Editorial: When two elephants fight, the grass suffers…

The Swahili saying that goes: “When two elephants fight, the grass suffers; and, when the same two elephants make love, the grass also suffers,” has not spared Kenya, a country with East Africa’s most respected seaport. A critical observer analysing the country’s current state and its history, may think such a saying that has its roots at the country’s Mombasa port was only intended to come to fulfilment at this point in time. This was not a prophesy but it has really come to pass. Some of the headlines that have dominated the media and seen by over 2billion people in the recent past ran: Kenya at the cross roads; Rigged election; Tough task for diplomacy; Kenya stocks for tribalism debate; Battle of the blogs; Odinga denies ethnic cleansing; and Boy’s death exposes tragedy, all telling of the horrible situation in Kenya. Macharia Gaitho commented that “The artificial peace and tranquillity we have always taken for granted has forever been shattered.” This state of affairs calls for a comprehensive reshaping of the society and strong attempts to properly address underlying grievances among birds of the same feather. Despite the sharply increased growth since Kibaki won an election in 2002, the gap between the rich and poor has widened, creating a vast class of dispossessed ready to take to the streets to vent their frustration. The noticeable unruly state has not only affected Kenyan citizens and residents, but also greatly inflicted pain on neighbouring countries that use Kenya’s Mombasa port to access sea transport. In our main story of The Sunday Magazine, we bring you the December holiday traveller who recounts seeing the great city of Nairobi before the riots, and then after. He narrates his journey to Tanzania’s Moshi through Nairobi, the elections and aftermath and the unedited footage of his return. Ends