Preventing outbreaks of violence in Kenya
The Kenyan presidential and parliamentary elections were held on 4 March 2013.These were the first polls since December 2007, when revelations of voting irregularities triggered waves of inter-ethnic violence, resulting in 1,300 deaths and the displacement of half a million people. This year's elections were held in relative peace to those of 2007, but the root causes of that conflict are still present in Kenya.
We have been conducting research into people's perceptions of security and attitudes before and after the elections. Our research finds that many Kenyans feel that the root causes of the political violence that erupted in 2007 have still not been addressed. Saferworld's project aims to address these root causes, ensuring that the conflict and insecurity that arose from them is not repeated.
We are supporting community-based organisations, local authorities and the media to carry out community-centred peacebuilding activities, designed to prevent and respond to outbreaks of violence. We're working in six potential hotspots to build resilience to conflict through activities such as dialogue forums and youth exchange visits.
We are helping committees to advocate for greater awareness of the triggers of violence with security providers, training journalists and correspondants to report in a way that is sensitive to potential conflict, and working in and amongst communities to enhance mutual respect, trust and cooperation.
Key partners for this work include the police, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, the Uwiano Platform for Peace which includes the National Steering Committee on Peace Building and Conflict Management and the National Cohesion and Integration Commission.
Here's how your donation could help:
- £2 helps us to send community-based organisations to peacebuilding coordination forums where they plan ways of working together to prevent violence
- £5 helps us to provide local media editors, journalists and correspondants with training workshops and consultations on reporting in a way that is sensitive to conflict
- £10 helps us to hold regular community radio talk shows, allowing community members to share their views and concerns over security in their areas
Help us to create a peaceful environment for Kenya in 2013 and beyond:
