A Headteacher’s “Wish List”

This painting titled “My Village in Sudan”, taken from the UNHCR Refugee Art website was done by a young Sudanese artist named Bor Alier.  Bor lives in Kakuma and was aged 17 when he did this.  He explained his painting this way:  “People came to visit our village and ask how we were and what…

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Refugees in East Africa

Well, I am pleased to say I got immediate feedback on the last blog including requests for more background on the refugee situation in East Africa. I usually try to keep it short, not wanting to bore the poor reader but as this is an important subject and one in which I have considerable first-hand…

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A Visit to Kakuma

Background: In a previous blog I discussed a visit to Kakuma, the large UNHCR refugee camp located in northwest Kenya.  Here some new arrivals put up a temporary shelter. East Africa has long suffered from unstable governments, rebel insurgency, terrorism, warfare, droughts and flooding.  As a United Nations Peacekeeper, I spent several years working and…

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