Maryknoll Sisters witnessing to Interculturality and Healing in East Africa

Charter for Compassion

2009-11-12T12:59:00.000+03:00

We join with many people around the world today in the launching of the Charter for Compassion, an initiative begun by Karen Armstrong and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. With a council of 18 members of diverse faiths and diverse cultures, Karen Armstrong has created a document to motivate us to put compassion into our faith actions, our prayers, and our interactions with others. We will gather at the Franciscan Family Center with other religious men and women this afternoon, November 12, 2009, at 3:30pm, in Nairobi, Kenya to mark this occasion.

Our prayer of compassion for the world will include what we universally accept as the golden rule, as found in the scriptures of various religions:
Christianity: “So always treat others as you would like them to treat you; this is the Law and the Prophets.” Mt 7:12
Islam: “No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself.” Sunnah
Taoism: “Regard your neighbor’s gain as our own gain and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss.” T’ai shang Kan Ying P’ien
Confucianism: “Is there one maxim which ought to be acted on throughout one’s whole life? Surely it is the maxim of loving kindness: do not unto others what you would not have them do unto you.” Analects 15,23
Buddhism: “Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful” Urdana-Varga 5,18
Hinduism: “This is the sum of duty: do naught unto others which would cause you pain if done to you” Mahabharata 5,1517
Judaism: “What is hateful to you, do not to your fellowman. That is the entire law; all the rest is commentary.” Talmud, Shabbat 31a
Zoroastrianism: “That nature alone is good which refrains from doing unto another whatsoever is not good for itself.” Dadistan-i-dinik 94,5

Visit the website at www.charterforcompassion.org. There you will be invited to Learn, Share and Act for compassion.

Life, Language, and Communication

2009-06-09T17:36:00.001+03:00

As missioners, language is a keystone to understanding the people we live among and work with in our assigned mission areas. The culture and world views of a people can often be interpreted or enhanced through the linguistic forms they use. So, logically, as a missioner prepares for a new assignment, language study is usually a top priority. When the Peacebuilding Team was assigned to Kenya in 2006, we made the decision to begin our ministry first, and study Kiswahili as time and funds permitted, to give us an opportunity to weigh the needs of the people and which language was going to be most useful to us in East Africa. One of our reasons was the unique nature of our program, to work across a larger geographical area which would not necessarily share a common language. We opted to begin our work using English, and for the most part that has served us in our work in Kenya. Other than English, the language most commonly shared in East Africa is Kiswahili, yet its usage is varied in many regions, leading to the adage, “Kiswahili was born in Tanzania, grew up in Kenya, and died in Uganda,” Having Sia, a native speaker from Tanzania, on our team highlights the differences of its use in other countries as we encounter the people. Giang and I began studying Kiswahili sporadically after we arrived in Kenya with a private tutor. The major challenge of learning Kiswahili here in Nairobi is that so many Kenyans preferred to speak English with us because we are foreigners, or they are more fluent in English or their own tribal language than in Kiswahili. For that reason, Giang recently spent a month in Tanzania to purposely study and practice Kiswahili, and returned to us with a good grasp of the language.

Meanwhile I reflected further on my thoughts on language and shared experience. In my lifetime I have studied four languages other than my mother tongue, English. I studied Arabic as an academic course in college, and recognized then that my proficiency in the course was due to my sensitive ear. Later, as a volunteer in a Brooklyn inner-city parish, I studied Spanish. As I lived and worked in a predominantly Spanish speaking neighborhood, I became quite fluent in understanding the people as they spoke, but less able to respond in my own words in their language. I sat in an interview with a colleague in the parish and a mother seeking First Communion for her child. The woman expressed her plea, speaking Spanish and exuding the emotions behind her request. My colleague repeatedly told her that she had missed the deadline and First Communion would not be possible for her child. I sat listening intently to the woman and listening with my heart. She exclaimed to my colleague, “She understands me, why can’t you?!” My colleague retorted, “She doesn’t speak Spanish, how can she understand you?” It is true, I probably would have overlooked the administrations and allowed her child to receive First Communion, because we connected on a different level of understanding.

During my first mission assignment with Maryknoll, I lived in East Timor. The language I chose to study there was Tetum. At the time, it was spoken by about 80% of the Timorese people, had about 30,000 words to the vocabulary, and was forbidden in school and business by the Indonesian government that was in place when I arrived. Timor won their independence shortly after I arrived, and language became a challenge among many in rebuilding their country. Most of the educated adults spoke Indonesian, most of the farmers and villagers spoke Tetum or yet another mother tongue, the freedom fighters and resistance leaders now leading the country spoke Portuguese, and the United Nations personnel in East Timor used English. At any coordinating meeting in the village for development, five languages could be used, in order to include everyone’s voice in the discussion. I found that as I learned to speak and understand Tetum, I was welcomed more warmly by the Timorese people, who were surrounded by foreign aid workers and UN people who had no intention of learning their language. It was the teachers in the high school where I was assigned as director that taught me the finer nuances of their language and helped me speak fluently, because they needed me to understand them and their interactions among them, so that I could be an effective leader for them. It was the deeper connection of the people wanting me to understand them and my wanting to be welcomed that enhanced my understanding of their language. Even today, on the other side of the world, sometimes I still think in Tetum.

So I wasn’t surprised a few weeks ago when I attended a forum of women on Transitional Justice, and had a deep understanding of what was being shared, whether the women used English or Kiswahili. Kenya was rocked by post election violence in January 2008, which was symptomatic of a cycle of violence and injustice that has affected this country since before their independence in1963. With the National Accord signed in February, 2008, healing, reconciliation, and reformation has become the agenda, being slowly implemented by the government and civil society. The women at this forum were there to share what they had experienced during the violence and what they now felt needed to be done to prevent the violence from happening again. I am far from being able to understand much Kiswahili as it is spoken, but that day I understood as the woman told in Kiswahili of her experience of being dragged off the street and burned by an angry mob, although she herself did not claim any political affiliation. At a deeper level, I also understood she had found healing. From her heart, I heard the voice of a survivor, and one who wants to reach out to others to create unity instead of division.

