Refugee Athletes Join Race for Peace

When she was 12 years old,  Lydia Phillip was forced to flee to Kenya with her parents after violence broke out in South Sudan. With their whole village razed to the ground in 2013, they had no option but to cross the border into Kenya where they settled at Dadaab refugee camp. Peace is important to Lydia, therefore on 10 November 2018, she joined thousands of Kenyans and Ugandans in a peace race in Kapenguria, West Pokot County, Kenya.

“I had to endure the pain of running for ten kilometres on hilly terrain to send a message that peace can also be promoted through sports”

Although the race was tough, I had to endure the pain of running for ten kilometres on hilly terrain to send a message that peace can also be promoted through sports,” she said

 

Thousands of people from all walks of life gathered in Kapenguria in West Pokot County, Kenya for the annual Tegla Loroupe peace race on 10 November, 2018.  The race that was in its fifteenth (15^th) edition was for the first time graced by refugee athletes under the UNHCR Kenya and Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation (TLPF) project that trains refugees and Kenyan athletes to prepare them to be professional athletes.  The theme for this year’s race was, “Building Bridges, Inspiring Talents for Youth and Development.”

“We are happy to be part of the race because we want to stand in solidarity with Kenyans from West Pokot County that are yearning for peace,” remarked Pur Biel, a South Sudanese refugee and Olympian, as he warmed up for the 10 km race.

“War is more expensive than peace”

Pur is one of 30 refugee and Kenyan athletes who joined the event.  Speaking on behalf of fellow refugees, Pur thanked the people of Kenya for hosting refugees for decades and called on the reformed warriors to embrace peace, “War is more expensive than peace,” he pointed out.

25 year Rose Nathike, a refugee from South Sudan, and a speaker at the recent Social Forum on Sports and Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland, was among two of the female refugee athletes who made it to the top ten positions in the women elite category of the peace race.

“I am happy to have completed the 10km race. I only run short races of 1500 metres so this was a great achievement for me,” she said.

Speaking at the awards ceremony, the Inspector General of Police, Joseph Boinett, who was the chief guest applauded UNHCR’s support.

“We thank UNHCR for working closely with the Government in hosting refugees and also in its peace and security efforts.”

He also praised Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation (TLPF) for spearheading peace efforts in the region through the peace race.  “The race signifies our desire to live in peace with our neighbors; let us compete in the peace race and not in cattle rustling.”

“We thank UNHCR for working closely with the Government in hosting refugees and also in its peace and security efforts.”

60 year old Hellen Pulukol, a Government official from Uganda and chairperson of Women Forum for Peace in Uganda’s Karamoja region stressed on the need to educate and empower women to participate in peace committees, participate in elections and decision making and speak against child marriages, FGM and GBV.  The highlight of the two day event was the participation of 300 reformed warriors in the dialogue forums, walk and race. The reformed warriors had been engaged in cattle rustling across different pastoral communities in Kenya and Uganda.  Through TLPF, various warring communities had embraced dialogue in resolving conflicts often fueled cattle rustling, and search for pasture and water for animals.

The UNHCR Kenya Representative, Raouf Mazou, praised the efforts of Tegla Loroupe, Kenyan marathoner and peace icon, who is the founder of Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation (TPLF), National Police Service and county government officials for organising the race as well as the five kilometre walk through the town that culminated in a gathering of communities to dialogue on peace, environmental conservation, and calls to end Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and Gender Based Violence (GBV).

“UNHCR understands the consequences of conflict and we are proud to be partners with TLPF, an organisation that understands cross border dynamics with local responses to conflict,” he said.

Mr. Mazou added that UNHCR would continue to partner with the Government of Kenya and other organizations to find durable solutions for communal conflicts in host and refugee communities.  “The partnerships align to our new way of managing refugee issues, also known as Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework, that calls for inclusion of refugees in community activities,” he noted.

Prior to the annual race, the quiet town of Kapenguria had its streets filled with dance, joy and shouts of peace! peace! peace!

After the event, a thrilled Ambassador Loroupe, who is also the UN in Kenya Person of the Year 2016 remarked, “I am honored that I have a family called UNHCR, which I can count on as a partner. They have walked with us, dialogued with us and took part in the race for peace.”

 

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter