Transcript „The Unfathomable Virus“
Main Characters:
1. President Uhuru Kenyatta
2.
Arnold Ithili – Professional Safari Guide – Sunworld Safaris Ltd
3.
Rebecca Lolosoli – Founder & Matriarch of Umoja Uaso Woman’s Village
4.
Tom Lesarge – Chief Warden – Samburu National Reserve
5.
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua,
MBS – CEO Kenya Film Classification Board
6.
Nira Shah
Knausenberger – Marketing Executive – Community Wildlife Fund (CWF)
7.
Sajid Darr
– CEO Viewfinders EPZ Ltd
Time |
Speaker |
Audio |
00:04 |
President Uhuru Kenyatta |
Good Afternoon fellow Kenyans. On the 27th
of March this year, we announced a nation-wide dawn to dusk curfew. And then
again on the 5th of April we augmented this by announcing the
cessation of movement into and out of a number of counties. |
00:30 |
President Uhuru Kenyatta |
That due to evolving nature of the disease
globally, international travel restrictions are hereby extended. |
01:07 |
Arnold Ithili |
My name is Arnold Ithili,
uhm 35 years old, born and broad up in an area called Ndoldol.
That is north of Nairobi. In a remote area, not really a big city but a
small, small town but next to a big forest known as Mukagogo
Forest. |
01:27 |
Arnold Ithili |
So I have been growing up seeing animals and
birds. You know surrounded by a beautiful area but less congested. Not like
the usual city what you can now see. |
01:42 |
Arnold Ithili |
So now at the age of around 14 years I was in
standard 5. That was back in 1998. Then the Uaso
Organization came and showed us some animal documentaries. And within the
documentaries ahm we also saw the tourist vehicles,
carrying tourists. And now I really admired what the safari guide was
explaining about the animals, about the cheetahs especially when they are
hunting. And I really, really had a passion to become a safari guide in the
future. |
02:19 |
Arnold Ithili |
I did a research on what it takes to become a
safari guide. So basically you had to pass good grades in High school then
you go to College to learn about Tour Guiding and wildlife and that’s exactly
what I did and I become a Safari Guide |
02.41 |
Arnold Ithili |
During the busy time especially during the
migration or the high season am out of home for four months nonstop which
means I am busy almost every day. |
02.53 |
Arnold Ithili |
Uhm Especially for
me having specialised in photography safari uhm the Covid
has come and shut everything down. Like everybody is home for now. |
03.06 |
Arnold Ithili |
Well the main problem with our communities
especially Samburu or the Community general like Maasai and pastoralists who
live around the national parks uhm majority of them depends with the tourism. |
03:22 |
Arnold Ithili |
I being one of them. We got our immediate
jobs around the villages we live, like immediate Parks. Another thing when
tourists come they a lot of them they like visiting the nearby villages just
to have some cultural experience. |
03:40 |
Arnold Ithili |
Uhm see the lifestyle of the Maasai and
Samburu and now that also is cut off. |
03:50 |
Arnold Ithili |
What I do like about Samburu and what makes
Samburu one of the special especially in touring destination is the culture.
