Corruption

The Kenya I have seen is a really non-violent place. Sure, there are the usual people who think mzungus = moneybags, but I haven't yet come into contact with anything really bad here in Kuria at all. I think they actually escaped much of the political calamity of last year (as I interpret one oif my interviewers, the people of Kuria are actually kinda too much of pushovers (in a good way, really) to put up with violence. they'd just, like, invite the people into their homes for chai).

But I heard a story today from Gabriel, one of my interviewer boys, that was so incredibly sad and scary. He was on the bus to Nairobi to go to college, and the bus got stopped at a "police checkpoint"... basically meaning that they expected everyone in the bus to get off, show ID, and give them like 200 Ksh. Gabriel refused to give them the money, and they pulled him away from the bus, into a dark area, and tried to strangle him. "They" = the police, yes. He got away, amazingly.

Another frustrating thing he told me is that a lot of people - especially older, disillusioned ones, don't vote anymore. They have seen so many instances of the candidate that they truly believe to have the popular support NOT actually making it into office, that they no longer feel their voices count. And I guess that's justified, It is just another example that makes me truly believe that some countries aren't ready for democracy. A democracy facade is so much worse, in my opinion, than some instances of outright dictatorships. A benevolent dictator can have the power to really make change if they choose an upright path; a corrupt democracy more easily can just hide behind the idea of social acceptance.

Kenya has a lot to learn from Rwanda on the corruption front. They need some "report corruption" roadsigns too.