Well. It’s my last day at IcFEM...

Well. It’s my last day at IcFEM, and we come to what I believe will be my final installment here. I have to say, I’ve had such a wonderful stay, working with the Gap Programme, and I thank you so much for all of your prayers, because they really have materialised. I have enjoyed every second here: although some days have been more challenging than I expected, I have experienced more in these three short weeks than I could have ever dreamt of. So I thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for facilitating my visit.

As ever, I’ve been so busy with the Gap Programme, I haven’t had time to update my blog this week. My apologies. I’ll attempt to give you an overview of the visits this week, although I’ve done so much, some of the stories may have to wait until my return!

After a relaxing day at the IcFEM office on Monday, on Tuesday we found ourselves again boarding boda bodas to the house construction site where we had spent the previous week. The house, having been finished on Monday, was going to be handed over to its new owner: a gentleman named Wyclif Simba Obara. The grin on his wizened old face as he was officially presented with his home was truly heartwarming. After a short sermon in a nearby church, we were given lunch.

The following day, Matthew and I visited Bungoma: the district capital, to spend some time in a Kenyan courtroom. Although the Kenyan legal system is largely based on that of the English, thus the framework is relatively similar, the court itself was very different. Much of the discussion was in Kiswahili, and any English dialogue was often muffled. In the morning we viewed over 30 cases being mentioned with defendants brought into court for a couple of minutes, advocates talking over their heads, then the clueless defendants being ushered back to a room to await trial. A trial which may take minutes, hours, days, months or even years to come to the attention of the court.

In the afternoon, we viewed two cases, one concerning a man who had knocked someone from a boda boda whilst driving, the other concerning the rape of a young mother. A gentleman sitting next to Matthew realized we were having trouble understanding quite what was going on, and kindly provided a translation. However, the cases were presented in a haphazard manner; many witnesses failing to appear. Sometimes the advocates themselves seemed unsure of what they were trying to prove or disprove. We left later that afternoon, somewhat confused and extremely exhausted from trying to make sense of the stories unfolding before us.

The courtroom was certainly an experience, but I think it is fair to say that I found the visits on Thursday to be a little more productive. Early on Thursday morning we boarded a matatu, then a bus to Kakamega, where we were due to meet the district probation officer. We succeeded in locating him and he was eager to take us to our chosen location- the Kakamega juvenile prison. I have written a short article about this visit, which I will relay to you on my return. I can say, however, that I came away from the prison with a great deal of sympathy for the number of its inmates.

We were asked if we also wanted to visit the main prison of the town. I knew the experience would be extremely interesting and agreed instantly.

Kakamega prison currently has over 900 inmates; half of whom have committed capital offences for which they will spend their life behind bars. The prison contains both female and male convicts, and others awaiting trial. The cells do not have beds- we saw about 3 mattresses in total- prisoners sleep on the cold stone floors. Some cells were no bigger than a large kitchen table, yet housed 7 inmates. The prisoners were locked in their cells all day apart from an outside at lunch and dinner.

Inmates have the opportunity to the word of God brought by visiting preachers, and some are able to crowd round a tiny black and white television to watch the news. Some lucky prisoners are permitted to assist in farming, cooking, the prison medical room and pharmacy, and with administrative duties. However, disease is prevalent: malaria, TB, STIs and skin infections being most common.

Any prisoner attempting to escape will of course be instantly shot by one of the guards in the four watch towers. A harsh environment to spend the reminder of your days is it not. I have many prison stories to tell, but again these can wait until my return, for I have (as usual) a limited amount of time to write.

I spent Thursday evening having dinner with Solomon and his family, and another visitor - Clare. The food was delicious- particularly the chapattis which I have grown to love. The delectable company made it a particularly enjoyable evening. I later had the opportunity to fellowship a little with Solomon and I feel as though I learnt a great deal.

Friday and Saturday morning were filled with goodbyes and sorting out details for my upcoming travels. I’m just about to leave IcFEM to journey to Kisumu with Matthew and Clare. I’ll certainly miss this place, and all of the wonderful people I’ve had chance to meet and spend time with. I only hope it's not too long before I can return!

My love to all

Emma.