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Civil society and the consolidation of democracy in Kenya: an analysis of a Catholic parish's efforts in Kibera slum

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 November 2010

Christine Bodewes
Christine Bodewes*
Affiliation:
4696 Snow Hill Road, Salisbury, MD 21804, USA
*
Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

This article tests the theory of advocates who celebrate the potential of civil society to promote and deepen democracy in Africa, by examining whether the human rights ministry of a Catholic parish in Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya was able to consolidate democracy through a civic education programme during 2002–5. It concludes, from an analysis of the social, economic and political environment in Kibera, that parishioners who participated in the programme demonstrated an observable improvement in their democratic values and behaviour at a localised level within their own parish groups. However, civic education did not stimulate most participants to increase their involvement in advocacy and lobbying efforts to hold government officials to account for their abuse of power in Kibera. Parishioners were inhibited from promoting their rights primarily due to fears of violent retaliation by local government officials and politically sponsored youth wingers. Other factors such as apathy, ethnic divisions, limited resources and restrictive church protocols further curtailed parishioners' actions.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Modern African Studies , Volume 48 , Issue 4 , December 2010 , pp. 547 - 571
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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Newspaper

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Interviews (all conducted in Nairobi)

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