The people of Samburu they are beautiful, friendly and also uh nature
friendly for conservation. |
04:10 |
Arnold Ithili |
Its beautiful place to also watch elephants
up-close. The elephants in Samburu are super friendly to watch them, to stay
with them, watch their behaviour. |
04:23 |
Arnold Ithili |
Especially when they are swimming the Great Uaso Nyiro River. |
04:47 |
Arnold Ithili |
This is our first morning in Samburu. We are
heading to Umoja Women Village in Samburu. |
04:56 |
Arnold Ithili |
So our aim today
and program is to visit the village which was found in 1990 basically to
rescue the women who have been forced to forced marriage and early circumcision. |
05:08 |
Arnold Ithili |
Uhm so we are distributing food stuff from
donations because the women have been literally depending on Tourism. |
05:17 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
My names are Rebecca Lolosoli |
05:24 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
I am a matriarch of Umoja Uaso
Women’s Village |
05:26 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
I started Umoja we started Umoja in 1990. The
women who have been kicked out of their homes and they were having a lot of
problem because their, they didn’t have anything to depend on together with
their children and the children have been dying because of the problem
because of the diseases; Cholera, Marasmus, Malaria so a lot of problem and
many women died because of the problem and that’s what made us to come and
start Umoja. |
06:22 |
Arnold Ithili |
So Rebecca we want to talk to you about uhm what’s
going on in the Village eh. |
06:29 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Now we have a very hard time |
06:30 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
06:31 |
Rebecca Lolosoli
|
In this Village |
06:32 |
Arnold Ithili |
mmh |
06:33 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Infact
everywhere |
06:34 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
06:34 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Especially those people who depend on Tourism |
06:37 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
06:38 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Because of this Corona Virus |
06:39 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
06:40 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
We have a lot of problems |
06:41 |
Arnold Ithili |
mmh |
06:42 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
This Corona have brought a disaster here |
06:44 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
06:45 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Uhm because there is no food and even you
can’t go to the Center because also of the police arresting people |
06:55 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
06:55 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
If you don’t have mask they you will be
arrested |
06:58 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
06:59 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
And even you don’t go to the market because
you have nothing to go and buy food with |
07:06 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
People are suffering |
07:07 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
07:08 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Very much because of hunger |
07:09 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
07:10 |
Rebecca Lolosoli
|
So we really
appreciate for this food and eh we’ll share with our community because if now
they see this food here everybody will come and ask for food because people
are dying |
07:23 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
07:23 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Because of hunger |
07:24 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
07:24 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Not even because of Corona, its because people have no food |
07:27 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
07:28 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Look at all this children |
07:30 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
07:30 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
They don’t have food |
07:30 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
07:31 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Corona; which even we don’t know which kind
of an animal is this one called Corona because we just heard Corona is umh disease which is killing and you cough, you sneeze
and die |
07:47 |
Arnold Ithili |
So Rebecca considering your stay away from
the City. How did you get this information about Corona? |
07:54 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Infact we didn’t have that awareness |
07:56 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
07:57 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Of Corona Virus. It’s just something we heard
it just people talking about Corona. You know so we are a bit scared of this
disease which we don’t know. |
08:08 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
08:09 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
So even your child when it coughs aaii! Where did you get that cough from? |
08:14 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
08:14 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Nowadays coughing is not normal |
08:15 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
08:16 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
And it’s always normal |
08:17 |
Arnold Ithili
|
Yeah |
08:18 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
And we heard if somebody coughs that’s the
way you get it |
08:20 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah |
08:21 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
In Umoja, that’s the only mh
thing always we depend on, it’s Tourism. We didn’t know something else |
08:30 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
So this is now our jewellery |
08:32 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
08:33 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
This is what we depend on. This is our life |
08:37 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
We make our jewellery and we sell to the
tourists uhm to get food |
08:42 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes. |
08:43 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
So we have no tourists now coming so, we have
nowhere to sell our jewellery |
08:50 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yes |
08:50 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
And that’s why we have a lot of problem
because of Corona Virus |
08:52 |
Arnold Ithili |
Yeah. |
08:54 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
You know with Sambuur ah we really like eeh mmh livestock but as women you know we cannot go for
pastures we cant take and also we used to have
livestock before but they were raid so that one also made us a bit scared of
having livestock as women. |
09: 16 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
And you know our children are going to
school, our boys are not people to go and raid or to revenge and we don’t
even want that because also we are on the other side we are the women who are
trying to keep peace and farming here is not doing well. This is not the
place of farming or to grow anything. Nothing can grow here. We don’t know
how to do it. We are not good on that. We are good on livestock. We are good
on looking after livestock. |
09:47 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Because we grow up looking after livestock.
