Global Voices » Kenya

Kenya: War, Guns and Votes

Ndesanjo Macha — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:33:37 +0000

What will be the impact of Kenya's war with Al Shabaab on the 2012/13 elections?: “A number of questions: will the heightened security requirements associated with the threat of terrorism from Al Shabaab also help secure the country against election violence? Or will security forces be used to intervene in the campaign instead, as in 2007?”

Africa: How Africa Tweets

Ndesanjo Macha — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 11:24:11 +0000

Young people Tweeting from mobile devices are driving the growth of Twitter in Africa, according to How Africa Tweets, new research launched by Portland: “In the first ever attempt to comprehensively map the use of Twitter in Africa, Portland and Tweetminster analysed over 11.5 million geo-located Tweets originating on the continent during the last three months of 2011.”

Video: Online Media by and for Indigenous People

Juliana Rincón Parra — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 23:26:18 +0000

Intercontinental Cry has a list of 12 recommended films on indigenous issues, some made by indigenous people from Brazil, Australia, Panama, USA, Northern Kenya, Colombia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Kenya, Somalia: Twitter War - Kenyan Army Versus Al Shabaab

Collins Mbalo — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:30:56 +0000

Kenya's military incursion into Somalia against the militant group Al Shabaab dubbed “Operation Linda Nchi” (Swahili for “Operation Defend the Country”) has turned into Twitter war. This came after the official military spokesperson Major E ChirChir going by the Twitter handle @MajorEChirchir posted old photos claiming that a Kenyan Al Shabaab recruit had been stoned to death recently by the group members because of “a difference of opinion”. Image of the now deleted tweet can be seen at this here

It later became apparent that the photos were actually taken by a Somalian journalist in 2009 and does not even feature a Kenyan Al Shabab recruit. The Kenyan military spokesperson has displayed a sense of responsibility by acknowledging responsibility and stating in one tweet:

Official logo of the Kenyan army. Photo source: @MajorEChirchir.

@MajorEChirchir: #PicturePosting I take responsibility for posting an old photo, but execution did happen on Tuesday. Friday execution likely.

Reacting to @MajorEChirchir's tweets, @SelfMadeAbdi asks:

@SelfMadeAbdi: Are we suppose to believe u now?

@Dannmanufc writes:

@Dannmanufc: loosing trust of your updates

@kithembe says:

@kithembe: @MajorEChirchir #PicturePosting it is sad but stop posting old pictures.

Image of @MajorEChirchir tweets. Image source: globalpost.com

His post has raised furor online with a number of Twitter users venting their anger, distrust and opinions on the issue under the hashtag #PicturePosting. Tweep @mamayaimani writes:

@mamayaimani:
@MajorEChirchir #PicturePosting You do realise what his does to your credibility, don't you? You see what it does for the other side?

Twitter user @geoffreyork blasts @MajorEChirchir by revealing:

@geoffreyork: Here are the 2009 photos from a British newspaper: http://bit.ly/yDYRn4 Compare them to Major C's tweeted photos. Identical.

The Harakat Al-Shabaab Al Mujahideen Twitter page, @HMSpress, took a few quips at the Kenya Defence Forces stating:

@HMSpress: For those interested: the incident took place in 2009, the man wasn’t #Kenyan, it wasn’t in Kismayo, and it wasn’t HSM http://www.dhanbaal.com/main/index.php?module=News&func=display&sid=272

@HMSpress: They seem unsophisticated, even in their propaganda campaign. A simple Google search would have saved them such an embarrassment

Kenyans and other interested persons responded to the whole fiasco and here is a sample of their tweets:

Tech Blogger @RobertAlai comments:

@RobertAlai: @MajorEChirchir we are waiting for your answers. You tried to fool us. We need reality not faked scenes

Okwaroh states:

@Okwaroh: @MajorEChirchir and to what extent should we tolerate your ‘omissions'. This raises loads of questions about the credibility of your WORD

Responding to the misleading photos, one Kenyan Twitter user, @Jkisioh, coins a new terms “Twicide” and asks:

@JKisioh: Has @MajorEChirchir committed twicide?

The Kenyan military spokesperson may have thought that the tweet would be easily consumed by unsuspecting netizens and believed as gospel truth. The veracity of his statements are not only being put to test by the Al Shabaab and its sympathizers but also by Kenyan citizens as “Tweet war” and social media warfare continue.

The Kenyan capital, Nairobi, saw two deadly grenade attack incidents linked to Al Shabaab last year: one at a popular entertainment club and the other at a crowded bus stop in downtown Nairobi.