I have shared life with the people here in Kenya, and we have shared experience. This leads to a deeper level of understanding beyond words, beyond language. Language is important and will enhance this deeper connection. But today, I am not sure there is an ordered priority of learning language or experiencing life together that leads us to connect with other people. I think both are valuable so I will pursue my own purposeful time of study and practice of Kiswahili, but I don’t feel that I have lost anything without it in the years I have lived here in Kenya so far.

PEACE IS POSSIBLE IF WE ALL CULTIVATE IT

2009-05-28T10:38:00.000+03:00

The people of Kenya suffered greatly in 2008, following the post election violence that broke out in late December 2007 and January 2008. Many communities were broken apart and are still in need of deep healing. Yet, there were also communities that held together and much can be learned from their response to the situation. Last April Giang and I (Sia) met with one such community in Kitale. We had worked with this group in November 2007 on strategies for peacebuilding after which they made plans of action on how they would implement their learnings in their communities.

So when violence broke out in many parts of the country, the leaders in this community called for meetings and talked to people about the importance of keeping peace. They used what they had learned in our workshop, their faith, as well as their natural skills of living together in harmony.

We visited St. Michael Small Christian Community and joined them in prayers. I was amazed as well as enriched with the way they shared the word of God. The scripture passage was from the gospel passage according to John 15:9-11, Jesus’ commandment to us to love one another, as he has loved us. The sharing on this gospel passage was very alive and connected to their daily life. They shared the joy of keeping God’s command to love one another regardless of one’s status in the community. One person said “Why burn someone else’s house when you know this person needs a place to live like you” There is a need to recognize that we all deserve to live together despite our differences. Many of them shared their reflections on the love of each other.

The catechist then invited the Christians to share with us how they were affected by the post-election violence. Some of them shared that even though there was no direct violence in their community, they were affected so much by the violence which was going on in other parts of the country. The freedom of moving from one place to another was restricted because it was not safe to travel. There was a fuel shortage because the lorries could not travel from Mombasa to Kitale due to insecurity on the roads. The price of many things went up in their local shops because there were no supplies coming in. Even the most reliable way of communication which was through cell phones became a problem because the phone cards became less available. They were unable to communicate with their relatives and friends who were in areas affected by the violence. Not being able to communicate frustrated some of them and they felt helpless in terms of how to reach their relatives and rescue them.

Others shared with us how they kept peace in their community. One way was through their faith, they prayed for peace and unity all the time. They also held meetings and talked about their value of respecting each other and their property. They reminded each other that differing in their political affiliations does not make them fight. They recognized that although they support a PNU (Party of the National Unity) or ODM (Orange Democratic Movement), they are still human, they are still Christians and they need each other in their community. They passed this message around “let us be united and not fight each other.”

The chiefs, elders and church leaders as well as the entire community cooperated to ensure peace was kept in their communities. They all held meetings in their respective places and preached peace and strategize how to continue living peacefully with one another. In the church, the catechists learned from the people what was happening in their places, asking questions like “are they all okay with their neighbors?” They went house to house to preach peace and they invited the youth in the parish to do this work also. This strategy worked well because the youth were occupied and responsible in worthy efforts. They were not idle, left to be used by others to instigate violence.

In this community, the assistant chief is one of the youth. He warned his fellow youth not to be involved in any violence even if someone gave them money. The chiefs introduced curfew in their community; nobody was allowed to be out in the streets from 7pm to 7am. No youth were allowed to leave their houses to spend the night in the nearby guest house. Severe punishment would be given to anyone found on the streets after 7pm. When the parents heard of the curfew and the consequences of not following it, they were very concern for their sons. They cooperated with the chiefs and the elders to ensure that their sons were home before 7pm. The youth listened to the chief attentively and believed them because the assistant chief was one of the youth. They said it was easy to listen to one of them and believe what he was saying.

Most of the people in this community are farmers and they were busy preparing their field for planting. People were not idle in the streets waiting to be used by some people who had money to instigate violence.

All these factors helped to keep peace in their community. They all commented on good leadership as well as cooperation of each community member to live in a peaceful community. They also kept solidarity in prayer with other communities in Kenya which were experiencing the violence.

I was so inspired and energized by listening to these Christians from St. Michael Community, sharing their strategies for keeping peace in their area. This reminded me of the four principles of peace building by Louise Diamond: Community, Witness, Cooperation and Nonviolence. Listening to their stories, I could clearly see how they applied all these four principles naturally to keeping peace in their community. I wish their lessons could be shared with the people of other parts of Kenya so that peace might prevail in all of Kenya.

Keeping the Conversation Going

2009-03-10T21:25:00.001+03:00

In late January, we met with some people who had participated in our Conversations for Social Change program last year. This group has chosen to continue meeting as a group every two months, to support one another and share what they have done and seen in their communities.

It has been a year since the post election violence ripped the heart of this country. There is calm but the wounds are still open and as one person shared there has been “pain on pain on pain.” The Grand Coalition government has been tested over and again, scandals have erupted and been squashed, and many promises made to the people of Kenya are still unmet. Rising food prices and food shortages have many Kenyans going hungry. If the wounds, the pain, and the hunger are not addressed, the situation is a time bomb waiting to go off.

Reconciliation has been talked about, called for, and brushed aside. Healing comes slowly without a sense of forgiveness. Who is willing to step up and say “I am sorry.” Surely not the politicians. Our church leaders? Our friends are asking themselves, “Can we step into the gap to apologize” to those who are still struggling, those who are still displaced, those who are still living with the emotional pain. The apology will not feed someone, or provide building material, but it stretches across a gap that may re-humanize a person, help them find the inner strength to move forward. This country needs justice, but as we all wait for that to happen, how can we help each other move forward?

