UNITED NATIONS HUMANITARIAN UPDATE vol. 7 February 23-27, 2008 Office of the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Kenya HIGHLIGHTS • African Union mediator suspends talks with mediation teams; negotiations continue with principles from both parties. • Security situation generally calm but localized incidents of violence are reported • UNHCR to begin profiling IDP groups • Nutritional screening of all IDP camps a high priority • Humanitarian agencies begin to prepare IDP camps for the rainy season The information contained in this report has been compiled by OCHA from information received from the field, from national and international humanitarian partners and from other official sources. It does not represent a position from the United Nations. I. General Overview African Union mediator Kofi Annan suspended talks on Tuesday to end Kenya’s political crisis, saying the top leadership of the Party of National Unity and the Orange Democratic Movement must now negotiate directly to break the present lack of progress. Annan, representing Africa’s foremost political body, the African Union, has been trying to broker a peace deal to reconcile the nation over the disputed results of December’s presidential election. The disputed results, buttressed by mutual accusations of cheating, resulted in violence in which some 1,000 people died and an estimated 500,000 displaced. There is concern that the suspended talks, in conjunction with possible IDP fatigue, could trigger new movements or place new burdens on humanitarian operations. While some of the displaced persons have moved to ethnically homogeneous areas, and others have found refuge with host families in areas they consider safe, humanitarian aid personnel say that hundreds of thousands remain in IDP camps awaiting the outcome of the political talks before deciding on either returning to their original areas or relocating. Efforts are underway by UNHCR and the Government of Kenya to understand and track IDPs better. UNHCR will begin to conduct profiling of IDP groups in order to understand the beneficiary population, which has been difficult to categorize given the broad range of social and economic status as well as ethnic affiliation. At the same time, the government, in conjunction with relevant stakeholders, is beginning to register all IDPs at the provincial level to try to avoid previous discrepancies in IDP figures. Humanitarian aid agencies are beginning to prepare for the rainy season in March. The Logistics Cluster in the town of Eldoret, which hosts one of the largest IDP camps, has begun to map areas in the region that will be difficult to reach or inaccessible once the rains start, in order to target them first with distributions. II. Humanitarian Situation - Security 1 Relief workers have continued to gain increased access to affected areas, as order has now been relatively well restored to most areas and security escorts have been reduced. Despite the relative calm tension exists due to the opposition ODM party’s threats of “mass action”, should the talks fail. Kisumu remains calm for now, but it is feared that the many youth milling around the streets would respond immediately to an opposition call to protest. The Mount Elgon area remains tense due to leaflets circulated recently telling people of a certain ethnic group to leave within six days. The threats have been linked to the Sabaot Land Defence Force, which has been active in the area even long before the present political crisis, and has been terrorizing neighbouring Bungoma and Trans Nzoia districts. Police arrested some 203 armed men Tuesday found training on a farm sanctuary in Trans Nzoia. Eldoret and its environments remains calm and police are conducting patrols. Roads leading into and out of the town remain open. Nakuru is also calm and the public is moving about freely. Sporadic incidents of violence were reported last week including three deaths and house burnings in Molo District (Rift Valley Province). On 26 Feb, WFP acting on the recommendation of police in Eldoret, halted planned distributions south-west of Eldoret due to heightened tensions. On 21 Feb, the International Crisis Group (ICG) issued a report titled "Kenya in Crisis" which refers to mobilization of armed groups in Kenya expressing concerns of possible flare-ups of violence if peace talks fail to solve the post-election crisis. The ICG called for legal, electoral and constitutional reforms and for aid to be conditional on a peaceful result. The UN Department of Safety and Security has established security management teams in Nakuru, Eldoret and Kisumu and have deployed Field Security Coordination Officers whose contacts are given below. Working under the framework of Saving Lives Together, an initiative that provides for collaboration between UN and NGO actors on security in the field. There are 35 NGOs participating with UN agencies in field security management. UN DSS is also responding to requests for security assessments for areas of humanitarian operations and have just completed such an