Group seeks counselling sessions for the displaced

By Ally Jamah

The latest report on the status of IDPs has urged the Government to organise bi-annual counselling for IDPs worst affected by post-election violence.

The report issued by the Kenya Human Rights Commission and the National Network for IDPs in Kenya says many IDPs have not received adequate counselling and are still nursing bitter wounds of conflict and loss in silence.

"The last time the IDPs received counselling and psychosocial support from the Government was in 2008, when hired counsellors visited the main camps," said Kenya Human Rights Commission’s Davis Malombe.

The KHRC official explained that their visits to IDP camps in Rift Valley and other areas revealed that many IDPs, who lost property and relatives, are yet to heal from the trauma, with some experiencing body paralysis due to emotional burdens.

"Counselling is not a one-off thing. It is a continuous process that must be kept up till the victims achieves emotional stability. The Government must revive that programme, at least twice every year," said Chair of the IDP Network Keffa Magenyi.

The report also urged the Government to provide a breakdown of how Sh8 billion was spent on IDPs in the last two years to determine if cash was well spent.

"All public statements we have from the Government only provide general figures. We want specific data on how much was spent on which IDP," added Malombe.

The Standard has learnt that an exercise to verify how IDP money has been spent and the authenticity of the IDP lists prepared by the Ministry of Special Programmes will start in the next two weeks.

The project will involve Unicef, Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, KHRC and the Refugee Consortium of Kenya.