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Political Unrest in Kenya
Background
Deeply flawed elections in Kenya in late December 2007 sparked widespread violence between supporters of incumbent President Mwai Kibaki and opposition candidate Raila Odinga. For eight weeks, the violence continued in three ways: spontaneous violence by people angry about the elections, institutional violence by police and security forces against the civilian population, and organized violence by gangs and informal armed militia.
By the time former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan brokered an agreement in early March, more than 1,000 people were killed; 600,000 people were displaced from their homes; livelihoods, assets, and infrastructure were destroyed; and the population was reshuffled along ethnic lines. Although the violence in Kenya has calmed down, it could flare up again unless the root causes of political and economic inequality are addressed and serious efforts made to build peace and restore trust in communities.
» Read more about the background and ongoing impacts
UUSC's approach
In the immediate wake of the violence, UUSC sent a three-person delegation to Kenya in order to assess the situation and meet with our long-term partners to develop a response to the situation. On their return to the United States, UUSC staff met with members of Congress and the World Bank to report on the situation.
Today, UUSC is working to support Kenya's "invisible dispersed displaced." Tens of thousands of Kenyans have gone back to their ancestral homes, rendering them invisible to humanitarian aid groups. Little or no aid is reaching them, and there are dire food, housing, land, and employment shortages. UUSC and its partners are working to improve protection and support to crisis-affected children, especially those who are forced to work in order to survive. UUSC is also working with long-term partners to implement revolving-loan funds to help street vendors get back on their feet, increase the financial security of the displaced, reunify families, and promote grassroots conflict resolution and reconciliation to heal wounds and mistrust within communities.
» Read more about UUSC's approach and ongoing work
Featured stories about responding to the crisis in Kenya
 Journal entry by Martha Thompson, Rights in Humanitarian Crises
program manager. She has been visiting Nairobi and
Kenya's Western and Nyanza provinces, touring internally displaced persons sites and
assessing the humanitarian situation for UUSC.
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 In late December 2007, contested election results caused an explosion of political tension across Kenya after both presidential candidates — incumbent Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga — claimed victory.
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