Many new ideas and projects have sprung up from this group. Three of the men have met to consider working with matatu drivers and their conductors. Matatus are privately operated mini vans used as public transportation. They can be a necessary evil to many of the working class in Kenya who rely on them to get to and from work. Matatus are the cheapest form of public transportation and they are the only public transportation available to many areas in and around Nairobi. But they are subject to control by gangs that force drivers to pay them for attracting customers, for clearing the road, or for protection. The passengers are also at risk of being robbed or injured by gang members posing as fellow passengers.

James, Tom, and Efraim have started talking with some of the drivers and conductors to reach out to their peers and gather them for conversations. If they can come together and share their challenges and ideas to improve the situation, they may be very influential in shifting the social environment. Their own behavior, language and interactions with their passengers help shape the mood and character of society. We have heard that they are interested and want to participate in Conversations for Social Change. We need now only to look for the financial means to support the program.

We are so encouraged by these friends of ours that we are now making Conversations for Social Change our primary program. We have started four new groups this year, and are looking to fund programs for the Matatu drivers and possibly a program with church leaders.

Your prayers and support always encourage us in this work. Please stay in touch and send suggestions or ideas about what you have read.

WE ARE BACK!

2009-02-05T14:06:00.001+03:00

We have been away from our blog for too long! We are back and hope to stay connected much more often. This posting tells you what we have been up to and you can see we were pretty busy last year.

The past year has shaped the direction for us in Kenya. As you might know, the year 2008 began in violence and things were tense for almost two months. The violence was in response to the disputed election results that took place on December 27, 2007. I and my sisters, Giang and Sia, were never in any direct danger, as foreigners, because the fighting was between Kenyan factions. We stayed safely out of the way, especially because Sia had a reasonable fear of being mistaken for a member of one of the ethnic groups before people might realize she is Tanzanian. But the situation calmed down with international help by the end of February. Because many people were left traumatized and unsettled by the violence, we were left with lots of work to do.

This year we have done eight workshops, either 2, 3, or 4 days long, on the topics of Conflict Transformation, Trauma Awareness and Healing, Intercultural Living Skills, and Peacebuilding. The participants have been from all walks of life and from many different ethnic groups. We particularly liked working with novices and postulants from four religious congregations in Kisumu, a city in the western part of Kenya. The most challenging group, however, were the community leaders we gathered from five slum areas around Nairobi. These were the communities most affected by the violence in January. We chose 30 people from 7 different ethnic groups, from these five neighborhoods. They hadn’t met each other, but in the course of three workshops, they learned to work together and value each others’ contributions. We look forward to working with them in their communities in the coming year.

Our most exciting project was called Conversations for Social Change. We had planned this project over a year ago, and were scheduled to begin it in January 2008. Believing in the words of Margaret Mead, that “a small group of thoughtful people could change the world,” we gathered 21 people into 3 small groups for conversations about social change. We also believe that social change begins with personal transformation, so the participants were invited to focus on their own feelings, actions, and reflections. Each group had six, seven, or eight participants, with at least four different ethnic groups represented in each group. Again, the post election violence had made the atmosphere very tense, but we began this project in January anyway. The participants not only found it an enriching program, but they said it was a healing process for them as well. We are planning to do another series of conversations this year, inviting old participants to facilitate for new participants.

For most of this year we were a community of four instead of three. Anastasia Lee joined us in April after studying Kiswahili in Tanzania for four months. She was a welcome addition and contributed many good insights and lots or creativity to our team. After some unfortunate incidents on the streets of Nairobi, and personal discernment, Anastasia decided this was not the best mission for her, so she is returning to our center in New York, to continue her mission discernment.

Sia, Giang, and I joined 165 of our Maryknoll sisters in New York this past October for our Congregational General Assembly. This meeting takes place every six years, to set directions for the future and elect our leadership team. On the Feast of Epiphany, January 4th, the new leadership team will be inaugurated, just sixteen days before Barack Obama. The outgoing leadership team has been so supportive of our new project, they will be missed, but we are looking forward to working with the new team as well.

Our Conversations for Social Change II is about to begin this month. We will have four groups facilitated by one Maryknoll Sister and one participant from the first series. We are also looking forward to working with Anup Karia, a process worker from England (originally from Kenya), to create more opportunities for conversations and facilitation trainings.

There is Hope

2008-01-22T20:22:00.000+03:00

As we begin the third week of 2008, the situation in Kenya remains unstable and the future is unforeseeable. The death toll continues to rise, and new areas of conflict are igniting around the country. The international community reverberates with calls for a political resolution as the political leaders here in Kenya stand firm in their positions, each mouthing that they are ready to talk. But far from the circles of power, in the local communities, it is the common citizen that is suffering.

Theories and commentaries abound. The most comprehensive sounds like this from Kariithi A. Ngeera, “Hidden under the thin veil [of a political feud] is an explosive concoction of land grievances, economic inequalities, raw hunger for power, political thuggery, historical ethnic suspicions and hatred, and interference by foreign powers.” (as quoted in the Daily Nation by the Watchman in his daily column “The Cutting Edge”)
One wonders where to begin to unravel the roots of this conflict, and yet one must be humble and courageous enough to begin with the situation as it is presented at hand.

The peace team began our response by volunteering at our local parish, Our Lady of Guadalupe, to accompany the trauma survivors. This parish is one of the largest in Nairobi. Seventy percent of the parishioners are urban poor that reside in the largest marginalized community called Kibera. This was disturbingly noticeable on the two Sundays following the December 27th poll, when the church was nearly empty during liturgies. From Epiphany Sunday, Jan 6th, the parish team called for volunteers and organized a response to the situation.

