The Catholic bishops of Eldoret and Kitale dioceses in western Kenya last weekend took American Bishop John Ricard to see for himself the impact of the post-election violence and efforts of reconstruction and peace building.

Bishop Ricard of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee in Florida is a board member of Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and chairman of the Ad-hoc Committee for the Church of Africa under the US Catholic Bishops Conference.

The purpose of his visit was to observe and learn about the situation. He said he would present his findings to the American bishops to see what assistance they could offer. CRS is already supporting internally displaced persons in addition to assisting with peace building efforts in the region through the Catholic Diocese of Eldoret.

During the tour, Bishop Ricard met members of community peace committees in Burnt Forest, Timboroa and Yamumbi who all reported on the progress they were making to reconcile their communities.

The American bishop celebrated mass in Burnt Forest and visited farms in Yamumbi where evicted farmers are returning to their homes. The host communities have been supplied with maize and bean seeds and fertilizer by CRS. The crops aredoing very well and are a source of hope to the IDPs.

Bishop Ricard asked the communities he met to put aside their differences and work together for peace, security and prosperity. He said the world created by God has enough for everyone; there is no need to fight with each other.

A lot still needs to be done in the region to help the victims of the post-election violence to resume normal life. Many relief agencies which came in at the height of the crisis have left, and only a few continue to struggle with the IDPs who are still in camps.Despite the Government efforts to return the IDPs to their homes in the Operation Rudi Nyumbani, many people are still in the camps.

Those who left the formal camps are in what are being called 'transitional camps' which are actually worse in terms of availability of basic services. Many displaced people have no homes to return to. The land is there, but the homes were destroyed. Hardly anyone has the resources to put up even the simplest shelter. The Sh 10,000 being given by the government is meagre, considering the myriad problems plaguing the people.

In the transitional camps, the IDPs are exposed to cold (especially now that heavy rains are on) and poor sanitation. The tents are too small to accommodate families. One must stoop to get inside and remain stooping while inside the tent that has only some bedding spread out on the wet ground. In short, the IDPs are still living in very inhuman conditions and their plight is an urgent.

In the meantime, the Church and other few NGOs are doing what they can to ease the suffering with some necessities while at the same time providing psycho-social support and helping in the reconciliation process through community peace committees. A year or two will simply not be enough to resolve the entire crisis.

[*Ms Wahu is in charge of Social Communications in the Catholic Diocese of Eldoret]