Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding in Kakuma Refugee Camp: Finding solutions in the community

About 40km and measuring 15 square kilometers, North West of Kakuma, is Kalobeyei Integrated Settlement. Kalobeyei was established in 2015 to cater to the large number of South Sudanese who fled their country due to the conflict in December 2013. Now, it is home to close to a hundred thousand refugees and asylum seekers, and the Turkana host community, vibrant with diversity and life.

Diversity in itself is a beautiful thing. It is an aspect that unites people and leads to meaningful collaborations, cultural appreciation, and a fresh perspective on the worldview. Kakuma and Kalobeyei are diverse from the beads around the neck of the Turkana women, to the different religious practices, dressing, food, and language. But with all this, it still has its challenges.

Kalobeyei has enjoyed 9 years of peaceful co-existence, until the recent devastating event. On June 20th, 2024 a conflict broke out between two alleged communities in Kakuma (Nuer a pastoralist community from South Sudan, and Anuak, an agro-pastoralist group from Ethiopia).

What began as a minor disagreement between two boys from different refugee communities during the World Refugee Day celebrations in Kalobeyei Village 2 gradually escalated into full-blown violence over a few days. This conflict spread to other parts of Kalobeyei and Kakuma refugee camps, including Villages 1, 3, and Kakuma 2, resulting in casualties from the warring groups and other communities.

Ongoing unrest has forced a portion of refugees from the affected communities to flee to other counties in Kenya, while some sought refuge in churches within Kakuma. 

The violence has disoriented the living situation in the camp, causing displacement and putting a halt to socioeconomic activities among others. Organizations working within the affected areas have been forced to either halt their activities in the community or work with vigilance, as they continue with their daily work.

As a refugee-led organization with headquarters in the camp and staff and volunteers living in the affected areas, we had to take extra precautions. While continuing to serve the community, we prioritized the safety of our beneficiaries and staff, sometimes enforcing work-from-home arrangements or taking brief breaks when necessary.

However, the question remains, how do we ensure social cohesion among the community members and advocate for peace and peaceful ways to resolve conflicts?

I believe that solutions are found within the community. Creating a lasting change starts with the leaders and the youth, the two most influential groups of people in the camp.

On behalf of RAI, I, Nira Ismael, conversed with Mr Odhieng Akway, the Chairman of Kalobeyei Village 2 and the acting overall Chairman of Kalobeyei to get insights of the conflict, its effect on the lives of the community, and how best peaceful conflict resolution can be achieved.

Local solutions to resolving conflicts: Interview with Mr. Odhieng Akway

Mr. Odhieng Akway in his office.

Mr. Odhieng Akway is an Ethiopian businessman who has lived in Kakuma for seven years and established several successful trades in the Kalobeyei and Kakuma refugee camp. He is a committed husband and a respected father of five children. His dedication to his work and family is evident in his organized and productive environment.

Q1. Can you describe the initial events that led to the onset of the conflict?

A: On June 20th, 2024, during the World Refugee Day celebrations in Village 2, a disagreement erupted between two boys from the Nuer and Anuak communities. It was a back-and-forth argument. One claimed the other took his headscarf and the other claimed it was his in the first place. This unfortunately broke into a fight and one of the Anuak boys was injured and they retaliated by throwing stones at the other group.  What I thought was the end of the disagreement escalated and on the 24th of June 2024, a Nuer leader was attacked and injured on his way to a shop. Fortunately, he was rushed to the clinic. 

Q2. How did you personally experience the beginning of the conflict?

A: After the leader was injured, on 28th June 2024, the conflict got out of hand. That night I remember, the unrest in my community. Everyone was looking for a safe place to be with their families. A group of angry and armed youths was approaching my compound. The only way out was to jump over the fence. Why my disability, I jumped over the fence trying to save my life. I had to witness a traumatizing act; my neighbor getting stabbed. I did not think he would survive, but luckily he did.

Q3. What were the immediate impacts of the conflict in your community?

