Nairobi
20 June 2008
As fighting in Somalia between Islamist insurgents and the transitionalgovernment backed by Ethiopian troops has intensified over the pastyear, thousands of refugees have been streaming into neighboring Kenya,despite the Kenyan government's decision to close the border inJanuary. While the majority take up residence in the vast refugee campsnear the border, many skip the camps and head for the Kenyan capital,Nairobi. Derek Kilner has more from VOA's East Africa bureau.
SinceSomalia's government collapsed in 1991, tens of thousands, perhapshundreds of thousands of Somalis have made their way to the Kenyancapital. Most of them head to the neighborhood of Eastleigh, on theoutskirts of downtown Nairobi, transforming what was once an enclavefor Kenya's Indian population into what has come to be known as "LittleMogadishu."
The air is filled with the sounds of the Somalilanguage and the smell of Somali food and spices. Somali men gather totalk outside small mosques and women pass by in hijabs. But whatstrikes the visitor most is the bustle of one of Nairobi's mostthriving commercial centers.
Aided by an extensive smugglingnetwork, the neighborhood is a major regional hub for low-priced goods.The narrow streets are lined with shops, stalls, and makeshift standsoffering everything from textiles and used clothing to the mild leafystimulant known as kaat.
Kenya has a sizable ethnic Somalipopulation, and many of the shop-owners are Kenyans. But much of theeconomy is driven by Somalis working informally, lacking Kenyanimmigration papers and, having chosen to avoid the refugee camps,lacking documented refugee status and assistance from the UnitedNations.
Mohamed Ahmed Yahye works in a street-front shopselling shampoo, perfume and other products. He says he works all dayand doesn't have the time to apply for refugee status. He says he makesenough to pay his rent and put food on the table, but nothing extra.
MulkiAbdullahi, who sells textiles from a sidewalk stand, fled from Somaliaas a young girl in the early years of the civil war. Now in her early20s she has spent nearly her whole life in Eastleigh, but her status isjust as precarious.
Many of the young Somalis in Eastleighcannot even find informal work. Adam Yusuf Jimale came to Nairobi in2003, after spending two years at the Kakuma refugee camp near theSudan-Kenya border.
"There is no place to work, because I amrefugee," he said. "I live with my friends. I don't like to stay inthis country, because many times I look for the job, everything dependson the ID."
Yusuf Issak, who was a high school principal in Mogadishu, has been in Nairobi for six months.
"Registrationis not something easy, it's too difficult," he explained. "Until nowwe are searching to get registration. I have tried many times.
Thesteady stream of new arrivals from Somalia has driven up housing costs.Abdi Nasr Kujufay, who was a teacher in Mogadishu, fled to Kenya inOctober last year.
"The rent is very expensive," he noted. "Other expenses are very expensive. It's very hard."
ManyKenyans have been priced out of the neighborhood, with Somalis sharingapartments, sometimes as many as nine or 10 to a room. Those withoutwork often stay with relatives or friends who have jobs, or who receivemoney from family abroad. Issak, the former principal, receives moneyfrom relatives in Australia and Britain.
The explodingpopulation and commerce has overwhelmed the neighborhood's aginginfrastructure. Unpaved roads become sticky with mud when it rains ordusty when the weather is dry. The narrow streets are perpetuallyjammed with traffic and trash piles up on the side of the road. Withthe Kenyan government largely turning a blind eye to the refugeepopulation, the neighborhood receives little in the way of publicservices.
With few police around, crime is also a problem.Muggings and carjacking are common, and the neighborhood, many say, isthe place to go to purchase automatic weapons.
When police docome to Eastleigh, it is often to crack down on undocumented aliens.The Somali population has been a source of terrorism concerns, andsweeps have often followed terrorist attacks like the 2005 Londonbombings, when East African Muslims were suspected of involvement.
Despite the struggles of daily life, Issak says things are much better than in the country he left.
"Thedifficulty is about the document only," he said. "There is fighting inMogadishu, but I prefer to stay here. One day I will get that documentas I hope, after that I will leave to Australia."
Like mostrefugees in Eastleigh, Issak would like to return to Somalia whenfighting ends. But with international peace efforts showing few signsof slowing the conflict, it may be a long time yet before he sees hishome.