The police have barricaded Kibera, restricting access in and out of the area, and violence continues to erupt within. Twenty six social agents from the parish have been going into the neighborhood three times a week to visit those people effected by the violence, to assess the situation, and to give assistance where needed. To date they have registered nearly 600 families in need, and expect that number to reach 1,000 before the crisis is over. These people have lost loved ones, homes, belongings, or their small businesses. Toi Market, an outdoor retail market where many set up small shops to sell vegetables, fruit, used clothing, or small merchandise, was destroyed during the first week of violence. Many single mothers lost their small income business when this happened and are now left with nothing to support their children.

The emotional suffering and trauma are still secondary to getting basic needs met. People cannot address their emotional well being until their children are fed and they have a place to safely sleep. So our role now is to support those social agents who are encountering the survivors. As caregivers, they need to protect themselves as well from taking on the trauma they see or hear in others.

There are good stories that need to be lifted up as well. We visited a friend this past weekend, who lives in yet another marginalized neighborhood. She and her surrounding neighbors, mostly family, are of one tribe. Yet there are a few among them from the “other” tribe. A band of armed youth came one night looking for members of the “other” tribe, but the neighbors all protected one another, telling the youth to go. This has happened in many parts of the country, but the telling of it is rare. Some people have learned to live beyond the tribal divisions. There is hope and there is strength, and those are the people who will save their country.

The civil society as well is to be commended. They have organized themselves in many facets, and joined to call for peace and for justice. Citizens for Peace called for dialogue and mediation within days of Mwai Kibaki’s swearing in as president. The media organizations came together immediately with the plea “Save Our Beloved Country,” and have been printing and broadcasting messages of peace and calm since that day. The performance artists have banded together and organized relief campaigns and services. Even in the streets, the citizens and residents have responded by reaching out to help one another, yielding to another, smiling, each wanting to be that peace the country is missing.

We don’t see an end to the crisis in the near future. Each day we hope for good news, and for a shift in the political leaders’ positions. We will do our part as we can to work for justice and peace. And we ask that you continue to support us in our effort. Thanks for your prayers, support, and messages of encouragement.

Reflections on our contributions to ethnic diversity

2008-01-08T18:02:00.000+03:00

One evening, reflecting on the violence which has happened in the country following the disputed presidential general election, three of us, Giang, Teresa and I (Sia), sat together and had an informal conversation. Early that afternoon I had listened to a friend of ours speak live on Radio “Waumini”, a Catholic radio station here in Kenya (Waumini is the swahili word for believers) addressing the topic of Reconciliation and Healing of the nation. He said that “the conflict in Kenya is like a gas canister which has been left on for such a long time and it was waiting for just a spark to light it.” Reflecting on this statement in the light of the violence which broke out in the country after the announcement of the election results, we see clearly that the election in this situation acts as that spark. There must be some historical underlying issues for this conflict to exist. One of the issues we have seen and heard since we arrived here in August 2006 is the ethnic identity. As in other parts of Africa, there is a strong tribal identity in Kenya. This goes back even before the colonial era. The colonialists stressed tribal differences as a tactic of divide and rule. Some ethnic groups feel other groups are more favored than themselves in terms of social, political and economic opportunities. One example is the issue of land and settlements. Until last year, Kenya didn’t have a proper law regarding ownership of land. This has brought a lot of disputes and confusion in some parts of the country in terms of who has the title deed to this land and who has lived in this land for a long time. People have been living with this tension since they gained independence 44 years ago. Some of our Kenyan friends have acknowledged that there is tribalism here in Kenya. Others have denied that and said people live together peacefully as brothers and sisters, but that the politicians are the ones who fuel the tribalism for their own interests. The politicians take advantage of the ethnic difference to manipulate people of their own ethnic groups to vote for them. This has shown clearly in this past general election.

As outsiders, we listen to what our friends are telling us in terms of their social situations, but it is confusing when what we hear is different from what we see or experience. We have seen clearly that tribalism is present here and just underneath the surface. For instance, Burnt Forest is a town where there have been historical clashes between different tribes. News reports of current violence showed dead bodies and abandoned crops where others have moved in to harvest these fields. The people who have been chased out are Kikuyu people (the same tribe as Mwai Kibaki, the incumbent president). We passed by this town last year and heard about the history of this town from the parish priest. We have talked about coming back to work here where tribal differences have been a main factor in violent outbreaks.

When we started our work and community, we intentionally chose to live with diversity. We are now four women from four different tribes/countries, races. How are we called to be in this situation? How can our lives be shared in this situation? What can we learn from this situation so that we can be more committed to nonviolence of any kind, to value diversity, to share power among ourselves, to lift up one another’s gifts? We continue to work to do this within our small community of four people, four different tribes and races. We need to work on this aspect of our life more intentionally for ourselves and for our world. Maybe the lessons we learn from inside our home will be somehow used to help in situations such as this.

In light of our conversation, we felt we can offer our learnings to the Kenyan people in terms of living with diversity. The four of us from four different nationalities living and working together is a witness that it is possible to live together in peace in spite of our differences. We are beginning a new project, convening conversations for social change. We will reorganize our thoughts on the project to focus on ethnic identity, with a group of Kenyans from different ethnic groups. The idea is to provide a space where they can start talking about their feelings and experiences around the issue of ethnicity. Hopeful this will help deepening the understanding of the beliefs, norms and values of each group. At the end of the day they may see their differences clearly as well as their commonalities and they may choose how to live with diversity in harmony.

We've seen a different Nairobi

2008-01-05T17:05:00.000+03:00

Smoke blackened horizon, gun shots reverberating in the air and people running down the street in front of our home followed by riot police moving in formation were some of our experiences these past few days in Nairobi. In between these tense times are some surreal days of rushing out to buy food and other daily supplies. We were very fortunate that a car was donated to us last August since public transportation has been very limited in the city. We have fared quite well in contrast to most people of Nairobi who live in blockaded settlements, many have to rely on humanitarian aid. The number of internally displaced people has risen up over 100,000 as of January 4th.