Africa: ICTs for Refugees and Displaced Persons

Onnik Krikorian — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 17:11:09 +0000

In recent weeks Global Voices has presented to its readers more examples of how citizen media is used to amplify the voices of refugees and displaced people. However, while blogs and social networking sites clearly have a role to play in empowering marginalized groups, so too do ICTs in general.

MobileActive, for example, is encouraged by the potential for mobile phones to allow refugees to not only remain in contact with loved ones, but to also more easily locate them. Attention is especially drawn to a special issue of Forced Migration Review which takes an in-depth look at the use of ICTs in this context.

Refugees in Uganda are using SMS and cellphones to reconnect with family members and close friends. Photo via MobileActive

Refugees often experience a compound trauma: The situation that caused them to flee in the first place, as well as the fact that many families become separated during migration. For refugee's health and well-being and ability to resettle, it is vital to know the whereabouts of relatives, their safety, and their ability to remain in contact. Today, mobile phones are the most important technology for refugees to find relatives and remain in contact.

The Forced Migration Review Issue 38, The Technology Issue covers technologies for refugees in particular. Two chapters shine a light on the use of mobile phones among refugees, as well as some of the problems with this tech to find and contact family member such as issues of security, and accessibility.

Deputy UN High Commissioner for Refugees T Alexander Aleinikoff provides an introduction to the special issue:

Superficially at least, today’s refugee camps do not appear significantly different from those that existed 30 or 40 years ago. Modernisation seems to have passed them by. But upon a closer look, it becomes apparent that things are changing.

Today, refugees and IDPs in the poorest of countries often have access to a mobile phone and are able to watch satellite TV. Internet cafés have sprung up in some settlements, the hardware purchased by refugee entrepreneurs or donated by humanitarian organisations such as UNHCR. And aid agencies themselves are increasingly making use of advanced technology: geographic information systems, Skype, biometric databases and Google Earth, to give just a few examples.

In one article, the example of a tracing project implemented by the Refugee Consortium of Kenya (RCK) in cooperation with Refugees United (RU) is highlighted:

In 1991 Ahmed Hassan Osman* fled the conflict in Somalia, leaving his family in Kismayu, and made his way to Kenya in search of asylum. Ahmed lived for a while in Ifo refugee camp before being resettled to Colorado in the US where he was granted full US citizenship.

In 1992, his cousin Abdulahi Sheikh arrived in Kenya in search of support. Granted refugee status, Abdulahi ended up in Dagahaley camp in Dadaab. He believed Ahmed was either in Dadaab or had been there but his efforts to find him were unsuccessful and he soon gave up hope of ever finding him. In fact, Abdulahi believed Ahmed had gone back to Somalia.

In early 2011 RCK employed Abdulahi to assist the RU project in Dagahaley refugee camp. Abdulahi registered with the tracing project and began a search for missing loved ones. Coming across a name that was familiar, he contacted the person through the RU message system. When he received a reply he realised that, after 20 years of separation and search, he had found his beloved cousin. They exchanged phone numbers and Ahmed called, breaking 20 years of silence. Today, the two keep in touch regularly and both Abdulahi and Ahmed continue to search for more friends and family members.

Of course, as MobileActive also stresses, some problems with local infrastructure remain an obstacle to the widespread adoption of such systems:

In some areas of Africa, there is no telecommunications coverage. Workshop participants commented that where it does exist, phone connections are regularly cut off, and some of them had also experienced intrusion in communication such as crossed lines. The strength of the network signal overseas is weak, and the lack of a reliable or steady source of electricity in a recipient’s country can be a major problem, although this varies by region. Growth of populations in some areas weakens network strength, due to the drain on power. Individuals may also have difficulty accessing electricity to charge their mobile phones.

[…]

Finding the best technology to use for different family members can be difficult, particularly if they themselves are displaced, because of factors such as the variety of available services, whether the family member could afford them and whether they have the skills to use them. One participant observed that the majority of their family members overseas needed to access communication technology through others. One participant described the difficulties she had in contacting her husband in a camp. She sent money to him to buy a phone but other people in the camp would also use it leaving her often waiting for hours to get in touch.

Cheap options such as email, voice-over-internet or instant messaging may not be accessible or affordable, and access to the internet in Africa is very expensive. Furthermore, displaced family members overseas may not know how to use these facilities.

From providing refugees with access to information on health and educational opportunities to using Facebook, Gmail Chat and Skype to maintain connections with family members and friends across geographical divides, the issue provides a comprehensive overview of how ICTs are being used.

