wfn.org | AANA BULLETIN No. 29/03 July 28, 2003 (b)

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

ALL AFRICA NEWS AGENCY
P. O Box, 66878, 00800 Westlands, NAIROBI, Kenya.  Tel: 254-2-4442215,
4440224
Fax: 254-2-4445847, 4443241; Email: aanaapta@insightkenya.com , 
aanaapta@nbnet.co.ke

AANA BULLETIN No. 29/03 July 28, 2003 (b)

SPECIAL  REPORT

Tragedy Hits Unusual Marriage As Shocked In-Law Dies

NAIROBI (AANA) July 28 - The saga involving an unusual marriage here on 
July 18, between a 67 year-old grandmother and a man aged 28 years, took a 
tragic turn last week when the mother of the groom died barely four days 
after receiving the shocking news.

Florence Nyambura, 53, died on Tuesday, July 22, attracting comments that 
her death could have been caused by the shock she received when her 28 
year-old son, Peter Mbogua, married Wambui Otieno, aged 67 years.

The late Nyambura had vowed she would not accept Wambui, older than her by 
14 years, as her daughter-in-law.

Mbugua has since blamed the press for his mothers death, saying the media 
exposed the wedding too early to his mother, who he said, suffered from 
hypertension.

The wedding between Wambui and Mbugua, which was meant to be a private 
affair, could not escape the nose of the press due to its nature.

It stirred a lot of debate over the weekend of July 18-20, with most people 
expressing shock and objection to it, but a few still supporting it.

And for the first time in the history of Kenya, the marriage has hotly been 
discussed nationally, overshadowing all other high profile marriages that 
have been witnessed here.

Many have expressed their displeasure at Wambui, charging that she was out 
to ruin the life of young Mbugua, who is even younger than her youngest
child.

Some say Mbugua could have been attracted into the marriage by Wambui's 
wealth.  Wambui, a daughter of a former Paramount Chief, and sister to a 
former government minister, is herself a political activist and 
businesswoman. She also played a role in freedom fighting during the 
colonial days.

Her late husband, Silvanus Melea Otieno, popularly known as SM Otieno was a 
famous criminal lawyer.

His death in 1986 propelled Wambui to fame due to a protracted legal battle 
between her and Otieno's clansmen over burial site.  She lost the battle, 
but has since engaged in political activism time and again.

By contrast, Mbogua is a stone mason, who before moving in with Wambui in 
her plush residence, was living in a slum area in the outskirts of 
Nairobi.  Prior to the marriage, he had taken care of repairs in Wambui's 
house.

Mbugua, however, has refuted the claims that he is out for Wambui's money, 
reiterating that his was pure love, with God having sent him to take care 
of the widow who lost her husband 18 years ago and have been subjected to a 
solitude life.

Observers who support the wedding argue that these are both adults who can 
make their independent choice and should be respected. Even some Church 
leaders supported the wedding, arguing that there is no reference to age 
limit in marriage.

But, a Minister of the Presbyterian Church here charged that the union 
between Mbugua and Wambui is unbiblical, and therefore unchristian, 
intimating that a widow over 60 years should not marry.

The marriage has been frowned at from the African cultural standpoint, 
where the bride is normally expected be younger than the bridegroom.

A lecturer from one of the private universities here charged that according 
biblical teachings, children are supposed to respect their parents and the 
interpretation is that any body older than one by a wide gap should be 
treated as a parent.

According to him, it is therefore morally wrong for Mbugua to have married 
a woman qualified to be his grandmother.

Interestingly though, HelpAge International, a non-governmental 
organisation championing the rights of the aged, has expressed support for 
the union.

The organisation issued a press release last week saying:  "The ageist (and 
sexist) attitude is what has perhaps informed the public outcry over Wambui 
Otieno's marriage to Peter Mbugua. Wambui has decided to be the first to 
'speak' for older women in the country who must make decisions that would 
otherwise be viewed as revolutionary and therefore unacceptable, but which 
are within their rights as human beings."

Reported by Joseph K'Amolo

FEATURES  SECTION

Just How Did Egypt Gain Control Over Nile Waters?

