Kenya Travel Re-Opened for CRC Constituents
February 13, 2008, Grand Rapids, Mich. -- The situation in Kenya is currently calm enough to re-open travel and allow CRC members to go to Kenya to help conduct relief efforts and perform other activities, Christian Reformed Church officials said late Wednesday.
The CRC discouraged travel to Kenya following the violence and widespread property destruction that took place in early January over a disputed presidential election. CRC staff remained in Kenya to continue regular programs and initiate relief efforts, says Andrew Ryskamp, U.S. director for the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee.
Just this week, CRWRC staff members in Kenya are "again working with the North American constituency to determine which visits are warranted," says Ryskamp.
Meanwhile, CRWRC workers are busy distributing food and other forms of emergency relief to people in Eldoret, one of the community's hardest hit by the violence. In addition, CRWRC representatives are using funds from a grant from the CRC of Canada to distribute blankets and other forms of aid to people in Nairobi, the nation's capital, says Ryskamp.
While Kenyans tensely await news of a political power-sharing agreement that they hope will restore normalcy to daily life, the CRC's Kenya Event Response Team continues to monitor the situation with daily calls and security alerts, says Ryskamp. The ERT was formed soon after the troubles in Kenya began.
Hopes are running high, says Ryskamp, that former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan and the mediation team that he heads will be able to announce a solution to the crisis. Annan and his team are in seclusion for three days and a statement is expected by the weekend. As the mediation team announced a news blackout this week, however, it was clear the two sides remained deeply divided over a political solution, according to news accounts.
The trouble that has beset Kenya began late last year after President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner of the presidential election. Raila Odinga, the challenger, charged that the election was rigged and has refused to concede defeat. Ryskamp says he is asking CRC members to continue praying for an end to the violence in Kenya. "Your prayers make a difference," he says.
The Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (CRWRC) has five full-time staff in Kenya. The country is also the base for the CRWRC's HIV/AIDS coordinator for the East/South African region. Partners Worldwide, a CRC business-development ministry, also has a staff person in Kenya.
To donate to the Kenya relief response, mark donations "Kenya Conflict" and mail to CRWRC, 3475 Mainway, PO Box 5070, STN LCD 1, Burlington, ON, L7R 3Y8 or to CRWRC, 2850 Kalamazoo Avenue, Grand Rapids, MI, 49560. Donate online at www.crwrc.org. In Canada, call 1-800-730-3490. In the U.S., call 616-241-1691 or 1-800-55-CRWRC. Email: crwrc@crcna.org.
Chris Meehan, CRC Communications
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Chris Meehan News and Media Relations Christian Reformed Church in North America www.crcna.org