Nairobi - The Peace Corps is suspending its programs in Kenya because of
security concerns and is pulling more than 50 volunteers out of the country
until threat levels decrease, the Peace Corps and State Department said on
Thursday.
A statement to The Associated Press from the State Department said that the
Peace Corps "has been closely monitoring the security environment in
Kenya... and has decided to officially suspend the programme in Kenya." The
Peace Corps will monitor the security situation and determine when
volunteers can return, it said.
The decision comes amid a tightening of security by the US Embassy in Kenya,
which has seen dozens of grenade and gunfire attacks over the last two
years. Earlier this year the embassy increased the number of security
personnel at the embassy and put armed Marines behind sandbag bunkers on the
embassy roof.
The State Department also reduced the number of US personnel here by moving
a regional USaid office out of the country.
"While volunteers are leaving, the Peace Corps plans to retain its office in
Kenya and will continue to assess the safety and security climate," said
Shira Kramer, the spokesperson for the Peace Corps.
The decision to suspend the Peace Corps programme has been in the works for
a while but was not announced publicly. US warnings about the high risk of
terror attacks in Kenya always ruffle the feathers of Kenyan leaders, and
the State Department and Peace Corps statements underscored the long
US-Kenya relationship and the hundreds of millions of dollars the US pours
into Kenya every year.
But it was clear that given the grenade and gunfire assaults, as well as the
massive bombing of Westgate Mall last year that killed at least 67 people,
the government felt that its Peace Corps volunteers - who live in far-flung
villages with little security protection - were vulnerable.
Recent Peace Corps volunteers in Kenya said they felt the US government
program did a good job of keeping them updated about security, including the
sending of security text messages, but they acknowledged that security was
deteriorating and that ensuring a safe environment for the dozens of
volunteers was all but impossible.
Hair on your neck
"Some volunteers weren't very pleased with the level of security they
provided, but I'm not sure what they were expecting. We don't have security
guards to protect us, and it's Kenya, so sometimes bad things happen
regardless of any preventative measures," said Nik Schuetz, a 28-year-old
volunteer in Kenya from 2009-11 now studying at the University of Kansas.
"They taught us to be smart about our surroundings and to trust the hairs on
the back of our necks to sense whether it was a safe situation or not. And
some things like bombings or grenade attacks, you just can't prepare for
other than leaving the country," he said.
Anna Martin a Peace Corps volunteer in Busia, Kenya from 2010-12 who still
lives in the country, said she always felt safe as a Peace Corps volunteer
because the US mission was "always making the best decisions regarding our
safety and well-being."
"My opinion ... is that things just weren't getting better," said Martin,
who remained in Kenya after her Peace Corps commitment was completed. "Peace
Corps had already taken measures to protect volunteers but had to ultimately
make a bigger decision. And it a wise one."