With fears that the next round of conflicts in Africa could be pegged on 
water, where River Nile is poised to play a central role, countries within 
the Nile basin are being challenged to resolve volatile issues that may 
lead to such a calamity.  The Nile Treaty, which gives Egypt powers to 
control the use of River Nile waters, is one such controversial factor 
being debated currently.  But how did this skewed agreement come into 
force? AANA Correspondent Osman Njuguna unveils some details.

I
n mid June, 27 legislators of the Arusha-based East African Legislative 
Assembly  (EALA) converged at Kenya's lakeside city of Kisumu to discuss 
equitable sharing of the Nile waters among states of the Nile basin.  The 
legislators  expressed concern that the God-given waters of River Nile were 
not being equitably shared among eligible users due to a controversial 1929 
agreement, sealed between Egypt and Britain.

The agreement, known as the Nile Waters Agreement or Nile Treaty, favoured 
Egypt on the use of Nile waters at the expense of other users.	It gave 
Egypt immense powers to control the use of waters of the longest river in 
the world. The Nile River has its basin spread across ten states. These are 
Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, 
Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Egypt.

The legislators were bitterly critical of the treaty. One of them, Maxwell 
Shamalla, was reported to have said: "We cannot continue to be prisoners of 
a treaty that impoverishes our people and benefits others, yet we own the 
resource."   The three-day meeting ended with a recommendation that 
affected countries should take a united position against the 74-year-old 
treaty, and renegotiate as a block, issues relating to the use of River Nile.

Some observers note that while the treaty might have passed unnoticed in 
the past, it is a central focus today due to increasing demand for 
water.	It is estimated that about 123 million people depend of the waters 
of River Nile for livelihood.  "The high increase of population that goes 
with the need for food production, is one of the possible driving forces 
behind the current call by East Africans to have equitable sharing of the 
Nile waters," remarks Kenyan legislator and outspoken environmentalist, 
Professor Wangari Maathai.

Expressing support for the call by the East African legislators to have the 
controversial treaty repealed, Prof Maathai, who is also an Assistant 
Minister for Environment and Natural Resources, told AANA: "We should not 
allow ourselves to continue to respect such agreements, which were 
supposedly sealed between Egypt and our colonial masters (Britain), 
claiming [to be doing so] on our behalf."

Apparently, not many have been aware that Egypt controls extensive use of 
Nile waters, and that other countries would need to seek permission from 
Egyptian authorities before embarking on any major projects on the Nile
basin.

A Kenyan Catholic archbishop, Zachaeus Okoth, may still be struggling to 
get to terms with the response he got when he suggested that Kenya should 
seriously consider pumping out water from Lake Victoria to the dry parts of 
the country to boost food production through irrigation.

"If we can do the same with petrol, why can't we do the same with the 
water?" he posed.  He had to be reminded that some agreements signed last 
century "barred" this from happening.

But as the Nile Basin Initiative, an organisation linking the 10 riparian 
countries, seeks to lobby for a new agreement on the use of River Nile, 
some historical facts on the matter may be worth exploring.

In his latest book, Southern Sudan: Too Many Agreements Dishonoured, Abel 
Alier, a Sudanese legal expert and veteran politician, notes that Egypt's 
search for control of the Nile, on which depends its livelihood, started in 
the 19th Century with construction of barrages and canals for irrigation 
necessary for feeding a rapidly growing population.

As the population grew, works inside Egypt proved inadequate, necessitating 
extension of control and conservation systems of the Nile to Sudan, 
Ethiopia, and East Africa.   "That was achieved either through conquest in 
the Sudan, or agreements with Ethiopia and the East African countries," 
points out Alier.

Egypt's task was made easier by her allies, especially Great Britain, which 
concluded treaties with other colonial powers and Ethiopia, securing for 
Egypt, guarantees for the natural uninterrupted Nile flow from Lake T'ana 
in Ethiopia, among other equatorial lakes.

After the sources of the Nile were secured, Egypt proposed, in 1904, to 
increase the Nile yield through a process involving diversion of waters 
from the Sudd region in southern Sudan, and provision of water storage 
facilities on the Blue Nile and Lake T'ana.