But doing the farm, we can try but it is a very hard eh thing for us. That
I-I- I don’t know what we can do with that one because it is something we
don’t know how to do it. |
10:07 |
Arnold Ithili |
Speaking about alternative uhm source of
livelihood apart from uhm tourism is kind of a challenge for them. Because the few people I’ve met they got even
no idea on what to do next. Absolutely no idea |
10:42 |
Tom Lesarge |
If it continues more than that you will see
it will be worse. |
10:48 |
Tom Lesarge |
Because you know if it stays more than a year
or something, |
10:53 |
Tom Lesarge |
people will finish their food reserves. |
10:58 |
Tom Lesarge |
It will be a problem because the wildlife
will suffer. |
11:02 |
Tom Lesarge |
One cannot plead at that time. |
11:07 |
Tom Lesarge |
Now people are going to start fighting us |
11:09 |
Tom Lesarge |
because we can't allow people to eat the
wildlife. |
11:14 |
Tom Lesarge |
And maybe if they have finished their food
supply |
11:18 |
Tom Lesarge |
you see they will get into the Parks and
Reserves. |
11:23 |
Tom Lesarge |
The poachers will be many |
11:26 |
Tom Lesarge |
The little money the people have saved, |
11:30 |
Tom Lesarge |
their savings will be finished soon. |
11:33 |
Tom Lesarge |
So now, |
11:36 |
Tom Lesarge |
it's only the government's responsibility to
help |
11:41 |
Tom Lesarge |
the communities to get food. |
11:43 |
Tom Lesarge |
I just think that's what will help people. |
11:51 |
Arnold Ithili |
Now, the question is if you want to involve
the Community uhm with wildlife. They, on myself my opinion is, are they
benefitting from the wildlife? Because we have heard issues of lions
attacking community uhm cows and goats, if they get compensated out of that
then they will they will not see a need to kill the lion |
12:16 |
Arnold Ithili |
The revenue they collect they collect from
tourists some of the money should be set aside to do community projects, dig
boreholes for them provide water, clean water, build a school for them, you
know, sponsor the children the brighter children even to higher education. So
all the community will definitely support the wildlife. |
12:39 |
Tom Lesarge |
Tourism is extremely important. |
12:43 |
Tom Lesarge |
Very important |
12:46 |
Tom Lesarge |
The only thing we need to learn |
12:50 |
Tom Lesarge |
as a nation |
12:52 |
Tom Lesarge |
is our local tourism. |
12:59 |
Tom Lesarge |
Because if we focus on local tourism here, |
13:04 |
Tom Lesarge |
it will be even more important for us. |
13:07 |
Tom Lesarge |
So we will not be depending on international
tourism. |
13:13 |
Tom Lesarge |
It will be local tourists from within |
13:17 |
Tom Lesarge |
and this will help us a lot |
13:20 |
Tom Lesarge |
if we appreciate local tourism. |
13:25 |
Tom Lesarge |
Although tourists from other countries are
also very important. |
13:31 |
Tom Lesarge |
We should be encouraged to travel locally and
promote local tourism. |
13:39 |
Tom Lesarge |
So I think it is very important to be
tourists in our own country. |
13:46 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
Wildlife is something really good and it is
even good for the whole of uh Kenya. In our country this wildlife is bringing
money in our country, its bringing a good economy in our country. So we have
to conserve. We have to love wild animals the way we love our livestock. |
14:10 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
So our children, we must educate them about
wildlife. No killing of wildlife. No killing of birds. No killing of any
wildlife because it makes this country also beautiful and bringing many
people to come and see our beautiful wildlife |
14:31 |
Arnold Ithili
|
So today program we
are heading towards the village to pick some children take them for a game
drive they are actually twenty (20) children in number so actually we have
like five trips to do today and uhm we just learnt that to involve children
in the conversation program is very important |
14:52 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
You know one of the things that we are doing
actually uhm as a Board is to try and eh get our kids to have an interest in
their own country and in the in the in the main uhm in the dynamics that
define who we are and our wildlife is one of the key areas |
15:09 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
And you do that by one, giving them education
like we said then giving them exposure. They need to know and eh they need to
see. I mean eh from my Communication Studies you need more exposure for
something to sink in your mind |
15:25 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
Its eh, to appreciate it, start living it and
for you to own the narrative you need to be exposed to it over and over again |
15:31 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
One of the things that we must do therefore
is to introduce this kind of education in our school system, where kids know
not just the look of an elephant but the the
importance of an elephant and how to relate with an elephant |
15:47 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
Not just how that animal looks like and just
knowing it and ending it there |
15:50 |
Arnold Ithili |
Uhm, a good example of mine, I, my parents
have never upto now taken me to any place to see
animals. I took it myself. And definitely I’ll i’ll
take my children to go and see animals |
16:09 |
Arnold Ithili |
As long as I will be alive I’ll take my son
to see a lion, to see a buffalo. When he grows up am sure he will do the same
to his children |
16:19 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
Our Kids are lost into fancy life that is
being created through social media and they are forgetting what really
matters. That life in its very true definition is rooted in that relationship
between human and human and human and animals and the environment around them
and I think if there is anything we can teach our children right now is not
theoretical studies, it is practical on how to live with their environment |
16:52 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
It’s how to live with their surroundings.
