Where our votes went to

Over one thousand people killed as a consequence of our vote
Hundreds of thousands turned into IDPs due to voting
Tens of thousands still in camps because we voted.

Kenyan Members of Parliament are some of the highest paid cronies in the world because we allow them to be. WE PAY THEIR SALARIES.

And everything goes back to normal? It can't end here. We need 10,000 signatures demanding they do something human for a change and reduce their salaries and give some of their own land to the people in this country who really need it.
But that is not enough either: 10,000 signatures need 10,000 people marching to Parliament...

Click HERE to sign the petition if you think you have been cheated.

From Gathara's world...

Click HERE to visit Gathara's blog.

4613 Kenyans say you are greedy!!

Yes Mr. President and fellow cronies posing as leaders. There are over 4000 Kenyans across the world and more and more joining everyday with one simple message to you:

YOU ARE SHAMELESS!

Kenyans online have joined hands on Facebook:

"How sad and frustrating is it to find that our MP's earn the highest salary compared to all the other countries in the world. While 20 million Kenyans are in abject poverty; living on less than $ 1.00 a day.

As Kenyans we need to stand for our rights to live and prosper in our country.

Therefore please join us to bring change in our country by reducing our MP's salaries and privileges, so as to improve the life of the mwananchi.

OUR GOAL IS TO UNITE AND GET HALF A MILLION KENYANS IN THIS GROUP.....can we do it?....lets try"

And here is the proof:

This group started on June 5th 2008

06/05/2008- 33 members
06/06/2008- 91 members
06/07/2008- 117 members
06/08/2008- 131 members
06/09/2008-150 members
06/10/2008-200 members
06/11/2008-233 members
06/12/2008-255 members
06/16/2008-370 members
06/17/2008-458 members
06/18/2008-495 members
06/19/2008-550 members
06/20/2008-630 members
06/21/2008-668 members
06/22/2008-720 members
06/23/2008-891 members
06/24/2008-1174 members
06/25/2008-1365 members
06/26/2008-1545 members
06/27/2008-1741 members
06/28/2008-1904 members
06/29/2008- 2000 members
06/30/2008- 2230 members
07/02/2008- 2671 members
07/03/2008- 2857 members


ok i got tired......wow! we are at 4000 + members

lakini

Bado mambo!"

And there are many more out there that can sign and will sign.

click HERE to join the Facebook campaign

click HERE to sign a similar petition online.

Don't you get it Mr. President and company (whichever party you are in is obviously irrelevant because you all sit smug in your 4wd or asleep in parliament while your people starve), you are all guilty.

HOW DO YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT?

No food? Eat my stick!

From Bunge La Mwananchi:

"It is common knowledge that a majority of the urban poor cannot afford basic food for their children. It is in this regard that Bunge La Mwananchi recently organized a public procession to make our voice heard on a matter of public interest. However, ever since Bunge La Mwananchi organized the food protest, the Kenya police continue to make it very difficult for Bunge La Mwananchi members to meet at Jeevanjee Gardens, Nairobi.

We cannot help but wonder: Is it criminal in our country to remind people something they already know? Is our police force justified in harassing Kenyans who are just coming together in a park to cry together over their woes? Why are the police who swore to protect us violating our individual, human and constitutional rights every time they spot us or hear we are at Jeevanjee Gardens?

In a country ridden with crime, in a country where there is one policeman for every 400 people, why is the government wasting 2 policemen everyday to make sure our members do not enter Jeevanjee Gardens; forgetting that it is a park for all Kenyans and not a police post?

Bunge La Mwananchi are law abiding citizens and whatever we do is well within our constitutional rights. We therefore request human rights conscious people to join us in demanding the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of police from Jevanjee Gardens. Send the following short message to your Member of Parliament: “protect our right to organize, demand ministerial statement from Minister for Security on why Bunge la Mwananchi cannot meet at Jeevanjee?”

Ntimama: We killed 600 people here reports NTV

Commentary on this available on Gathara's World
Download the clip on MarsGroup Kenya

Is the pen mightier than the machete?

Canadian Journalist and Travel Writer (and more importantly friend!), Arno Kopecky recently wrote about how Kenya's writing community responded to the December elections beyond the production of narratives...

