Dealing with the displaced goes beyond gestures

The aftermath of the post-election conflict six years ago continues to periodically show its face with every passing day.

Last week, groups of internally displaced people met near one of the theatres of conflict, ostensibly to reconcile and pledge to co-exist. They ate together, mingled and laughed together, which is always a good thing that fosters feelings of togetherness and a sense of family.

However, that was not all. Some of the participants sent pointedly political messages to the powers that be. First, they indicated that continued electioneering would hinder their attempts at reconciliation and could take the country back to the brink.

They specifically singled out the ongoing push for a referendum, arguing that it would result in more division and chaos whose adverse effects would far outweigh any potential benefit.

Second, they lamented about the meagre compensation they received for their troubles. Most were given varying amounts of money to restart their lives after displacement, and they felt that the money given was too little to do much with.

It was clear that these internally displaced Kenyans were far from happy with the settlement arranged by the government and non-governmental organisations.

What lessons do we take away from these sentiments?

SHORT VIEW OF HISTORY

First, that dealing with mass human crises requires long-term solutions, and we cannot succeed by just throwing money at such problems.

Unfortunately, Kenyans have a very short view of history, and enjoy the sense of nostalgia that is brought about by repeating the mistakes of the past. We enjoy looking at events unfolding and saying smugly, “I knew exactly how it would pan out!”.

For a long time, reconciliation experts have argued for solutions that address systemic flaws that result in periodic conflict based on ethno-political identity. Each time they have been ignored by a system that favours form over content.

Our governments thrive on grandiose promises and flashes of flamboyance, launching project after project, while achieving little in the long run.

STILL HARBOUR RESENTMENTS

Second, one gets a sense that reconciliation has not really happened in these communities. Complaints about the potential deleterious impact of political campaigns suggest that the complainants still harbour resentments that could quickly erupt in war with the appropriate amount of provocation.

Suggestions that any compensation received was inadequate betrays a mindset that is still in negotiation mode, and not one that has resolved all the issues involved in the previous conflict.

It is time we faced up to the root cause of our perennial problems. Our visualisation of our social structure is corrupted such that we can only see occurrences from an ethnic or political standpoint.

Whenever we see a successful person, or a positive occurrence, we are quick to ask what tribe or political organisation (which are often the same thing!) they belong to.

We then claim them as being “our own” with alacrity, and are ready to defend them with our lives, which we often do. Conversely, we try our best to distance ourselves from failures and negative events by attributing them to the ethnopolitical “other”.

There is little sense of nationhood, little true pride in being Kenyan. That would have been positive had our outlook been global rather than ethnic, but then this is our unhappy lot. Perhaps all it will take to change things is time, but I wouldn’t hold my breath!

Dr Atwoli is a consultant psychiatrist and senior lecturer at Moi University’s School of Medicine. [email protected]