The need for the diversion of water in the Sudd region (White Nile) gave 
rise to a proposed diversion canal project, which went on smoothly without 
Sudan raising a finger.  This was mainly because northern Sudan depended 
then on rain for agriculture, applying very limited irrigation. Southern 
Sudan depended exclusively on rain water. "But this harmony of interests 
did not continue for long," says Alier.

A clash emerged around 1910, when the British government proposed 
large-scale cotton growing, using Blue Nile waters to irrigate Gezira 
region in Northern Sudan. Egypt's responded with a protest, and Britain 
countered by claiming more water for the Sudan.

However, an amicable solution was eventually worked out, resulting in the 
construction of the Sennar and Jebel Aulia dams.  The former provided 
irrigation water in the Gezira, and the latter supplemented the summer 
water needs of Egypt.

A final agreement defining the volumes of Nile waters to be exploited by 
the two countries was sealed in 1929.  This is what came to be known as the 
Nile Waters Agreement or Nile Treaty, which empowered Egypt and Sudan to 
extensively exploit the Nile Basin, but excluded other eligible countries.

The agreement has been used to date by Egypt, frustrating countries of the 
Nile basin intending to initiate development projects along River Nile 
waters. Apparently, this status quo has quietly been yielding some tension.

In a book titled, Scarcity And Surfeit: The Ecology of Africa's Conflicts, 
a group of researchers predict that the main conflicts in Africa during the 
next 25 years could be about water.  The Nile River is considered to be a 
likely flash point for such conflicts, they say, noting: "Areas of water 
stress are likely to see increased competition as populations grow and the 
available fresh water per capita decreases".

A deputy director of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP),  Halifa 
Drammeh confirms that "the potential conflict over shared water resources 
is real".  According to him, "the issues requiring negotiation and 
agreement among states have grown more complex".

The UNEP official advises that, "greater flexibility and more imaginative 
ways of sharing water resources will be increasingly necessary over the 
coming decades, as population pressures... and factors such as climate 
change, place greater demands on already stretched freshwater reserves".

Refugee Killings: A Product Of Deep-rooted Conflict

Conflict of interests between refugees and host communities are a common 
place, but recent violent confrontations between Sudanese asylum seekers in 
Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya, and the resident Turkana villagers, which 
resulted in several deaths and destruction of property, suggested that 
there could be a deeper problem.  AANA's  Makur Kot Dhuor, has attempted to 
dig out some of the deep-rooted factors that could have formed the build-up 
to the fighting.

A
t Kakuma refugee camp, a fight broke out on June 18 between Sudanese 
refugees and the host community, the Turkana. Two Sudanese refugees were 
reportedly killed.

On June 20, one Turkana was killed by the refugees and thrown into a 
pit-latrine, in retaliation.

Come  June 21, there was an armed attack on the camp. The ensuing skirmish 
resulted in the death of nine Sudanese refugees, two Turkana tribesmen, and 
one Ethiopian refugee.

Among the nine Sudanese refugees who died, two were killed on their way 
back from Nairobi, after being intercepted by the Turkana.

Three days later (June 24), a Sudanese resident in Lokichoggio, near 
Kenya's border with Sudan, threw a hand grenade into a Turkana home, 
killing one child and injuring a woman.

The incident provoked Turkana youths in the area. They ran amok and 
attacked the premises of Norwegian People Aid (NPA), and Presbyterian 
Relief and Development Agency (PRDA), claiming that the former had offered 
refuge to the Sudanese who had hurled a grenade into a Turkana homestead.

The latter (PRDA) was attacked because it belongs to the Presbyterian 
Church of Sudan. Here, the youth looted property and caused extensive
damages.

A day after, the Turkana youths stormed UNHCR premises to protest.  The 
grenade use had made them wary that the Sudanese were in possession of 
deadly arms.

The Lokichoggio incident is said to have been a spillover of what had 
happened at Kakuma refugee camp just a few days earlier. The grenade 
wielding Sudanese was, according to locals, avenging the killing of his 
fellow Sudanese at Kakuma by the Turkana.

This chronology of violent events within just one week portrays the 
precarious relationship between refugees in Kakuma, and the Turkana host 
community.

A comment by Margaret Yaar, a 42 year-old refugee mother of seven children 
at Kakuma camp reflects the present mood of asylum seekers in the camp.

