring women from around the globe to New York to attend the UN Commission on the status of Women. The celebration will also mark the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL) is using the month of March to bring highlight the leadership role women play in guaranteeing human rights.

Rights for women and girls have come a long way, but let us not forget to protect those who’s rights are being violated. The role of women and girls in all aspects of society is vital to a sustainable and peaceful global community. Celebrate women and girls, empower them and they will lead us towards a better tomorrow!

Children are our most valuable natural resource, yet we do not prize them and treasure them as we should, but treat them as disposable items. Children across the globe daily are abuse physically, mentally, and sexually; forced to work in harsh and unbearable conditions; faced to bare witness to violence and war; suffer from preventable diseases; go without education; live in hunger.  And while we may treasure and value those within our sight, we must not fail those in which we cannot see, as all children are resources to be treasured.

Children are our future and should be seen as valuable investments, invest in them wisely, invest in them well and we will see a brighter future!

Authorities in the Republic of Congo have lifted a temporary ban imposed four months ago following the arrest on 25 October 2007 in neighboring Chad of members of a French NGO who were charged with abducting 103 children.

Nutrition experts say governments are not investing enough to prevent and treat malnutrition in women and children in poor countries. “The amount donors have given to combating malnutrition is lamentable,” Saul Morris, one of the authors of a series of reports on child survival published recently by The Lancet medical journal.

In Egypt a drive to boost girls’ education, the drive is sponsored by the government and the UN. The goal is to build over 1,000 “girl-friendly” schools in seven provinces, as there due to the low attendence of girls. Many girls do not attend school due to the proximity of schools, poverty, child labor, gender inequality, and early marriage.

In Sudan around 650,000 or half of all children in Darfur do not receive an education, despite efforts by various organizations to provide schooling in camps and towns across the western Sudanese region, according to Save the Children.

In Chad many young people desperately seeking sex education. Some of the young people who seek help at the Youth Information and Orientation Centre for Reproductive Health (CIOJ) in N’Djamena, capital of Chad, do not understand how they became pregnant or contracted a sexually transmitted infection (STI). Workers at the center blame the high levels of ignorance on the failure of parents to talk to their children about sex.

Burundi’s teachers are calling for more HIV/AIDS education in schools, to ensure that older primary school pupils and secondary school students, many of whom are sexually active, are properly equipped with the facts about the pandemic. Ernest Mberamiheto, deputy minister in charge of primary and secondary education, said government studies in 2004 revealed that 23 percent of school children had had sexual intercourse by the age of 14.

In the Niger Delta there is no lack of youth ready to join militias. And while many young boys want out of the fight disarment will still leave wages twice or three times less, leaving many feeling that the life of a militant is the only hope for economic stability.

Israel sentences man for “honor” killing of sister, the court handed down a 16-year prison sentence Tuesday against a man accused of participating in the killing of his sister, after women in the family stepped forward to testify against the suspect. The sister was the eighth female family member to be killed in recent years, but this was the first conviction in any of the cases. She was 18 at the time, and was the eighth female member of the Abu Ghanem clan to have been killed in seven years

Meningitis is spreading across the region with the death toll reaching 422 since the beginning of 2008 yet, contrary to several recent reports, a World Health Organization (WHO) official said the figures are lower than previous years and that West Africa is well-prepared to contain the disease. Low cost meningitis vaccine developed, which has proven to be highly effective in trials in West Africa, and will be introduced in 2009.

South African schools are the most dangerous in the world, and if the issue is not addressed it will stunt children’s education and jeopardize the future development of the country, according to the South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR). However experts warn that safety is part of a more complex problem.

It was a year ago today that I wrote my first blog post, and what a year it has been! My time with the FPA has been both one of incite and growth, for me personally and for the Children’s blog itself. In the short year that we have been live we have had considerable and regular grown in our readership.  This growth is in a large part due to you the readers, you who have been duteous in your readership and have gone on to share the site with your friends and families.

The success of this site is mainly in thanks to you, the readers, for without you there was no reason to continue, and it is you who keep me going day after day. Therefore it is to you, the wonderful reader that I owe the success of this year to, as without your readership and support I would not be sitting here one year later.

Thank you for your support and readership, and I look forward to continuing to write as long as you continue to read it.

Echoes of Rwanda filled our minds as Kenya became engulfed in the flames of ethnic violence following the December 27, 2007 presidential election in which President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner. Supporters of Kibaki’s opponent, Raila Odinga of the Orange Democratic Movement, were inflamed by allegations of electoral manipulation, which was widely confirmed by international election observers. The post-election violence, soon turned into what some are now calling genocide and tensions have taken much of the spotlight off Sudan who still lingers in the grey shadows. Some claim the violence is not ethnically inspired, but economically fulled. Regardless ethnic tensions are not unknown in Kenya and have been used as fodder in many cases since independence in 1963, especially in regards to land ownership, and with this displacement is neither a new fate for many Kenyans.

The past three months have left us with mounting fears and little hope for the future of Kenya. Stories of children caught in the cross fire, youths violently patrolling the streets flood the news and our minds. Women and children have been the hardest hit by the clashes, which have left mounting instances of rape and have also hindered aid efforts. The conflict has left some 301,000 plus IDP’s (one third of which are under 5), half of which are children, many of who have left their homes in search of their ‘ancestral’ homes, while others have also fled to bordering Uganda.

Many Kenyan children who have been caught up in the violence live in utter poverty, with their futures looking bleak even before the eruption of violence. One such breeding ground for the violence, due to fears and hate of corruption, lies right out side the capital city of Nirobi, in the slums of Kibera. The worlds largest slum with over one million people, the children of Kibera and their families have no running or clean water; the same streets where children play overflow with human waste, breading disease to those who have no access to healthcare. These same streets have now grown even more desperate as access to food and healthcare is even farther out of reach, as they have been the hardest hit by the violence. It is the many children like the children of the Kibera Slums who find themselves more and more drawn to violence as a means of hope for a better future. Sadly violence only breeds more violence and discontent, leaving those in poverty and social turmoil to fall farther and farther away from hope and continue to linger in the shadows of a failing state.

As January wound down some began to see a small glimmer of light as mediation talks began, due in large thanks to the help of former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. As violence spread in the Rift Valley and Nairobi, forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes, most saw little signs of an end to the crisis, causing concerns that the end to the violence was no where in sight to only grow.

On February 28th the National Accord and Reconciliation Act was signed by both Kibaki and Odinga, establishes the office of prime minister, and creates a coalition government. This new power-sharing deal, only serves to overhaul the way the country is governed. The terms of the agreement, which the AP outlines, establishes Odinga, as Kenya’s new prime minister. Some praise the deal and says a power-sharing agreement “held the only key to a peaceful and agreeable settlement of the post-election impasse” (The Standard). Others claim that the deal only signifies Kenya pulling “back from the brink” (Economist). While former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, who mediated the agreement, do deserve much credit in brokering the deal, it unfortunately leave many worried as it “remains to be seen how the sharing of power will work in practice.” How long will the deal last is also a question of great concern, as many wonder if new presidential elections will soon be sought.

What fate awaits the children of Kenya? The sad reality of Kenya is that regardless of peace today or tomorrow, the scars of violence never disappear, and will now forever mare the lives of all of Kenya’s children. One can only hope that the wounds heal of a nation heal enough to leave only a faded scar that all can learn from, one which serves as a reminder for what must never occur again.

Please see my esteemed colleague Dan Graeber’s post’s Kenya descends and Kenya witnessing “genocide on a grand scale” for more incite.