A: As I am talking to you now, I no longer live with my family. Two of my kids I left them in Nairobi and I only talk to them occasionally while the rest are with their mother. The events I witnessed during the conflict have traumatized me. I have lost all of my property and I am back to zero. When it comes to the whole community, the distrust level is quite high. We are leaving in fear because we don’t know when your neighbor can turn on us. The thieves have also taken advantage of this by looting people’s belongings. The poverty levels have also increased because people are not going to work, they are not paid and they have no means to support themselves and their families.

This is the remains of one of the ‘rooms’ in his home after the conflict. In the back, his fence was taken down.

Q4. Can you provide an estimate of the number of people who were harmed, injured, or displaced?

A: I might not know the exact number of those harmed or injured, but about 4000 people from the Anuak community fled to Ruiru, Kiambu county in Nairobi for fear of their lives. 

Q5. How has the conflict affected the daily lives of the people in the community?

A: People in the community are living in fear. I do not even sleep in my home because my house was broken into, my fence brought down, and the doors were snatched so I have to find a safer place to stay. When you look around you find children at home because their parents do not think it is safe to let their kids go to school. The houses are empty because no one wants to come back to the community, and the businesses and shops are barely open.

Q6. What measures were initially taken to respond to the violence?

A: There were dialogues and negotiation meetings held by UNHCR between the two communities. Peace talks were held and leaders from the communities were present. In these talks, the leaders were urged to spread messages of peace to their youth and urge them to not fight. However, there is a long-term enmity between these communities but I hope with continued peace talks, the community will be safe again. The police also beefed up the security in the community and the patrols.

Q7. How has the conflict affected the socio-economic conditions of the community?

A: When you look at the Anuak, they have been in the camp for a long time and they make up almost 50% of the employees. As they had to flee, this affected the schools, and health clinics, as there were few employees and this caused a strain. Businesses were closed for almost a week following the conflict, the students were not going to school, pushing them behind in their studies, and the community was deserted with only a handful of people in the community. 

Q8. What are some of the coping mechanisms and resilience strategies that members of the community have adopted in the face of the conflict?

A: The youth have been at the center of this conflict. Both leaders from the two communities have taken up the task of having constant gatherings with the youth on peace. We have also leveraged with the church leaders and every Sunday we ensure there are talks on peaceful coexistence, and urging the youth the put down their weapons and stop the fights. Apart from that, we urge everyone to walk in pairs or large groups and avoid lonely roads as this might make them susceptible to attacks. Movement at night has been restricted, and only the police are allowed to patrol the place at night. Since we are reaching the youth, we have also relied on WhatsApp to relay messages of peace in the camp.

Mr Odhieng’s shops that were broken into, his goods looted, and iron sheets taken.

Q9. As a leader, what are the next steps for achieving peace and reconciliation?

A: Before I was relocated to Kalobeyei, I stayed in Dadaab for 14 years. There was no time I heard of a fight between the Nuer and Anuak communities. Do you know, why? Because they lived far apart from each other. Quite a long distance. I believe this aided in controlling the possible conflicts between the two. So maybe in Kalobeyei, we can adopt that strategy as well. Another thing is the continued peace talks with the communities. This will help in instilling the spirit of social cohesion and peaceful co-existence. Security forces or the police should also be deployed. A permanent police post between the two communities would aid in controlling the movement.

Q10.  Looking towards the future, how can the community work together towards building lasting peace?

A: One of the most effective ways is by forming a joint peace committee that will be tasked with the role of promoting peace, solving disputes at the community level, and bringing perpetrators to justice. For example, if from the beginning the first perpetrators were brought to justice from either of the community, then none of this would have happened. The second is strengthening the leaders' capacity for peaceful co-existence. This will ensure that when faced with any sort of conflict, they can deal with it accordingly.

''This conflict has affected the lives of thousands of people in the community. Conducting frequent peace talks will help strengthen the community and rebuild the trust lost.''