The current situation is in sad contrast to the Nairobi we have seen prior to the election. We are used to the busyness of a city that is like many other major metropolitan cities around the world. Prior to the election, the atmosphere was charged with anticipation mixed with anxiety about the election. Friends and people we met on the street had a cautious yet hopeful approach to a violence-free election. Over dinner one night before the election, I asked a close friend and peace activist about the possibility of election violence. We were told with quiet conviction that Kenya has matured beyond those early years of a fledgling democratic country… that the violence of 80s and early 90s were unlikely to be repeated in Kenya. This seemed to be the cautious expectation of many others. No one we spoke to had any undue fear of excessive election violence breaking out in Kenya.

Perhaps this is why the events of the past few days have been so alarming and so sad. We were praying along with Kenyans for a peaceful election, but also that Kenya will lead the way in Africa for a successful democracy – where the people can truly determine their future through their active participation, their votes. Indeed the day of the election itself was applauded by most observers as an orderly and successful voting day. People turned up at the polling station at 3 AM in the morning to make sure they get to vote for their candidate. What happened?! The struggle for power by those in power continues to create havoc for the ordinary citizens and for the cause of democracy.

The freedom of movement that the people of Nairobi experienced before is now curtailed. People move cautiously out from their homes with ears and eyes in full alert for breaking news that would signal the need to quickly get back home. Today, I had a horrible toothache so we decided to go to see my dentist. I called ahead of time and was relieved when the office was opened. When I got there, the dentists in the office were gathered around a computer looking for the latest word on whether a political rally would happen or not. This is our reality – weighing the risk of going out with what needs to be done in our daily life.

In the midst of all this ambiguity, we still try to celebrate the arrival of Anastasia Lee, our newest team and community member. Needless to say our plans to welcome Anastasia to the sights and taste of Nairobi has been greatly curtailed. She will be going to language school soon. We hope by the time Anastasia comes back from language school in Tanzania we will be able to show her a lot more of Nairobi.

Pray for Peace in Kenya

2008-01-03T17:44:00.001+03:00

As we, the Maryknoll Sisters Peacebuilding Team, sit safely in our fourth floor apartment in Nairobi, Kenya rises to another day of yet unknown events. This is Thursday, Jan 3, Raila Odinga has called for millions to gather at Uhuru Park, to protest the claiming of victory by Mwai Kabaki in the Dec 27th presidential election. In the past week, over 300 people have died in the aftermath of election voting, disputed tallying, announcements, and the swearing in of the acclaimed winner.

Kisumu, the third largest city in Kenya, on the shores of Lake Victoria, has been in chaos since Mwai Kibaki was announced as the victor on Sunday. For five days, mobs have run amok, protesting, looting businesses, burning shops and homes, and the police have responded forcefully with bullets. The result is over 100 people dead, countless displaced, and a city, once thriving, now without water, food supplies, and fuel. When peace comes, they will have a long road of healing, rebuilding, and reconciliation ahead of them.

In Eldoret, over 50 people have died, some burned in a church where they had sought refuge. Again thousands are displaced by the violence and the burning of homes.

Here in Nairobi, the slums of Kibera, Mathare, Kawangare, and others, have been ravaged with fires set ablaze with the swearing in of Kibaki Sunday evening. We watched from our windows as smoke billowed into the sky from nearby Kibera. Monday afternoon, riot police pushed people back towards the slums, “shooting at people who were running away from people running away from the mob” where many had converged on a local grocery store, seeking food and supplies, as heard from a witness who had ventured out for a loaf of bread. Nearly 100 people have been killed in these neighborhoods.

Many Kenyans, Africans and other world citizens thought the days of election violence were in the past for this booming economy and stabilized nation. Corruption is what the people were speaking out against, and clearly voting against, as they voted out most of the cabinet members of Kibaki’s past government. There was fear of retaliation, fear of unrest, but no one could know how this would play out. December 27th was a day for the Kenyan to be proud, a peaceful, free voting day, marked with only a few incidents of violence and poll rigging. There are so many things that point to a fraudulent tallying process, an incumbent government using its power to claim victory although the results were not clear, then rushing the swearing in to make it legitimate.

We have been here in Kenya for over a year now, meeting with and working with many of the peacemakers seeking a better future for their country. We have heard and come face to face with the tribalism that lies just beneath the skin of many Kenyans. It is a sense of identity that defies the logic of doctorates, international business relations, and even desires for peacebuilding and reconciliation. But still we sense the effort to move beyond that entrenchment, seeking more unity.

Our hearts go out to our friends in Kisumu with whom we have worked with in the past year, a group of novices and postulants with their formators from five religious communities. They are safe, yet witnessing and absorbing the violence of the area, with deep concern for family members in other parts of Kenya. We were scheduled to be with them next week for a workshop on conflict analyses and intervention. If and when we are able to go, our work will be about healing and reconciliation.

With Nobel Laureate Desmond Tutu in town, we wait to see what the afternoon will bring. The people of Kenya want peace, but not without justice. It is not clear who can best fill the role of president and lead this country in efforts to achieve a just peace. We believe, along with 70% of registered Kenyan voters who spent long hours in voting queues on December 27th to exercise their right, that the democratic process, if credible and trustworthy, can serve the people of Kenya. We support and pray for al the people of Kenya, and want to accompany them in their quest for a peaceful, sustainable life. Join us in prayer that this situation may find some resolution, the violence may subside, and we can all do what we can to work towards justice.

We welcomed into this situation Anastasia Lee, who has joined as us the fourth member of our team. She will go to Tanzania shortly to study Kiswahili. We also are in communication frequently and gather when possible with our Maryknoll sisters Bernice Rigney and Katie Erisman, here in Nairobi, and Paula Kuntz in Kitale. Thank God we are all safe, but saddened by the situation of Kenya.

