Mathare is a collection of

slum A slum is a highly populated urban residential area consisting of densely packed housing units of weak build quality and often associated with poverty. The infrastructure in slums is often deteriorated or incomplete, and they are primarily in ...

s in

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city prope ...

with a population of approximately 500,000 people; the population of

Mathare Valley Mathare Valley is a part of Mathare slum in Kenya. It is in the Nairobi area. Other informal settlements in the Nairobi area include Huruma, Kiambiu, Korogocho, Mukuru and Kibera. It has a high population density. It is a few kilometers from ...

alone, the oldest of the slums that make up Mathare, is 180,000 people. Mathare is the home of football teams

Mathare United Mathare United Football Club is a professional association football club, based in Nairobi, Kenya. They currently compete in the Kenyan Premier League, the top tier of the Kenyan football league system, and won their first league title during th ...

and Real Mathare of the MYSA. Mathare is currently part of two electoral constituencies; the titular Mathare Constituency and the northern part being in

Ruaraka Constituency Ruaraka Constituency is an electoral constituency located in Nairobi County, Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital ...

. The northern part was initially part of

Kasarani Constituency Kasarani Constituency is an electoral constituency in Nairobi. It is one of seventeen constituencies of Nairobi City County. The entire constituency is located within Nairobi City County, and has an area of , making it the second-largest constit ...

up to the

2013 elections The following elections were occurred in the year 2013. Asia * 2013 Armenian local elections 26 May, 17 November, and 8 December 2013 * 2013 Armenian presidential election 18 February 2013 * 2013 Bangladeshi presidential election 22 April 2013 ...

when Kasarani was split into three electoral constituencies; Ruaraka being among them. The southern part was domiciled in

Starehe Constituency Starehe Constituency is an electoral constituency in Kenya. It is one of seventeen constituencies in Nairobi City County. It consists of central and central to north areas of Nairobi. The constituency was established for the 1966 elections, with ...

Gang violence

In 2006, Mathare was damaged by violence between rival gangs the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalist, militant Islamist, jihadist, and Pas ...

(not to be confused with the Islamist group of the same name), a

Luo Luo may refer to: Luo peoples and languages *Luo peoples, an ethno-linguistic group of eastern and central Africa **Luo people of Kenya and Tanzania or Joluo, an ethnic group in western Kenya, eastern Uganda, and northern Tanzania. ***Luoland, the ...

group, and the

Mungiki Mungiki is a banned ethnic organisation in Kenya. The name (''mũngĩkĩ'', ) means "a united people" or "multitude" in the Kikuyu language. The religion, which apparently originated in the late 1980s, is secretive and bears some similarity to myst ...

, a

Kikuyu Kikuyu or Gikuyu (Gĩkũyũ) mostly refers to an ethnic group in Kenya or its associated language. It may also refer to: *Kikuyu people, a majority ethnic group in Kenya *Kikuyu language, the language of Kikuyu people *Kikuyu, Kenya, a town in Centr ...

group. Brewers of an illegal alcoholic drink,

chang'aa Changaa or Chang'aa is a traditional home-brewed spirit, popular in Kenya. It is made by fermentation and distillation from grains like millet, maize and sorghum, and is very potent. Regulation After being illegal in Kenya for many years, the K ...

, asked the Taliban for help after the Mungiki tried to raise their taxes on the drink; since then, fighting between the two has led to the burning of hundreds of homes and at least 10 deaths. Police entered the slum on November 7th 2006 and the

General Service Unit The General Service Unit (GSU) is a paramilitary wing in the Kenya Police Service, consisting of highly trained police officers, transported by seven dedicated Cessnas and three Bell helicopters. Having been in existence since 1948, the GSU h ...

arrived a day later. However, many residents who fled are still afraid to return. On June 5, 2007, the Mungiki murdered two police officers in Mathare; the same night, police retaliated by killing 22 people and detaining around 100. Following the controversial

presidential elections A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The ...

that took place on December 27th 2007, gangs of Kikuyu and Luo youth engaged in violent fights and burned more than 100 homes.Jeffrey Gettleman
"Disputed Vote Plunges Kenya Into Bloodshed"
''The New York Times'', December 31, 2007.

References

External links

OneLife Africa
This organization exists to identify and equip at-risk young people in Mathare slums
Mathare Valley OutreachMathare Youth Sports AssociationNairobi Slums School Projects TrustThe Mwelu Foundation
- Grass-roots youth project centering on photography
Made in the StreetsMathare-Inn Photobook
Fundraising project by photographer Claudio Allia with texts by Claudio Torres. {{coord, 1, 15, 36, S, 36, 51, 43, E, display=title, region:KE-110_type:city_source:dewiki Populated places in Kenya Shanty towns in Kenya Slums in Kenya Suburbs of Nairobi

Gang violence

See also

Further reading

References

External links