Innocence and Indignity Revisited

CES Canada with the CES Alumnus and ACCES have over the past two months completed three Jiggers campaigns in Navakholo sub-County of western Kenya. During a recent visit by Canadian volunteers Renee Rerup, Dennis White, Senem Ozkin and Michael Frederiksen, the team had the privilege of "lending a hand" at Lusumu Primary School. Photos tell the story; so too, the deep feelings felt by Senem where she writes:

"By all appearances, it was just another Wednesday on the school ground: the primary school students playing and chasing one another in the field, a trail of happy screams behind them; the secondary school students listening attentively to the teacher in their outdoor class despite the noise of their younger counterparts. 

But it was not just any ordinary Wednesday. Shortly after the children's play was done, some of the boys and girls were asked to line up and register; the third jiggers campaign was ready to commence. And no amount of Google research could have prepared the Canadian delegation of CES visitors for this important event held on July 6, 2016. 

Jiggers are a type of sand flea that burrow themselves in human skin, primarily in the feet (though they can also take residence in any part of the human body that is close to the ground, such as hands, if someone has no bed and has to sleep on the floor, for example). Jiggers are an especially significant issue in a particular part of Kenya - Navakholo - where the CES campaign took place. 

Once the kids were registered, they took their seats on wooden benchers not unlike the bleachers at football games in North America. They were each given a piece of soap and asked to wait until a basin full of warm water could be brought to them so they could have their feet washed. They waited patiently and without a trace of anxiety about the painful procedure they were about to undergo. 

Even when the time came for the sharp razorblades that would cut out the affected parts of their feet, it was rare to hear a cry or to even see a grimace of pain on the kids' faces. They sat without any sign that they were worried, scared, or angry for having to go through such an ordeal. It was as though they were sitting to have school pictures taken. For them, the jiggers making themselves a home in their feet was a natural part of life.  

It is easy to take for granted all the rights and privileges we have as Canadians and it is also easy, in the face of those who struggle for a fraction of the freedoms we enjoy, to appreciate what we have...at least on a temporary basis. But witnessing what happened at the jiggers campaign went far beyond appreciating that we, in Canada, do not have such problems. The demeanour of these kids, their courage in the face of impending, certain pain (and knowledge that this would likely not be the first or only jiggers campaign they would have to resort to for help) signalled something far more tragic: a loss of innocence. It was as though they were resigned to the fact this was their fate. 

The Constitution of Kenya guarantees children the right to basic education; whether that right is exercisable is a topic for another day. But what the Constitution does not speak to is the manner in which that education will be obtained. It says nothing about whether children are guaranteed to have their basic needs met - to have shoes on their feet, to be free of things like jiggers - so that they can focus solely and exclusively on their learning. It does not guarantee that they will be allowed to act like children, to run around carefree, to play with their mates, to complain and be coddled when they are feeling under the weather - let alone when they have fleas in their extremities. 

After dozens of kids, ranging in age from approximately 12 months to 12 years old, went through the process of go being de-jiggered, their feet were soaked in sodium bicarbonate to close up their wounds, and on they went - many of them without shoes - to their homes. If only we had a pair of shoes or even flip-flops to ease the pain a little bit. 

And so after 8 hours of concentrated work without a break the jiggers campaign came to a close. Facing the reality of leaving these kids behind and wondering how these brave little souls handled themselves in such a grown-up way was almost too much to comprehend.  What could we do to give them back the innocence? So little really when compared to what they gave us."

CES Canada Scholar to China

Mildred Namisoho Wasike, age 19 lives in rural western Kenya.  Her family heritage is the Banyala clan of the Luyha people of rural western Kenya. Mildred attended Sidikho SS as a CES Canada sponsored student. She scored the highest grades in the 2015 KCSE exams for the entire Navakholo region. In September 2016 she travels to China with a group of twelve selected Kenyan youth. Mildred has been offered a five year scholarship at Shanghai University of Science and Technology, majoring in Medical Imagining. 

Mildred with Principal Isa Ramadhan, Sidikho SS

Since 2011, Mildred has been sponsored by CES Canada. Her parents are farmers, growing mostly banana, sugar cane, maize and vegetables. They live on an acre of land, without electricity or running water. A humble background has not deterred Mildred from excelling in her studies.

In her gap year Mildred is working as a CES Kenya Intern, mentoring our students and assisting teachers at Sidikho SS. In this capacity she is a role model. She described a CES student who was discouraged and ready to drop out of school. Mildred began to counsel her and the situation in time was completely reversed. “I began to realize that God has given me the ability to encourage people and make them feel stronger,” she said. 