Lawyers, a Jew, Presbyterians, and a Social Worker

2007-07-30T22:08:00.000+03:00

Although I have never wanted to be a mediator, in all my walks of life, I have always found myself in situations that I needed to do some mediation. Even as a young lieutenant in the U.S. Army, I often mediated between soldiers that disagreed for one reason or another. Listening to each person involved, and then reflecting back to them what was said, often lead to much better resolution than the fist fight that might have ensued.

This past month the peacebuilding team was able to participate in six days of training on mediation skills. The training was sponsored by Family Mediation and Conciliation, a Nairobi based NGO, and the trainer was Michael Williams, a mediator for over 20 years from Ireland. Not only was it a good opportunity for the three of us to have common training together, but we met new people, and learned more about Kenya. And as mediation skills can be applied in many life situations, the training also deepened our well of resources for living in community and working with others.

But what made this experience most worth while was the community we created among the participants. Thirteen of us included the sponsors, trainer, and attendees. There were five lawyers – four Kenyans and one Irishman, a law student, also Kenyan, a Jewish arbitrator who has made his home in Kenya for 35 years, a Samburan tribesman who works with Christian Children’s Foundation, two Kenyan women from the Presbyterian Church of East Africa, and us, the “Catholic nuns.”

Creating our own scenarios for mediation practice led to familiar cases of land disputes, and tensions between cultural traditions and modern necessities. Pershaps it was the unique nature of our group that brought us to mediate a conversation between Sarah, wife of Abraham, and Ishmael, eldest born son of Abraham. Mediation draws on the openness of participants which is why our Jewish friend readily stepped up to role play the part of Ishmael. Several hours of listening and telling and bringing Isaac into the process ended in an empassioned plea from Sarah for Ishmael to come live among the descendants of Abraham, in co-existence and tolerance.

Kenya has not yet incorporated mediation as a legal option for settling disputes, but the process is underway. As a member of the committee to make it happen, Joy Mbaabu, Director of FAMEC, has committed her organization to training mediators for the future. When the judicial system is ready for mediators, she wants them to be available. So far, just over 30 people have participated in the training.

For the peacebuilding team, we have met new friends that will broaden our experience of Kenya, deepen our understanding of other religions, and expand our web of relationships.

Time for Peace

2007-04-09T20:21:00.000+03:00

We were out in Western Kenya recently giving a workshop on peacebuilding. We did an exercise created by John Paul Lederach’s based on Psalm 85:12 concerning truth, justice, mercy and peace. In this activity, I was struck by how readily people in this culture see the interconnectedness of these four concepts. One person said that these four concepts were like quadruplets, born at the same time. Another person said that peace was hated by society because people don’t want to put in the time for dialogue which can bring about a more sustainable peace. Yes time is an important ingredient to building peace with justice, truth and mercy. However, in a globalized market-driven world time is minimized. The less time it takes to do something, the more profit can be realized. I wonder how much of this has seeped into our unconsciousness, into every sector of life. Do we take the time to talk with our family, our community members, our co-workers to figure out things together? Do we give the time necessary for reflection on these conversations? Do we sit in the ambiguous moments and wait for things to settle? I have heard it said often that time is a gift we can give to each other. Now I see time not only as a gift of personal presence but of communal presence that can lead to a more peaceful society.

Giang

The edge of Kenya

2007-04-09T20:13:00.001+03:00

We were invited by an organization to participate in their civic education workshop in for marginalized women in a town about 300 km North of Nairobi. The ride out was a beautiful one. We pass through lush green mountains and rolling hills. At the end of the tarmac road, we reached the town of Isiolo. The tarmac road signifies a boundary between those who have and those who have not. Beyond this town, people live without much of the basic necessities – like water. One woman came with all her clothes because she could wash her clothes early each morning before the workshop began. Water shortage is a common problem for her family where they need to buy a 20 liters bucket for about 100 shillings. (Day laborers earn approximately 70 shillings per day.) This water has to be used by her family to cook, bathe, wash and clean. People living in the Northern Kenya often joke with people from other parts of Kenya by asking them “How is Kenya?” when they visit.
The women who attended this workshop are leaders in their communities. They want changes that would make life less harsh for themselves and their communities. This is a hard task because still women in these communities have to vote according to what their husbands dictate. They shared stories about corruption and tribalism that lead to elections of people who quickly abandon their constituents by relocating to nice homes in Nairobi. An encouraging note in the meeting was that some women in this group will run in the local elections. I hope that they will achieve their goals. Regardless of winning or losing in this year’s election, these women are opening the door a bit wider to allow other women to follow. They have my admiration.

Giang

AWARENESS OF OUR DIFFERENCES: 7th of March 2007

2007-03-07T14:17:00.001+03:00

While walking in Nairobi I was very much fascinated with different kinds of flowers. Each time I looked around there were so many flowers. They were in harmony with each other and added to the beauty of this place. This invited me to think of human diversity and the uniqueness of each one of us the way we are.

This week I participated in a three day workshop, which enhanced and awakened my understanding of the complexity of human nature, a thing to celebrate. The workshop reminded me of the packages of life history we carry around with us. Some of them we are aware of and most of them are in our unconsciousness. For me, this awareness makes it even more complex because I realize I still have a lot to learn about myself before I can even make an attempt to try to learn about another person. As I keep reflecting on this process, I wish that every person can have time and resources to learn about his/herself. This will make the interaction with one another smoother.

As God’s creatures we didn’t choose to be who we are. We found ourselves to be in the culture we were born and raised and this spoke a lot to me. We are all socialized in different ways according to the society we were born and raised. Now, in this era of globalization, we are even more confused because from the beginning in whatever society we were socialized we were not prepared to face the other. The meaning making system of each society is different. We are now a global community and together we are expecting to make meaning out of it without compromising ourselves.