Said she: "We escaped with our children from Sudan to Ethiopia because of 
war, and from Ethiopia after the fall of Mengistu, Haile Mariam.  Again, we 
escaped to Pochalla in southern Sudan, then to Narus and eventually, we 
found ourselves in Kenya with our children. Now it is the same children who 
are being killed by the Turkana."

She went on: "Why are we being killed? Where is the Kenyan Government? Our 
relationship with the Turkana has proved bad, so we want to be taken to any 
part of Kenya, where we can establish good relationship with other ethnic 
groups."

Kakuma refugee camp is situated in northern Kenya, about 1,000 km of 
Nairobi. The camp has a population of 82,216 refugees of eleven 
nationalities, of which 71 percent are Sudanese. The vast camp occupies 25 
km2.

Even though the government and UNHCR are jointly trying to bring the 
parties in conflict to negotiation in order to instill peaceful 
co-existence, events in the past indicate that the relationship between the 
Turkana and the Sudanese refugees has never been cordial.

Statistics indicate that 32 refugees were killed, several of them by the 
Turkana, between 1992 and September 2002.

Before the June fighting, a number of other events had occurred early in 
the year that boosted tension.	A Sudanese girl was killed in February by 
the Turkana during an attempted rape episode.  Another was killed in 
similar circumstances in March. Several Sudanese women have also been raped 
at gun point when fetching firewood.

Going by past statements, these hostilities could as well be a reflection 
of feelings by the Turkana that their land had been occupied by foreigners, 
mainly Sudanese.

Former Labour assistant minister, Ekwe Ethuro, said on July 16, 2002 that 
the refugees, mostly Sudanese, were a  burden to the local community and 
should be moved elsewhere or repatriated.

The Turkana accused the Sudanese refugees of crimes such as theft, which 
they said, did not exist before the coming of the refugees to their area 11 
years ago.

In May 1994, a meeting was held between Sudanese refugees and the Turkana, 
after the former complained that the latter were going to "finish" them.

During the meeting, the Turkana warned the Sudanese against engaging in 
intimate affairs with their (Turkana) girls, and against slaughtering 
goats, in the absence of a Turkana, who would be expected to take the legs, 
skin and the head of a slaughtered animal.

Sixty goats were paid to the Sudanese refugee community as a compensation 
of a Sudanese killed in cold blood by some Turkana the previous year.  This 
does not seem to have resolved the conflict.

"Quick action must be taken before it is too late," says a Sudanese elder 
Akeec Nyatyiel, living in the camp.

He continues: "We cannot be returned to Sudan while the war is still going 
on. The peace is very fragile, so we want the Kenyan Government to give us 
up to date security.  The solution lies in the Government looking into our 
re-location because we are being killed by the Turkana."

In an interview with AANA, UNHCR's Assistant Representative (protection), 
Rossela Pogliucli-lor, said cattle rustling between the Dinka of southern 
Sudan and the Turkana in Kenya, also played a central role in the conflict 
between the two communities.

For example, prior to the recent Kakuma attacks, there had been rumours 
that many Turkana had been killed in a cattle rustling incident. The fact 
that a cow was spotted within the refugee camp only made things worse.

Asked whether the UNHCR may consider relocating the camp in view of the 
circumstances, Rossela said: "Re-location of the camp is very complex 
because of the difficulty to locate an area," she said.

"Secondly, a lot of money has been invested in the already existing 
infrastructure in the camp.... It is not an easy affair to move about 
85,000 refugees of different nationalities to a new camp," she continued.

According to Rossela, the government is drafting a system bill, which when 
passed, should considerably improve the security situation of the refugees.

Where Beggars Prefer To Remain On The Streets

Accra, the once beautiful city of Ghana, is embarrassingly getting choked 
with beggars, who, by way of approach, seem to consider their activities as 
a democratic right. Even efforts by authorities to get them off the streets 
by offering them vocational training to help them become self-reliant, do 
not seem to be bearing fruit, reports, Felix Amanfu.

A
part from the problem of filth and choked gutters in the city, which the 
authorities are struggling to contend with, beggars of all descriptions 
swarm sensitive areas before daybreak.

