Nine Lives in the World’s Largest Refugee Camp

In this book, Ben Rawlence interweaves the stories of nine individuals to show what life is like in the camp and to sketch the wider political forces that keep the refugees trapped there.

To the charity workers, Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya is a humanitarian crisis; to the Kenyan government, it is a ‘nursery for terrorists’; to the western media, it is a dangerous no-go area; but to its half a million residents, it is their last resort.

A Bleak Existence

Situated hundreds of miles from any other settlement, deep within the inhospitable desert of northern Kenya where only thorn bushes grow, Dadaab is a city like no other. Its buildings are made from mud, sticks or plastic, its entire economy is grey, and its citizens survive on rations and luck.

Rawlence, a writer who studied at the School of African and Oriental Studies in London, spent four years getting to know Dadaab. In City of Thorns, he tells the harrowing stories of those who have sought sanctuary there. They include the stories of Guled, a former child soldier fleeing al-Shabaab, who lives for football; Nisho, born on route to Dadaab in 1991, who scrapes an existence by pushing a wheelbarrow and dreaming of riches; and schoolgirl Kheyro, a student in the camp and later a teacher who came to the camp aged two, with her mother, fleeing civil war in 1992.

No Refuge for Refugees

If you have ever wondered what can drive a person to leave their homes to undertake the precarious journey across the Sahara desert and Mediterranean Sea to seek a new life in Europe this book is for you. If you want a glimpse of the limits to the sanctuary being provided to millions of refugees around the world you should read this lucid, vivid and illuminating book. City of Thorns can be purchased online from a number of retailers.

Tearfund’s discussion paper, The Restorative Economy, considers what our 21st century economy might look like if it were based around principles of justice and equity. It’s a challenging and hugely encouraging read.

Of particular interest is a section on how change happens:

Looking back at key moments in history, it’s clear that the tides often turn because of the emergence of a movement for change. Right now, we need such a movement, one that follows in the footsteps of the anti-slavery campaigners, the US civil rights movement… who together achieved the impossible.

What gave the most successful movements the motivation and courage they needed to take on the vested interests and sometimes hostile public that opposed change? Above all, we believe it was a resonant story.

What we need are stories that help people and societies to make sense of where they are, how they got there, where they are trying to get to and how to achieve change. Stories that define our worldview and have the potential to create our reality as much as they describe it. Stories like Jesus’ parables or the ones that Churchill told Britain in 1940. Stories that marry unflinching realism, a profoundly hopeful vision of the future and above all, a deeply encouraging view of what people are capable of.”

At Empathy Action we hope that the stories we include in our simulations, such as ‘The Poverty Trap’, do encapsulate that realism, vision and view of what people are capable of.

A thoroughly bleak and chilling portrayal of the life of a child soldier, Beasts of No Nation examines the futility of civil war and the devastating effects it has on the lives of those caught in its grip.

From Kid to Killer

Cary Fukunaga’s film takes place in an unnamed West African country where nine-year-old Agu (Abraham Attah) fills his time doing family chores and getting up to harmless mischief with his friends.

His world is shattered when growing tension in his country breaks out in civil war and his village becomes a battleground. Agu’s father is able to pay for his wife and two younger children to be taken to safety but Agu and the rest of his family stay behind to defend their property from looters.

Believing them to be spies, the government forces execute Agu’s family, forcing him to flee into the jungle where he stumbles into the path of a rebel faction known as the NDF. The charismatic yet paranoid Commandant (Idris Elba) takes Agu under his wing and initiates him into the militia. Very quickly, the young Agu begins to lose his innocence as it is eroded by the brutal atrocities in which he is forced to become involved.

Whilst it doesn’t make for comfortable viewing, outstanding performances and rich visuals expertly paint the horror of a childhood lost to the worst depravities of warfare.

The Truth Behind the Tale

Beasts of No Nation depicts a truly grim situation in which young boys, who have lost their parents to war, are indoctrinated into a life of violence by an egotistical maniac obsessed with building his tiny empire. It’s like Lord of the Flies meets Oliver Twist meets Heart of Darkness.

As shocking as the film may be, the reality is often worse. According to War Child, there are an estimated 250,000 child soldiers in the world today, roughly 40% of whom are girls. Children are often forced to commit horrendous acts of violence against members of their own family. This discourages them from leaving the militia groups as they fear ostracisation if they return home.

The abduction and recruitment of children by militia groups gained a surge of worldwide attention a few years ago when the Kony 2012 film went viral. The film intended to highlight the actions of Ugandan guerilla leader Joseph Kony and the barbarous track record of his group, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). Kony may have become infamous as a result but he remains at large and the use of children in warfare is still a huge and very serious problem.

Storytelling for Empathy

In a recent interview, director Cary Fukunaga was asked why he wanted to bring this story to the screen. In his reply he mentioned that he liked to make films about the things that are important right now on our planet,

You see ISIS now bragging about their child soldiers. So they’re just things to me that I find on many levels infuriating especially if, you know… where we imagined we’d be in the 60s and 70s in terms of development of the planet and looking outwards and yet we seem to be tearing ourselves asunder.

In another interview, actor Idris Elba touched on the issue of compassion fatigue and the use of films like this for raising awareness,

How do you expect everybody to pay attention to every single crisis? It’s through the storytelling and films and documentaries and news reports where people can sit back and have a look at someone else’s life… This is film I think is very timely… If it highlights, if it makes people stop and go ‘wow, let me check this out a little bit more’, you know, I think that’s a good thing.

Empathy Action’s educational, interactive simulations are designed exactly with this in mind. There are a lot of crises in the world and it is easy to feel overwhelmed by them. News reports, books and films all have a role to play in helping us understand these issues but the closer to the situation we feel, the more we will want to take action.

Visit our simulation page to learn more about how you can raise awareness of these injustices and encourage others to get involved in putting a stop to them.

Beasts of No Nation is available to watch on Netflix and has a 15 rating.