Ushahidi also gets a mention in relation to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti as well as in general as it pertains to conflict, disaster and refugees. Indeed, PBS' Idea Lab takes a look at an Al Jazeera and Ushahidi collaboration to connect and empower Somalis separated by conflict and famine:

Somalia Speaks is a collaboration between Souktel, a Palestinian-based organization providing SMS messaging services, Ushahidi, Al Jazeera, Crowdflower, and the African Diaspora Institute. “We wanted to find out the perspective of normal Somali citizens to tell us how the crisis has affected them and the Somali diaspora,” Al Jazeera's Soud Hyder said in an interview.

[…]

The goal of Somalia Speaks is to aggregate unheard voices from inside the region as well as from the Somalia diaspora by asking via text message: How has the Somalia Conflict affected your life? Responses are translated into English and plotted on a map. Since the launch, approximately 3,000 SMS messages have been received.

[…]

For Al Jazeera, Somalia Speaks is also a chance to test innovative mobile approaches to citizen media and news gathering.

In October 2010, MobileActive also profiled a mobile-based project implemented by Refugees United in Uganda with the support of Ericsson, UNHCR and the Omidyar Network, noting that one blog called it “the social network that is more important than Facebook.”

The Technology Issue by Forced Migration Review can be read online here.

Africa: Recapping Mighty African's 2011

Ndesanjo Macha — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 18:00:56 +0000

Mighty Africa blogs about his highlights and lowlights in 2011: “After 10 years in the USA, I returned home to Ghana. I abandoned my dream of going home with the US' money, the lure of creating impact in Ghana was too large. And I could make money doing it. The time had come.”

Kenya: When History Caught Up With Kenyan Lawyer

Ndesanjo Macha — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 17:20:13 +0000

John Kamau says that history has caught up with Nancy Baraza, the Kenyan lawyer who wants to be deputy chief justice: “History caught up with Nancy Baraza this week. It will soon catch up with many others aspiring for high office.”

Africa: Startups in Africa 2011 and Beyond

Ndesanjo Macha — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:50:11 +0000

Erik believes that 2011 was a great year for startups in Africa: “The past few years have been about building an infrastructure that improves the chances of the technology startups in Africa to succeed. Seeing this buildout in action in 2011 was exciting, but it should be recognized for what it really was: a setup for 2012 and beyond.”

Africa: A Mashable Anthology of African Modernity

Ndesanjo Macha — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:41:18 +0000

Bunmi Oloruntoba and Emmanuel Iduma come up with 3bute: “3bute [pronounced: tribute] is an online anthology devoted to the question of African modernity. Along that theme, we look on the web for what writers–especially African bloggers–have written and we recycle/ adapt selected writing into 3 pages of narrative art.”

Africa: 12 Predictions for Africa’s Tech Scene in 2012

Ndesanjo Macha — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 17:02:06 +0000

Read Mbwana Ally's 12 predictions for Africa's tech scene in 2012: “New models of mobile money will be explored that are less dependent on mobile operators, such asPagatech in Nigeria, but their growth will be slow given the lack of a strong agent network to begin with.”

Kenya: Nigerian Blogger's Impression of Nairobi

Ndesanjo Macha — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 16:21:35 +0000

Nigerian blogger, Nwachukwu, blogs about his visit to Nairobi: “Oyi ooo! Nairobi welcomed me with a chilly breeze. I have never felt this cold before, to think that this is Africa…These guys are more adapted to the British – our common colonial masters. Most people bear their Christian ‘English’ names. Many cannot pronounce Nwachukwu!”

Kenya: First World Problems in a Third World Country

Ndesanjo Macha — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 16:14:51 +0000

Bankelele looks at first world problems in a third world country: “Ory (@kenyanpundit) reigned some of us with a recent comment that people are complaining on twitter about a lack of parking at the Junction Mall in Nairobi, while there are people near there who don't have enough food to eat.”

Video Highlights: Identity, Refugees, Conflict and Open Technology

Juliana Rincón Parra — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 03:33:09 +0000

This section aims to showcase interesting and recent posts in Global Voices that show the many ways in which videos are helping people tell stories all around the world. You can follow the activity by regions in our YouTube channel or by clicking on the regional header links.

East Asia

For our Special Coverage page on Languages and the Internet comes an article about the different languages of East Timor. This next short film shows us the importance of receiving education in the mother tongue and the innovative Education Policy for Multilingual Education that East Timor is adopting.

Sub-Saharan Africa

In the post ‘Mali, Niger: Tuareg Voices Barely Heard Over the Sounds of War ‘, a video amplifies the voices of the Tuareg:

In Kidal, a town in north-eastern Mali, an unofficial number of Tuareg people marched to claim the autonomy of the Azawad region on November 1.