They would invade market places, bus stops, and foot bridges, and position 
themselves strategically on main access to shops, supermarkets, and even 
church houses, to play on the pity of shoppers and worshipers respectively.

A confused scenario is usually observed at traffic jams, where some beggars 
have crafted their game, criss-crossing one another in rivalry, and many of 
them virtually standing on bewildered passengers for alms, until they have 
literally exacted some money from the commuters.

All shades of beggars are involved in this chaotic behaviour, which they 
find to be relatively lucrative.

It is no longer rare to see a disabled beggar, ironically hiring people to 
push them around all day, the blind doing the same with guides. Even the 
pretending able-bodied paupers have joined in the fray.

The most aggressive of the beggars are the very young children with their 
mothers, mostly of Chadian stock, who found their way into Ghana years back 
after escaping wars and conflicts in their country.

As active participants in the traffic jam exploit, this aggressive group 
would accost drivers with a quick cosmetic dust of their cars, and then 
crudely demand payment for their unsolicited services.

All these happen while their men rest comfortably under shady trees, with 
no thoughts of looking for a worthwhile job to do to help take their 
children and wives off the streets.

In order to stem this unbecoming situation, Ghana's Ministry of Manpower 
Development and Employment has been taking measures to rehabilitate and 
train beggars in the Accra metropolis, in various vocations.

However, the beggars, who obviously consider their street activities more 
lucrative, have always found excuses to thwart any such arrangements laid 
down for their betterment.

As a matter of fact, there are those who are believed to have acquired 
properties. Some are said to have become money lenders.

It is no surprise therefore, that a meeting arranged recently in Accra to 
finalise arrangements for the training of registered beggars was disrupted.

Some of the beggars who were reeking of alcohol prevented their colleagues 
from registering for the training programmes to be conducted at various 
vocational training institutions around the country.

The meeting was to finalise arrangements for enrolling beggars in Accra and 
Somanya rehabilitation centres and the Jaakye Vocational Training 
Institution in Ashanti region, for the commencement of the skills and 
training programmes expected to last a minimum of three months and a 
maximum of one year.

Some of the beggars who were registered earlier for the exercise were ready 
to co-operate, but the militant ones argued that similar training 
programmes in the past yielded no positive results, and that they would not 
waste  their time again.

A group expressed dissatisfaction at the arrangements for the training, 
saying that they wanted to be convinced that the situation this time round 
would be different from the previous ones, before taking part.

Others accused officials of the Department of Social Welfare of financial 
malfeasance in the disbursement of moneys meant to support them in the 
various programmes.  "We have written our names so many times for the 
officials who promised us financial support, but nothing has happened," 
some of them alleged.

A deputy director of the Department of Social Welfare, Mr Kofi Kumah, who 
led a team to the abortive meeting, said he was not surprised at the 
behaviour of the beggars, who obviouly wanted to justify their continued 
stay in the streets.

He said 58 beggars were registered to be trained in vocations such as 
dressmaking, hairdressing, batik production, carpentry and food processing, 
during a recent registration exercise.

Notwithstanding the set back, the official intimated that the department 
would still welcome beggars interested in the training programme.

Asked how the beggars would be supported after the training, the official 
said the programme had been modernised to enable trainees to be engaged in 
small-scale businesses.

An official of the Ministry of Manpower Development and Employment said the 
issue would be discussed with the leadership of the beggars for amicable 
settlement.

One wonders how long will beggars continue to hold Accra city dwellers to 
ransom with their objection to vocational training.

Since beggars, particularly the physically disabled unfortunately 
constitute one of the most marginalised groups in the Ghanaian society, one 
should have thought that they would readily welcome such an opportunity 
that would guarantee them a secured future.

Commentators say that if on the other hand there are shortcomings in the 
implementation of the training programme as some of the beggars allege, 
then authorities must take a second look at the areas where lapses are 
likely to occur, with a view to taking corrective measures as early as 
possible.

According to an Accra resident, a more realistic programme that will 
address the concerns of all stakeholders in the crusade of getting beggars 
off Accra streets will be beneficial to national advancement efforts. In 
the meantime, the beggars of Accra have the choice of remaining in the
streets.