Blog 2: Where are the men of Dabaab

        There is a major crisis going on in Somalia right now that's affecting it's families very hard.  In the region of Dabaab women and children are being forced to make what can be a six day exodus with out their older sons and husbands to seek out Kenya.  The reason for the move is because of a drought that has lasted 4 or 5 years killing off these families crops and livestock rendering it's residence no other option to move on.  That alone however is not the reason for the men staying behind there is a fear for men to make the move because the civil war that is being waged forcibly recruits any able bodied man usually between the ages of 12 and 18 to help fight.   Not only has this become so large of a movement that it has become global news but this lack of men in highly patriarchal society is making way for terrible conditions of the migrating women and children.  Without the protection of their male heads of house holds many are finding the migration to be filled with fear and violence.  Already this year 358 incidents of sexual and gender-based violence have been reported some occuring before even making it to the refuge camps.
       Some people would wonder why we care that are a world away in a place we cant help them isn't this modernization theory at work isn't it if it weren't this region of the world it would be somewhere else.  This may be true to a point droughts happen everywhere and can't be helped but abuse such as rape and abduction can certainly be helped.  Besides the fact that these are people human beings like you or I mothers sisters wives and children they are humans and deserve the basic human rights any other person of this world does.  Should it not then be a priority to persons who can lend a hand like the UN all of the countries involved agree to a set of basic human rights should those really only apply to countries with in the UN.  The significance of this article is to shine a light on smaller or more impoverished nations of the world and really start to address that they really need the helping hand not the military force of other well established countries, and namely these areas need relief a safe passage to a better place and to be able to choose a side not be abducted. 
      At the end of the day it is the families that suffer the most you have children growing up with out fathers, or really any positive male influences, wives proving for themselves and on average four other hungry mouths.  You have young boys and men fighting in wars they want no part of and an inability for any of these families to thrive or continue.  

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2011/07/2011720161814857291.html
Andrea N Ward 12:00pm 9/7/12