Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 711785,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/711785/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 42,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Dr.) Pukose",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1458,
        "legal_name": "Robert Pukose",
        "slug": "robert-pukose"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker for allowing me to contribute on the Refugees Bill. This is a very important Bill. As you are aware, our country has been a host of refugees for a long time. That is right from when we had destabilisation in Uganda in the 1970s, refugees from Somalia in the 1980s and refugees from Sudan and other places. Issues about refugees and how we handle them are key. As much as we do not call them refugees, we have had cases of Kenyans being displaced following post- election violence. We had Kenyans being displaced to a neighbouring country like Uganda. As we speak, I am aware of some Kenyans who are still holed up in some foreign countries. They are still camping in Uganda especially in a place called “Riwa” in Bukwo District. We are talking about more than 1,000 Kenyans who are Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). The last time I spoke to them, we had advised them to seek support from the Kenya High Commission which has been very slow in responding to the plight of those Kenyans at Riwa Camp. I think there is a technical problem. Hon. Deputy Speaker, these are Kenyans who deserve to come back and be resettled as IDPs. I do not know whether we will call them IDPs because they went beyond the border. In one way or another, they became refugees. The unfortunate thing is that the International Red Cross and refugee agencies had not registered them. It is also a question of people knowing their rights and understanding what is open for them so that they can address their plight. We hope the Government will respond, bring them back to the country and resettle them like other Kenyans so that they can engage in meaningful activities. We also have challenges especially in Sudan because for many years, Kenyans have hosted refugees from that country. It is unfortunate that Kenyans who have gone to look for livelihoods in South Sudan have not got the same treatment from the Sudanese and Sudanese Government in terms of their safety and their access to opportunities. This is the case and yet the Sudanese who continue to live in our country and take their kids to schools within our country are being treated fairly. So, we also want the Government of South Sudan to treat the Kenyans who are in South Sudan in a fair and humane way. Let them give opportunities to those Kenyans the same way we have accommodated the Sudanese within our country and allowed them to take their children to school and even do business. With those few remarks, I think there is some problems with the microphone. I ask the technical people to look at it."
}