Hundreds of Amnesty activists held a candlelit vigil in Shoreditch on Saturday night (November 13), standing in solidarity with Kenyans forced from their homes.
Hundreds of Amnesty activists held a candlelit vigil in Shoreditch on Saturday night (November 13), standing in solidarity with Kenyans forced from their homes.
There was a lively atmosphere outside the human rights charity’s headquarters in New Inn Yard, where candles were places in front of two bulldozers calling for a stop to the forced evictions.
Bulldozers are regularly used in forced evictions in Kenya, where thousands of people have been forcibly evicted from their homes by the authorities, often with little or no notice, and no alternative accommodation.
Dogon Music Worldwide, a social enterprise which specialises in African art and music and culture, maintained the chanting and rhythm of the vigil with an African drumming performance.
The vigil was held in solidarity with residents of Githogoro village in Nairobi, where homes and buildings were demolished last July, when 3,000 residents were given three hours’ notice to leave their homes.
A year on the bypass that authorities claimed would be built on the site, has still not materialised.
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