The big blanket of each one’s meaning making system is our cultures. In this cultural package all of us carry values, assumptions, beliefs and myths. Sometimes it is difficult to identify some of the values which might be driving us to act in a certain way. When I am in my cultural context this is not a problem at all, because of the assumptions that people know what I mean. But when I am out of my own cultural context I constantly need to be aware of every word and every action. I might even need to define them because they might have different meaning to some one else who is not from my context (Chagga tribe in Tanzania). This is not an easy thing to do. In this workshop I learned that it is good to be aware of the values we have. This will help us to know why we behave in a certain way in different situations. It will also give us room to negotiate and make healthy choices for our global world.

For all of us who are looking for a culture of peace, it is very important we constantly try to learn more about ourselves and the packages we have inherited in our life history. We need not forget this proverb “you can not give what you don’t have”. This is crucial for each of us to make peace with ourselves first before we make an attempt of reaching out there. We can do this by re-visiting our values, concepts we use and the assumptions. Take full ownership of all the privileges we have in life and then make choices. We also need to be aware of our intent and impact on the rest of the world. If we are not aware of the privileges we have we will be part of the problem, because it is easier to abuse something which you are not aware of.

Having said this, going back to the scenery of flowers and their beauty, I see they have a lot to teach the human family. If each one of us takes the initiative and be commitmented from where she/he is, eventually we will all enjoy a peaceful world.

Collaborative Power

2007-02-22T19:22:00.000+03:00

As a culturally diverse team, one exercise we engage in regularly is sharing our observations about how others encounter the three of us. Whether we have an informal meeting with a colleague, or meeting with potential collaborators for the first time, not long after, the three of us will share with each other how we observed the interaction. To whom did the other person speak directly, or did she engage us all equally? Who among the three of us did most of the talking, if any? How did the other person respond to each of us individually? What might we have done differently to present ourselves as a collaborative team? Often the people we meet or work with notice and talk with me, the European American, more than Sia or Giang. Because of our experiences and our recognition that racial preferences operate in society, we try to work in such a way to reveal to others our collaborative effort.

Recently we facilitated a session on power with a group of about 12 people. In preparation, we divided and arranged the work in such a way we felt would present us working as a collaborative team, not a team with a designated leader, or lead facilitator. Sia introduced the day and our objectives, then Giang facilitated the group in setting ground rules for the day. Sia facilitated a discussion on the types and kinds of power, in which the participants identified sources of power and how they can be used positively and negatively. I followed Sia to elicit real examples from the participants and look at how power can be dictated by social constructs.

By then, we had spent about three hours with them, so I posed the question to them, “Who among the three of us (the three facilitators) has power and why?” The first person said I did, because I appeared to be older. Another added that because I was older, I probably had seniority in religious life also. One mentioned that Sia had power because we are on her home continent. Giang was identified as having power because she helped set the ground rules. Again I was identified as having power because when we arrived the other two were busy setting things up and arranging the room but I was not. And someone had observed that I told Giang to move to a different chair at the beginning, which she did. Another said that I had power because the other two presented first and I came afterward to tie it all together. One said I had power because of my physical size.

I noted these observations on the board one by one and then addressed the reality of each assumption. Age, yes I am the oldest, and particularly in most African cultures and many others, age is honorific, and carries power. Seniority in religious life is share by Giang and me as we enter in the same group. Geographical setting gives Sia power through experience and knowledge that Giang and I do not have. Giang’s facilitation of setting ground rules is perceived as an integral part of the facilitation, so some participants see that as a position of power. My physical size does give an appearance of power initially, yet my actual strength and health would actually be weaker than Sia and Giang both.

It is true that Giang and Sia were visible setting things up before we began, preparing for their own presentations. I did not have any preparations to make, but that was perceived as a position of power. Also, I did tell Giang to move to another chair, for my personal needs of seating arrangements, which she accommodated to preserve her need of harmony in front of the group. This was perceived as power, and was unwittingly a play of power on my part.

The organization of work that we had arranged in an effort to present collaboration was not perceived that way. We had decided Sia would begin and Giang would follow giving them visibility first, then I would be third. Participants perceived almost the opposite of our intentions. Had I introduced the day and our objectives, would I not have been perceived to be “in charge”? Had Sia been the third presenter and “tied it all together” would they have perceived her to have power in the group? Had Giang facilitated a different part of the day, how would they have perceived her in the group? Did my telling Giang to change seats dictate the dynamics?

These are valuable observations for the participants, and also for us in our work as we continue. We did not push for the participants to identify race as the indicator of power in our group, but was that operating in their designation of my power? In whatever way we organize our facilitations and presentations, will we be able to reveal our collaborative effort as a team? That is our hope, our intention, and we will continue to try, and to learn each time, and share our learnings as we go.

World Social Forum-January 2007

2007-02-12T07:46:00.000+03:00

World Social Forum (WSF) 2007

In 2006, we came to Nairobi, Kenya and had about 4 months to settle into our new home. At the beginning of this year we participated in the World Social Forum held for the first time in Africa. Over 50,000 people gathered from around the globe from January 20^th to January 25^th in Nairobi to talk about social issues and to link people in social movements of transformation under the theme “Another world is possible”. People came together with a purpose to transform the world from the ground up. There were daily meetings around some main issues facing our world today - migration, human trafficking, debt relief for poor countries, land reforms, environmental protection, wars and conflicts, and HIV-AIDs. This meeting was held in contrast and protest to another meeting that was taking place in Davos, Sweden – the World Economic Forum, where the powerful and rich gather to talk about how to make money.

