Kenyans bury their dead and worry about their survival
Sunday, December 1, 2002 Posted: 4:48 PM EST (2148 GMT)
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MAWEMI, Kenya (AP) -- Mariam Kariro collapsed near her brother's coffin, convulsing with sobs and screaming out for answers -- wondering how she and her family will survive.
The death of traditional dancer Safari Yaa Baya in Thursday's suicide bombing attack at an Israeli-owned hotel on Kenya's Indian Ocean coast leaves an extended family uncertain how it will survive without his meager income.
"We have no one to depend on, there is no hope. Our hope is gone. He was the breadwinner. He gave us everything and now he is gone," Kariro says Sunday through staccato wails. Female relatives surrounded her, offering comfort.
Kenya's lush coastal area offers few jobs. Families consider themselves lucky if one member finds work in the tourism sector, which likely will be crippled after Thursday's twin terror attacks.
In the coordinated strikes, two missiles first were fired at an Arkia Airlines Boeing 757 charter plane leaving the Mombasa airport. Both missiles narrowly missed the Israeli-owned plane, which was carrying 261 passengers and 10 crew members. It landed safely in Tel Aviv, Israel, with no casualties.
A few minutes later, a vehicle packed with explosives broke through the gate at the oceanside Paradise Hotel. One attacker ran into the lobby and blew himself up, while two others exploded the vehicle.
Ten Kenyans, three Israelis and the three bombers were killed.
The 10 Kenyan victims all were hotel employees. Baya was head of a traditional dance troupe that was greeting arriving Israeli guests when the car exploded next to him.
On Sunday, hundreds of mourning relatives and friends surrounded the truck transporting the coffins of Baya and two other dance troupe members killed in the attack. The women wailed and wept, waving their hands in the air and clutching each other for support.
They used the scarves of gold, ruby and green draped over their heads to wipe away tears.
The mourners, stumbling and swaying to the high-pitched wails of the women, made their way through thickets of high grass to Baya's grave site.
His body, wrapped in thick black plastic sheeting, was removed from the coffin and laid out on a grass mat. Mourners then lined up and walked by the body.
Baya's pregnant widow, Dama, was among those mourners. She wore a black robe and covered her face with a long green-and-white scarf.
She and Baya had eight children together, ranging in age from 18 months to 18 years, and Dama Baya is expected to give birth to another child any day.
Sequestered in her home and not allowed to show her face in keeping with Muslim tradition of grieving, Dama Baya spoke to reporters from behind a sheet.
She said she feared for her children, not knowing how they would be educated and fed.
"Since we were married so many years ago we never had a disagreement. He was the sole breadwinner. The loss means that the family is in a lot of trouble," she said.
Dama Baya also said that whoever was responsible for killing her husband also should help support his family.
"I want them to take up the responsibility of my husband and take care of the children," she said.
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