Principal Isa Ramadhan describes her as hard working, committed to her studies, polite and ready to take on this new cross cultural challenge. When asked about travel and studies in China, Mildred said, “I am happy and a little nervous. I look forward to learning in a different culture and I hope to speak a new language soon. God will give me courage and the knowledge I need.”

Mildred with CES Kenya Patron, Malik Khaemba

Even though Mildred will study in China, she will always be a part of the CES family of friends. Congratulations and best wishes to this fine young scholar.

It's Time

It's Time once again to set the heart towards Kenya, a place that since 2004 has impacted me in deep and profound ways. In fact July 2016 will mark the 14th visit, an accumulated full year of breathing the sweet Kenyan air. 

It's Time to introduce others to the beauty of Kenya and its people. Dennis White, Renee Rerup and Senem Ozkin bring valued experience from their roles in the Ontario Court of Justice. While in Kenya we anticipate meeting with judicial officers within the High Court of Kenya both in Nairobi and Kakamega. Senem has presented at the Supreme Court of Canada and the Ontario Court of Appeal and for the past 5 years has focused her efforts to promote legal advocacy to those in financial need. Dennis, Renee and I are members of the Judiciary, serving as Justices of the Peace. We hope to learn from each other in a number of areas of mutual interest and concern and focusing on human rights, women's and children's issues, extra judicial measures, advocacy and matters relating to youth criminal justice. 

It's Time to hear again the cries of children whose voices are so faint they are not heard beyond a mud hut or a dried field of maize or sugar cane. Their stories need to be told.

It's Time to bring some hope to an area where acute poverty is the norm. In return there are unspeakable joys that can only be felt by being there.

It's Time to refocus and renew our vision of what can be done with the little we have, knowing that all our resources and strength come from above.

It's Time we hold fast to the ideal that together we can help restore people and communities to what they were meant to be - self reliant, free from fear and persecution, living in dignity with justice for all.

It's Time...

In the fall of 2015 I had the extraordinary experience of crossing the Mediterranean Sea on a flight south from Amsterdam to Nairobi. It is precisely here among these beautiful Greek islands that the world's attention is now focussed. Those forced to flee their homeland seek passage in vessels unfit for the passage. There is no guarantee they will make it anywhere, let alone a place free of tyranny and oppression. Their very existence on planet earth hangs in the balance. Most make it while tragically growing numbers become statistics, washed ashore, forgotten. We are seeing a migration of people by the tens of thousands, refugees leaning on the mercy of those who are unprepared yet willing to take them in. The cries of displaced peoples have touched our hearts. Wounded and broken, they deserve better. 

Desperate Syrian refugees will hopefully find the shelter they deserve. In their time of crisis, whispers of hope will hopefully be heard through a welcome cup of tea or some cool water. As Mother Theresa said it, "Let's do what we can, when we can and as often as we can, for as many as we can." I know Canada is doing its share.

We cross into Africa. The stunning view of Egypt's aquamarine shoreline to the west seems endless. From this altitude I can see a hundred miles or more. Then like an African nightfall, the vastness of the desert floor suddenly appears beneath. Heading towards the source of the Nile River, the topography undulates like the waves of the sea. The wind has carved out its own version of valleys and peaks. River beds that once had a courageous but fleeting life of their own grace the parched landscape. A sand storm as thick as a Canadian winter whiteout is making its way north. Such power, with dimensions some 500 meters high and a kilometre thick, it marches like an army platoon bent on destruction. 

With no vegetation in sight, a thousand shades of light brown, orange and creamy yellows are alive to the light of day. It must be 50 degrees Celsius on that carpet of sand. It is hard to imagine that for centuries caravans of travellers have passed through this area and made it to the other side. The vastness of the Sahara is staggering. In a place close to where human habitation began, there is nothing on the horizon that would suggest any form of life other than reptiles and scorpions. What secrets can be found in its history? What resources lie under its surface? 

Listening to the jazz sounds of South Africa's Abdullah Ibrahim playing African Marketplace, I see a straight line fully built highway passing through oil fields on either side. There is life after all, just a different kind. Perfect timing and as if by brilliant design, the KLM stewardess offers some tasty vanilla ice cream and a cup of cool water. If only the rest of Africa could experience the same.

Kenya now appears on the southern horizon. The magnificent Rift Valley is beginning to reveal its glory as it reflects a brilliant sunset. I hope and pray that the work of CES Canada continues to bring hope for Kenyan scholars who seek to survive, adapt, and grow no matter what. They too deserve a chance to contribute positively and find fulfillment in all fields of work.

Humanity groans for freedom and a new way of living. Surely we are part of that in ways we cannot comprehend. 

It's Time...we leave June 26 for Kenya.