HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept
{
"id": 395006,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/395006/?format=api",
"text_counter": 147,
"type": "other",
"speaker_name": "",
"speaker_title": "",
"speaker": null,
"content": "a worse life than those who are in the camps. This is because in the camps, even though there are not very nice houses, there is at least some food, clean water, medicine and, sometimes, better schools than the surrounding schools. There is even a possibility that if you are a refugee, you could go abroad and be resettled. So, there are many temptations that attract otherwise very innocent Kenyans to try their luck in the camps. This is because if you go into the camp, then you can benefit from all those things, especially when there was drought and no food in the surrounding areas. Most families thought that, at least, for the children to survive, they should go to the camp and declare that they are Somali citizens. Since the only thing that is required of you is that declaration, you declare. But because the department dealing with refugees wanted to know who is a refugee and who is not, we decided at certain times to take thumb prints of those who joined the refugee camps. So, if you came into the refugee camp and we took your thumb print, name and face, you would get all rations like everybody else. In fact, sometimes they would go back home and come for the rations in the morning, because they did not like the life in the camps. But when they reached 18 years and wanted to join secondary schools or travel, they now wanted identity cards. So, when they come to registration officials, of course, the recommendation is made, but when it comes to our database and we check their thumb prints, we find that they are not Kenyans but refugees. Such a person then says: “No, I am a Kenyan. I just registered there because of this and that.” But we say: “We are not so sure. You could be a Somali or Kenyan. So, we are not registering you yet, until we check.” This checking can take time because there is suspicion already, that since you lied at the beginning, you could very well lie again. So, it has put people into a lot of difficulty. Madam Temporary Speaker, even the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) that deals with this matter is in difficulty. They have said that they do not to feed Kenyans, but refugees. Since Kenyans flocked into the refugee camps and registered and are now caught up in their data as refugees, they cannot refuse them. So, there was a time when they wanted to clean their register and remove those who were not Kenyans. When they started that, actually people volunteered and said: “We are Kenyans and so, remove us.” But even though they had removed them from their data, the Department of Registration of Persons would refuse to register them because they are not so sure. So, this is the dilemma and we must find a way in which to deal with this matter with the department that is in charge of this. Although we will support this Motion and pass it, it is better if a relevant Committee of this House calls the department that is in charge of registration of persons and deals with this matter at depth. This is because, really, we might not deal with it at depth in this kind of debate. Madam Temporary Speaker, what is the danger of refusing to register Kenyans because you are doubtful of their citizenship? First, the danger is that you make them stateless. This is because if a person cannot register in Kenya and is a Kenyan and not a Somali, anyway, he becomes stateless. I think that we have debated this at international The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}