"Is the pen mightier than the panga? This was the question confronting Kenya’s literary establishment in the opening days of 2008, as war spread throughout Kenya’s urban centers and across the fertile Rift Valley in the nation’s heartland. As belligerent armies of unemployed youth paraded before news cameras armed with the one weapon all Kenyans have access to, pangas (machetes) once again became the symbol for death and destruction in Africa. Spoken words, it seemed, coming from the podiums of politicians of every stripe, were what helped ignite this chaos in the first place; was it possible that written words from a more thoughtful source might help reverse the spread of violence? Or barring that, could it at least make sense of the chaos and thereby ensure that when peace returned, it stayed?"

Click HERE to read the full article originally published on Pambazuka news.

Let's beat their rights out of them!

For more stories on the pathetic police state that we are regressing to visit: Bunge La Mwananchi.

Work with IDPs continues in Kisumu

RELEASE OUR CIVIL SOCIETY COLLEAGUES

From Mwalimu Mati
Mars Group Kenya

To the Commissioner of Police and the Government of Kenya:

"We demand the unconditional release of our patriotic colleagues in the civil society who were brutally manhandled and arrested this morning as they exercised their constitutional rights to demand the resignation of Amos Kimunya as Finance Minister.

Their right to freedom of peaceable assembly was brutally violated by members of the Kenya Police. We demand their unconditional release for they have committed no crime. The Police officers who directed the assault on Ann Njogu and her colleagues must be subjected to appropriate discipline by the Commissioner of Police.

Kenya is not a Police State and Kenyans will not surrender their constitutional freedoms or their right to complain against wrongdoing, or to speak against grand corruption and impunity.

The arrested members of the civil society must be released. In any event the man they were protesting against, former Finance Minister Amos Kimunya has resigned his office and stepped aside to facilitate investigations into the subject matter of the protest of civil society.

In the spirit of a transparent enquiry into the role played by numerous public officers and institutions in the grand corruption saga that is the Grand Regency Hotel 'handover' and sale, it is morally and legally right that no one should be punished for speaking out for the Kenyan people in their time of need."


BREAKING NEWS BELOW FROM BUNGE LA MWANANCHI:

The Bunge La Mwananchi members arrested earlier today in demonstrations that finally caused Kimunya to cave in and resign from the finance docket, have been brutally beaten by the police officers that arrested them. The group of activists were beaten at the Gigiri police station and have sustained grave injuries. Mr George Nyongesa, Bunge La Mwananchi's leader, has had his arm possibly fractured at the elbow. Another activist has been hit by a baton in the temple and is unable to walk or talk. Several other members sport equally serious injuries. However, the OCS, Deputy OCS, OCPD at the Gigiri police post have all gone into hiding and the police officers manning the Gigiri police station have refused to enter the activists' complaints of injuries, stolen belongings, nor any charges in the occurrence book. Despite the injuries, the Gigiri police as well as the Central police have refused to permit the activists to receive medical attention. The DCIO at Gigiri indicated that the matter was being handled by central police while the central police equally shifted the buck to the Gigiri police. Those arrested have been taken to the Kibera law courts. It is unclear what charges will be preferred against them.

Ladies In Action Update

It's been a while since we posted about the post-election crises activities that this blog was set up as a response to. You will recall that we raised a total of £9,168 in just under a month mostly through the amazing network of friends that we have around the world.
As you also know, Ladies In Action is essentially made up of Mr. and Mrs. Pabari and Ren and the goodwill of volunteers like themselves. Since things have calmed down, they have been trying to get back to the core activities that Ladies In Action was set up for which were put on hold due to the events in January.
However, there are still funds (£3,712) remaining from the friends of Sukuma Kenya appeal and unfortunately, there are still a number of Internally Displaced People needing assistance within the Kisumu environs. According to Red Cross Kenya:








(Source: OCHA Kenya)

Ladies In Action are assisting in groups of ten by giving out business packages containing Omena local sardines which make up part of the staple diet); Paraffin, Flour and oil for making chapatis.

For more information on responses to the election violence around Kenya, click HERE

UN Hypocrisy: Kick the CO2 Habit!

The Environment News and Information Blog, Fire Earth were also quick to point out the UN hypocrisies:

"How many billions of air miles do you and your staff at the UN [and all UN-affiliated organizations] fly each year? Pray tell us!"

Click HERE to read the rest of this post...