In ‘Kenya: Life in Dadaab, the World's Largest Refugee Camp‘ we look through the eyes of different aid organizations the complexities of life in Dadaab, a refugee camp receiving more than 1,400 people every day:

Central Asia and Caucasus

In Armenia and Azerbaijan, video is being used to improve understanding of the complex issues dividing the people of both nations. We linked to this insightful blog post on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict as seen through YouTube videos. It included this next video, which shows an interesting experiment on both sides of the border. In the video, a taxi with a camera records passengers reactions to the taxi driver's musical selection: he plays Azeri music in Armenia and Armenian music in Azerbaijan. The passenger's comments have been captioned in English.

You can visit our Special Coverage page on Caucasus Conflict Voices to learn more about the region's situation. To read more about the role of video in the conflict, visit ‘Armenia-Azerbaijan Dialogue Through Film‘ and its second part, ‘More Armenia-Azerbaijan Dialogue Through Film‘ will provide extra information.

Latin America

Global Voices Author and Lingua Editor in Spanish Juan Arellano has been interviewing different Latin American experts. In this one he spoke with Santiago Hoerth of the Codigo Sur project about open technology and Open Software:

In another interview, he spoke with attorney and Creative Commons regional representative Carolina Botero and asked her to give her opinion on piracy.

Africa: Online Space for African Languages and Poetry

Ndesanjo Macha — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:28:05 +0000

Maneno Matamu is a platform for African poets/writers to showcase their work in the rich and beautiful languages this continent is blessed with. It is a collective breath expressing our linguistic peculiarities, discoveries and oddities.

Global Voices Podcast: Technology that Empowers!

Jamillah Knowles — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 19:24:59 +0000

Hello world!

In this edition of the Global Voices podcast you can hear how women in Egypt are using technology to fight harassment, and what our Global Voices authors and editors got up to at the Mozilla Festival in London.

We also mark World Aids Day by speaking to HIV/AIDS activists in Kenya and Egypt about the special work they do.

Technology to empower women

First we take a look at harassment of women in the streets of Egypt. Engy Ghozlan in Cairo is a young woman who took matters in her own hands to fight social acceptance of sexual harassment by using mapping technology and the voices of women who speak up about what happens to them on the street. The result is Harassmap. Global Voices author, Maria Grabowski Kjær spoke to Engy about her work in support of women's safety and comfort in public.

World Aids Day

December 1st is World Aids Day. A time to think about the many people who living with HIV or AIDS and consider what can be done to support them and their carers. I had a chat with a two people working hard to improve conditions and raise awareness.

Ahmed Awadalla is in Egypt. He has worked with Cairo Family Planning and Development Association and is now with the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights. He talks about stigma and how the current uprising in Egypt is actually hindering support for communities at risk.

Leah Okeyoh is a community activist, blogger, author, and World Pulse correspondent. She is co-founder of two women's organizations, Jacolo Rural Women Response to HIV/AIDS, and Positive Action for Change (PACHO). She is also a participant in the “Blogging Positively” project of Rising Voices. We talked to her about the Kenyan health care system and her hopes for the future.

You too can be involved with Blogging Positively if you're interested in citizen media related to HIV/AIDS. If you're on Twitter for World Aids Day, use the hashtag #BlogPos so we can find you.

Global Voices out and about

Mozilla Festival Science Fair by Mozilla in Europe on Flickr (CC-BY-2.0)

London was host to the Mozilla Festival on “media, freedom, and the web” in November. Global Voices was represented by an awesome team at the Science Fair. With so much GV-goodness in one place, I had to ask them what they were up to.

Emma Brewin is our Deputy Editor of citizen media organisation. Marta Cooper is an author who is also on the Board of Global Voices. Paula Goes is our Multilingual editor who was showing a colleague around the event via a live video connection. Amira is possibly the youngest interviewer so far on the Global Voices podcast at 10 years old. She interviewed our Iraq author Salam Adil.

Emma Brewin, Marta Cooper, Salam Adil, and Paula Goes

Well, that’s all we can squeeze into this edition of the Global Voices Podcast. Thank you all for listening and thanks to all of our contributors and interviewees. We’ll be back next month but you can always drop by on any of our social media spaces like Twitter or Facebook and say hi!

Music credits

In the podcast you can hear lots of lovely Creative Commons music. If you want to find out more about these artists here are the links. Thanks to Orb Gettarr for the atmospheric Return of the Atlanteans Lemurian Candidate, to Mark Cotton for his Spiritualized Homage, to Superbus feat. NS for Fujjad! Most of the music was found via OpSound.Org, The Free Music Archive or direct from the artists. Thanks also to all of the wonderful voice over performances and clips that help to glue the podcast together.