Whiteband Action in Kenya
Achim Chiaji

Today (July 01) the Kenyan GCAP Coalition sent out powerful delegations of activists to petition some of the G8 Embassies with the message for debt cancellation, more and better quality aid and immediate removal of harmful conditionalities that come with any new loans. The Embassies visited were Japan, Germany, USA and Italy.

This followed an international press conference in which the Kenyan statement was read and several media interviews offered on the GCAP demands. After these visits, the Chairman of the Kenya Poverty Eradication Commission, Dr. J. B. Oluoch flagged off the draping of Kenya’s landmark building Kenyatta International Conference Centre with a whiteband with a huge crowd cheering form the ground. For the next one week the white band will hang on the 24th flour of the 32 storey building reminding the both national leaders and the G8 nations that enough is enough. The TIME TO ACT IS NOW to eradicate poverty.

Tomorrow we will march from various corners of the city to converge at Uhuru park from 9.00 O’clock in the morning to Uhuru Park Kenya’s historic independence celebration grounds, from where leader of Kenya’s over 23 faiths including Muslims, evangelicals, Catholics, Hindus, traditional religions, Baháis among many others will join up with the antipoverty campaigners, political leaders and the ordinary citizens to reiterate the call for action. African Snap adverts will be displayed signifying the support of various celebrities for the GCAP call in Africa. Thereafter, a giant petition will be signed which Kenyan campaigners will deliver to the G8 rally in Edinburgh. The closing event will be the building of a human Chain to signify the global solidarity around our key demands.