There were many workshops and seminars presenting different topics that attracted us. On one occasion all three of us attended a presentation given by the women Nobel Peace Prize winners who started a project called Nobel Women’s Initiative. They use it as a platform for action on behalf of sustainable peace for our world. Jody Williams, Wangari Mathai, and Sharin Ebadi spoke out against political, economic, social and environmental violence. They highlighted issues of injustices around the world. For instance , we learned that South Africa used its first vote on the UN Security Council against a UN Resolution that points out the injustices done by the Burmese government against its own people. (What seemed to me a grave injustice is how Jodi Williams’ voice has been muffled since winning the Nobel Peace Prize. The New York Times and Washington Post has stopped publishing any of her writings in their Op-ed pages.)

One of the issues that was highlighted with daily presentations concerned international migration. People from Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa talked about how the search for employment, for a better living has affected lives in all corners of the world. We had been familiar with migration issues in the Americas and Asia. It was good to find out the current situation in Africa. The poor of Africa go North to Europe, and they are increasing in number. One similar theme repeats itself for the poor whether they are Africans going to Europe, Latinos going to the U.S. or the from the south of Asia to rich northern Asian countries - discrimination, prejudice and mistreatment.

Despite the many problems, migration will continue to increase because developing countries like Kenya are looking to send their workers abroad. Already the Kenyan government has mandated all nurses to upgrade their studies to an RN degree by 2010 so that they can go abroad to work and send money home. This economic strategy has been employed by other countries in Asia and Latin American for decades with little or no appreciable gains in the lives of the citizens of these developing countries. The WSF was a good space for people from different continents to share and strategize on how to protect the rights of migrants and their families. The 5 day long discussions and networking among people working for the rights of migrants will be included in the final statements coming out of the WSF on the rights of migrants and the issues they face with calls for international attention to their problems. We will certainly keep our eyes and ears open to the migration trend in Africa.

Besides attending different events, we also gave a presentation at the WSF on strategic coalition building: how civil society could provide a more comprehensive and effective service to society without unnecessary duplication or cancellation of efforts. We had a gathering of about 50 people at the WSF who were interested in exploring how coalition building works to for a better society. We saw this as the beginning of our efforts to build strong webs of relationships that will enable societies to sustain and endure turbulences – which make for sustainable peace in societies.

Prior to this presentation, we had convened a meeting with six networks from different sectors working in Africa for their input on this idea of strategic coalition building. They were enthusiastic and wanted us to further pursue this effort with them – to create a space where they could continue the dialogue on strategic coalition building.

Living Interculturally

Immediately following the WSF, the team gave a workshop on intercultural living skills to a group of men belonging to an international religious order. The participants came from 4 different cultures and are all called to live out their religious commitments in an intercultural setting. It was a very good weekend for us and for the participants. We were reminded throughout the workshop of the need for our world to learn how to live together, not just exist along side each other. In light of the issues of discrimination and prejudices that face more and more people in today’s world due to migration and ethnic violence, we feel affirmed in our desire to live in an intentionally multicultural community and to bring our personal experiences in this context to the work that we do as a witness to the possibility and vitality of intercultural living.

Objectives

2007-01-03T00:01:00.000+03:00

The objectives of the Marynoll Sisters Peace Building Team include creating a web of relationships between communities and strengthening their capacity for mutual learning and healing.

The following workshops are available:
- Nonviolent Communication
- Conflict Transformation
- Sustaining Dialogue
- Trauma Healing
- Peace Education
- Peace Strategies

Facilitation is available for:
- Needs Assessment
- Conflict Sensitive Program Design, Implementation, Assessment and Evaluation
- Dialogue
- Intercultural living

While being from diverse cultures and ethnic backgrounds, our team believes in the African Proverb that says, "Peace is costly but it is worth the expense."

About Teresa

2006-10-01T18:59:00.000+03:00

My name is Teresa. Like Sia and Giang, I also come from a large family and have 11 siblings. I grew up in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, U.S.A. As a young adult, I served as a Lieutenant in the U. S. Army, and learned quickly that I wanted to pursue another way of life. I believed there had to be better ways to resolve conflict than using violence. I moved to Brooklyn, New York, in 1989 where I worked at El Puente (a youth center for peace and justice) and at Providence House (a residence for women and children). In 1996, I became a Maryknoll Sister.

As a Maryknoll sister, I worked in East Timor as a Secondary School Director, during the five years following the UN referendum for independence. With the teachers, the students and the support of Catholic Relief Services, we established a peace program in the school, training teachers and students in communication and conflict transformation skills. Having seen and experienced the trauma so many people suffer through injustice and conflict, and after examining my own life experience, I believe we hold the answers to finding peace in our world. Building relationships and sharing our stories helps create a web of resiliency, support and strength, which can enable people to thrive and find ways to live together in just and peaceful ways.

About Giang

2006-09-22T20:22:00.000+03:00

My name is Giang. I was born into a tight knit family in Saigon, Viet Nam, as the 9th child out of 11. My parents often said that God showered our family with so many blessings, and the most important was that we were able to make it across the open sea to the U.S. during the Viet Nam war. Years later, I was working for NASA's Mission Control in Houston, Texas, when God called me to become a Maryknoll Sister in 1996.

It is my personal experience of having been a refugee that draws me to work with people who are displaced due to economic or political violence. My experiences help me to identify with marginalized people and be in solidarity with them. In my previous mission in Taiwan, I worked with abused women caught in the mail-order bride industry. Now, I am a part of the Maryknoll Sisters Peace-Building Team in Africa. I will serve and be in relationships with people who are working for a better quality of life, for themselves and their children.

About Sia

2006-08-16T15:37:00.001+03:00

My name is Sia. I have four brothers and six sisters, and I am number six of eleven children. I joined the Maryknoll Sisters in May 2003. I am from the Northern part of Tanzania. I am with the Maryknoll Sisters Peace Team, which means we are all working together to bring the reign of peace and justice in this world. Living in harmony with all creation is what people are longing for, and this has been my dream and vision. It is my hope that one day peace will prevail on this Earth.