Minnesota Somali fraud case reveals dangers of mass immigration from tribal societies
I am in Kenya to research my seventh John Wells novel, “The Night Ranger.” Wells is chasing American missionaries taken into the bush by Somali mercenaries. It is a change of pace for him, lower stakes than his usual work. It will turn out to be one of my favorite novels.
I have visited a vast Somali refugee camp in northern Kenya and the Indian Ocean coast, where Somali kidnappers have recently captured and killed several Europeans.
Now I am back in Nairobi, talking about the problem of Somalia, which Kenyans face up close. Kenya is mostly Christian. Somalis are Muslim — and poor even by African standards. Kenya needs Western safari tourism for jobs and cash. The kidnappings have not helped. Kenyans would rather keep their neighbors out. But the United Nations and international aid groups have given them little choice (oh, the irony; poor countries hate open borders even more than rich ones).
Anyway, I am having drinks at a hotel talking about Somalia with (white) non-governmental aid workers — they live well, these NGO types. And one says:
“Here’s what you need to know about Somalia. It’s on the ocean, right? [Somalia has the longest coastline in Africa, almost 2,000 miles.] But most Somalis, they can’t swim, can’t fish, they have no interest in the water. That’s how inward-facing they are, how tribal.”