assessment in Narok District. Other assessments are ongoing in parts of Nyanza Province and they have looking into assessments in Coast Province, especially in Mombasa. Location FSCO Telephone Eldoret Thomas +254 (0)728-604-375 Acheampong Kisumu Lars Seifert +254 (0)728-604-374 -Population Movements and Displacement Trends Some of the displaced persons have moved to ethnically homogeneous areas, others have found refuge with host families in areas they consider safe. According to the Kenya Red Cross, more than 300,000 persons remain in around 300 IDP camps in Rift Valley, Nairobi, Nyanza, Western and Central Provinces. Many of these await the outcome of the political talks before deciding on either returning to their original areas or in relocating to other areas. IDPs with weak links to areas termed “ancestral homes” are not being very welcomed and some have returned to IDP camps. Since the beginning of the crisis, an unknown number of IDPs relocated to areas of ancestral origin or sought refuge with host families. For example, close to 11,000 IDPs have passed through the Kisumu transit point on the way to their ancestral lands, while in Kisii Nyanza more than 45,000 IDPs are reported mainly living in host families. The Red Cross and the Provincial Food Committee are evaluating the possibility of providing a one or two-week take home ration to transiting families in Kisumu. With the ongoing relocation of IDPs, some factors 2 are emerging that determine whether IDPs return to areas of origin or relocate. These factors include experience of being driven from ones home, social, economic and marital status as well as ethnic affiliation. IDPs have been difficult to categorize, given the broad groups of people already defined by the aforementioned. Therefore, UNHCR is going to conduct profiling of IDP groups so that it can better understand the beneficiary population. There are also discrepancies in IDP numbers. Some figures include significant numbers of displaced persons living within host communities. Therefore, the government is now registering all IDPs through the provincial administration to end this inconsistency. However, there is doubt that the numbers produced this way will be complete as provincial administrations are further removed from direct contact with local residents than are traditional leaders. Hence, stakeholders are asking for involvement in the process. III. Humanitarian Response - CCCM, Protection and Shelter, NFI At the request of the government, the cluster has drafted a “Durable Solutions Framework” intended to guide agency planning for supporting national efforts at the return, relocation and local integration of IDPs when conditions are appropriate. While the draft is under review by all agencies, and will be discussed further with the government during the week, it is clear that due to the ongoing political crisis it is too early to organize or encourage durable solutions for the IDPs, and more focus will be given to the IDPs in current locations of displacement. The plight of 473 IDPs living at the Bahati Police Station in Nakuru has also been a concern for UNHCR, which reported on 22 Feb that IDPs had not received maize meal, and that there were inadequate firewood and latrines. It is reported that food shortages have forced some IDPs to try to return to their farms in the area, but there have been reports of attacks and injuries, particularly in the Solai area. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has supported the first government-led peace and reconciliation meeting with Marakwet leaders and community members at Cheptabot. The IRC has also complete comprehensive gender-based violence assessments in areas in which it operates, to develop an appropriate programmatic response. The Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, aided by UNHCR and the Protection Working Group in Eldoret, is conducting training in North Rift on gender-based violence and response. - Shelter & NFIs According to a UNHCR assessment of the IDP situation in Kisumu carried out 20-25 Feb, IDPs there are still facing major challenges. Some IDPs, unwelcome in their “ancestral homes”, are being forced to return to IDP camps. Others who found shelter with host families have insufficient food supplies, and some have not been receiving any rations at all. The International Rescue Committee has trained 45 Kenya Red Cross volunteers on safe and ethical distribution mechanisms, which includes introduction of distribution guides and post distribution monitoring forms. - Logistics The dispatch of humanitarian commodities was suspended on Thursday because of anticipated mass action demonstrations. The suspension was deemed necessary to avoid roadblocks, looting and possible police confrontation with demonstrators. In the Port of Mombasa, only one bulk cargo is awaiting discharge. There are no container ships waiting but there are 9,643 containers to be cleared, down from 13,664 on 20 Feb. Over the next week, some 14 conventional ships, 14 cargo vessels and eight fuel tankers are expected at the port.