| THE Archbishop of York has appealed for funds for humanitarian relief in Kenya.
Dr Sentamu, addressing the General Synod on Wednesday after his visit to Kenya last week, said that there had been progress in talks between the two main parties, at odds since the disputed December election. But after more than 1000 people had been killed, and 300,000 forced from their homes by the fighting, humanitarian relief was a top priority.
As part of the response, Dr Sentamu told Synod that he and the Archbishop of Canterbury were setting up a special fund, together with the Church Mission Society.
“In the many camps, I saw people with broken limbs and other physical injuries, and many who had been terribly traumatised. One woman had lost her mind, because she saw her husband hacked to death in front of her children.”
The Church was seen by President Kibaki and the Opposition leader, Raila Odinga, as vital in humanitarian relief, peace-building, and reconciliation, he said.
The cathedral in Kisumu was the centre of relief operations. Tribute had been paid to the Bishop of Masero and his counterparts in other Churches. Bishops were in the forefront of the relief effort in Eldoret, in collaboration with other Christian leaders, Tearfund, Christian Aid, Catholic Relief Services, World Vision, World Relief, Churches Together in Kenya, and the Kenya Red Cross.
Church leaders are working alongside the Kofi Annan peace talks in Kenya, acting as mediators, said a spokesman for the Christian relief agency Tearfund this week.
Peter Gitau, regional adviser in Nairobi, said that Tearfund was helping church leaders work with both sides. “We have visited affected areas together with the political leaders. We have been calling for peace, facilitating meetings for church leaders from the affected communities — Luos, Kikuyus, Kalenjins and the Luhyas.”
The church political mediation team has currently held two meetings with President Kibaki, and two with Mr Odinga, whose supporters are contesting the December presidential elections.
President Kibaki attended a service of national prayers last week organised by the Inter-Religious Forum, which is made up of Christians, Muslims, and Hindus.
The Forum, chaired by the Archbishop of Kenya, the Most Revd Benjamin Nzimbi, held the day of national prayers to give what it has described as a faith-based lead to the crisis.
“We called it to talk about hope. By praying together it brings blessing for our nation. We have hope for a better Kenya,” said Archbishop Nzimbi, reports Ecumenical News International.
The World Aids Campaign warned this month of the effects of the crisis on those living with HIV and AIDS, and praised the work of church groups.
Church-based groups, their partners, and other organisations have mobilised support to provide anti-retroviral drugs across the camps, a campaign spokeswoman told ENI.
She added that there had also been an increase in the number of reported rapes and sexual assaults, making people more vulnerable to infection.
“This is totally unacceptable, but we must realise conditions in the camps are not conducive to the protection of women and girls,” said Paul Mbole, the Norwegian Church Aid co-ordinator for Kenya and Uganda, who also chairs the Action by Churches Together (ACT) Kenya Forum.
African Enterprise, a Christian charity based in Essex, said this week it was working closely with the Red Cross to help displaced people in a camp near Nairobi. The charity said that it was supplying food, clothing and counselling services alongside the medical help provided by the Red Cross.
Many of those arriving at the camp have machete or panga cuts, it reported.
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