Sophie Ngugi - A Child of the universe

RIP- 16th April 2011 Once in a while, I interact with community members in the process of my work who leave a great impact in my life; such was the case with Margaret Kiumo. I cannot recall the first time I met Margaret but I know it was in 2004 when I was newly employed at the Women’s Resource Centre and Development Institute (WRCDI). It was my first trip to Makueni, meeting a group of volunteers for a training workshop and I arrived late in the evening. I had been given her contact “in case of anything” and I found myself at home! She was quite welcoming, calm and composed, with maturity that was just amazing. With time she became my mark for Wote Makueni, any time I was in the field I knew I “I was in safe hands”. Margaret was one of the trained community advocates who were referred to as the Violence Against Women (VAW) Advocates, a role she performed with her whole heart. I came to meet her sister Mary and some of her friends as her salon became my ‘office’ in Makueni. I was no...

Opportune moment - God loves Kenya Reflections by Sophie Ngugi ‘The day is here” That is the sentence in the tongues of many Kenyans at this time. We have about 24 hours to commencement of the cases of what have commonly come to be referred to as ‘the Ocampo 6’. This follows the naming of six individuals by the Chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Luis Moreno Ocampo named the six as the persons who hold highest criminal responsibility on the Post Elections Violence (PEV) in 2007/2008. The PEV holds sad memories for all Kenyans, within and without the country and for the rest of the world as violence we did not think possible dominated our nation. While the violence was generally said to result from disputed elections in 2007, more so the presidential results, it is generally believed that the violence was planned for the most part. While the names of the six are in public domain and are mentioned literally every minute, I will not repeat these names as I re...