It’s how to appreciate the beauty of nature and take care of that nature and
the environment around them knowing that they have a legacy to leave for
their children. I think this is one of the things if I was the Minister of
Education I will be driving like tomorrow to say this needs to be in the
curriculum. Our kids need to be taken to the national parks as part of
education. |
17:16 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
Why would people come from overseas to see
animals in the national parks when those of us who live next to the park do
not even show any interest in visiting those places |
17:29 |
Arnold Ithili |
Today we came to visit uhm the village and
uhm to meet Rebecca and one of our purpose was to bring this uhm tablet and
uhm when we were here we managed to take some clips of different kind of
animals that are found in Samburu Game Reserve and we were able to translate
some of those animals uhm characteristics and knowledge in different
languages: Swahili and Maa Language |
18:00 |
Nira Shah Knausenberger |
I realized this project when uhm the safari
guides would send me video clippings and they would describe uhm so they
would give a piece of information about it so I thought how cool would that
be if we translated this into Swahili and Maa Language and take this
information and show it to the children residing besides the national
reserves |
18:26 |
Nira Shah Knausenberger |
This is a pilot
project and uhm we’ve only managed to give out one tablet so far and that is
to the Umoja Women’s Village. This tablet we’ve made sure we’ve saved uhm a
few video clippings for the wildlife and at the same time we’ve also
incorporated Elearing as schools are not going to
resume until next year |
18:52 |
Nira Shah Knausenberger |
So I’m hoping that the children do study
their normal syllabus at the same time I’m hoping with this short video
clippings they do actually learn something about the wildlife and they have a
better interest for this wildlife surrounding them |
19:12 |
Arnold Ithili |
Alright, we just got to Umoja Women Village
uhm in our day’s program was to show them a cinema about the elephants in
Samburu ecosystem |
19:23 |
Arnold Ithili |
So we are just off loading this generator
because you know they don’t have power so we have to bring our own power.
It’s quite heavy. |
19:30 |
Sajid Darr |
The idea of Jean’s bush cinema came about after Jean passed away. Jean was
always, she was a person who liked to give back so after she passed on I
always thought I would really like also to give back and to keep her energy
in this universe in Kenya. And one day funnily enough I was just sitting in
my office and I sort of scanned across I saw my collection. We’ve got a
collection of 1,500 wildlife DVDs many of which were shot in Kenya. |
20:15 |
Sajid Darr |
And I thought, that’s it! I am sitting on a
treasure here which I could share with the rest of Kenya and give back |
20:27 |
Sajid Darr |
So you know thinking further about that I
figured it would be really good if kids especially kids from rural areas
living around national parks and reserves and conservancies could see this
movies which focus on their neighbouring wildlife which you know unfortunately
they cannot afford to go in to the parks and therefore don’t get to see the
animals they don’t get to learn about them and that carries on with the
misconception and misleading idea which then turn to later on result in human
wildlife conflict |
21:10 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
You know the power of film as a tool for
passing messages for uhm shaping ideology, character and telling stories
ee.eh cannot be underestimated, because what you see leaves such lasting
impression in your mind. The visuals speak louder and leave a lasting
impression |
21:36 |
Dr. Ezekiel Mutua |
There are places
that you long to visit uhm but you’ve never been there but you talk about these
places as beautiful. Coz
you saw them in a film |
21:46 |
Sajid Darr |
It’s extremely important that the kids who
living next to national parks and, not just them I think Kenyans as a whole. It’s
extremely important that they understand wildlife because this is Kenya’s
natural heritage |
22:03 |
Sajid Darr |
So my hope is from an educational point of
view that they will get to to learn about this
animals through this documentaries and break those uhm ideas, false ideas
that they have about animals being dangerous regardless. You Know. |
22:22 |
Sajid Darr |
Sadly enough as long as there is no money
attached to to any commodity as humans we don’t see
value in it |
22:31 |
Arnold Ithili |
Well, uhm I’m just fascinated with the amount
of concentration given to this elephant film. They look super excited. They
are also happy doing this and sharing with them this experience is so beautiful |
22:45 |
Rebecca Lolosoli |
In Umoja we wish just to educate our children
giving them good education and giving them so that they can have better lives
than us. So that’s what we want to see we have we have done in Umoja and
that’s the legacy we want to leave for our children. Good education |