| The US Embassy in Nairobi: Drawing blood from a mosquito? |
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Last year a scandal reported in the Kenyan media involving a Kenyan security officer working at the US Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya highlighted a historical skeptical view of Kenyans towards the US Embassy. According to media reports, a Kenyan employed by the embassy was taking bribes in exchange for his influence within the embassy. The officer allegedly used his position to solicit bribes in exchange for guaranteeing Visas to his “clients.”
It is hard to fathom such activities taking place in the office that represents the interests of the so-called “nation of laws.” But the case is not isolated. KEN has been doing an investigation into allegations by Kenyans seeking Visas being solicited for money by US Embassy employees. Many have reported psychological and sometimes physical abuse by the Embassy Security and other employees. Kenyans report inhumane treatment of the elderly and disabled and even government officials. KEN asked the permanent secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if his office is aware of these allegations. Speaking to KEN, PS Thuita Mwangi, acknowledged that he has received complaints by many Kenyans of the inhumane treatment they receive at the US Embassy in Nairobi. “I have personally asked the US Ambassador Mr. Michael Ranneberger to investigate these accusations. I have expressed concern that the citizens of the Republic of Kenya have expressed shock at the disrespect and mistreatment they have historically received at the United States Embassy,” he said. Mr. Mwangi said he thought it is unacceptable and wrong for a diplomatic mission not to respect the very host who has given it shelter. However, the PS did express regrets that notwithstanding the mistreatment of Kenyans who seek US Visas, Kenyans have committed mischief involving documentation to secure Visas.
Speaking to a senior officer at the US Embassy during our investigation, the counselor assured KEN that the embassy was fair and just in its issuing of Visas. The senior officer denied allegations that the embassy gets involved in any abuse, favoritism, racism, or any other kind of illegality. “We have a standard and guidelines we follow while evaluating every request for a Visa,” he told KEN. “These are State Department standards,” he added. When asked about the US State Department website disclaimer that allows each counselor to use personal judgment in the final decision regarding each Visa applicant, the official told KEN that documentation is not the only criteria used to make the final decision. “We do use other considerations,” he told KEN. It is these “other” considerations that create suspicion among Kenyans. There is testimony by many Kenyans who have visited the embassy that some counselors are outright racists. “Those Americans in Kenya are a bunch of red-necks.” One frustrated Kenyan-American told KEN. “The Americans we encounter in this country are incredibly civil,” he added.
Kenyans who have visited the embassy do not just accuse the embassy of psychological or physical mistreatment only, but also of financial exploitation. A Kenyan pastor who visited the embassy over five times lamented to KEN. “The first time I went there I deposited 8000 Kshs. with the Bank of Africa (US Embassy account). He said that when he went to the embassy again, the counselor asked him to bring more documents. When he went to deliver the documents, the security people told him to go back to produce another receipt showing that he had deposited another 8000 Kshs. into the US Embassy account. He went and deposited the money only to be asked for more documentation. “I spent over 60,000 Kshs. for a Visa I did not receive,” the pastor told KEN in a state of frustration. “I had sold my piece of land to get that money. Now the US embassy has taken it all.”
It would seem then that the discretion given the individual counselors is to allow them to deny Visas so that the embassy can “harvest” the “maize” from poor Kenyan farmers in the name of Visas. One wonders whether this is the same “maize’ that the US government distributes back to Kenya via the US AID program. “This theory makes sense,” a Kenyan student in America told KEN. “When the United States Embassy gives money to projects in Kenya, is it using its own money, or the money it receives from overcharging Kenyans?” the student wondered.
KEN has calculated and found that the US Embassy receives an average of 800,000 Kshs. a day in Visa fees. This is based upon first-time Visa enquiries. If you factor in those who are forced to return a second or third time, the amount becomes astronomical. A good business for the world’s largest economy!
For a country selling itself as the exporter of democracy and justice via its embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, the United States has left a bad taste of exploitation in the mouths of many, many Kenyans.
Compared to other small countries, the US Embassy in Nairobi charges the most fees. Kenya for example charges a one time fee of $50 US to any person entering the country. This is a flat fee with no hidden charges. The Mexican Embassy in Nairobi charges $20 US for a Visa for a Kenyan to visit Mexico. Even the United States nemesis, the Cuban Embassy in Nairobi charges only $20 US.
How a first-world, first-economy “elephant” can suck the blood out of a third- world economic “mosquito” is beyond understanding. What is worse is for the same “elephant” to turn around and accuse the “mosquito” of having no blood in its body. It is these suspicions and experiences that Kenyans in America are hoping their kinsman Barack Obama will address if he is elected president. Until then, the mosquito will get thinner and thinner in the hands of a “just” elephant.
Users' Comments (3) |
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09-04-2008 00:11, , Guest To USA please crawl back into the hole of ignorance u came from. Its a matter of being fair. The US should be a powerful example not show an example of how powerful it can be. » Reply to this comment...
09-02-2008 12:39, , Guest Well said! It's sad that they are milking money fm a 3rd world country. More so, I think their personnel salary comes from the Kenyans. Seem like they incurr zero expenses by having their embassies in the developing world. Maybe we should borrow a leaf but trust me, they would not let us do the same. It's a man eat man world!!!!! » Reply to this comment...
08-31-2008 22:28, , Guest THEN WHY COME TO THE UNITED STATES GO TO CUBA OR MEXICO! » Reply to this comment... |
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