
Wahu spoke of the hunger strike she and several other women launched in the 1990's to secure the release of more than 50 political prisoners. The park where the women congregated became known as Freedom Corner. After a year of continuous protest and agitation, the Kenyan government relented, releasing the prisoners in a slow trickle. This, says Kaara, is emblematic of the nonviolent power women wield; too many women don't realize this.
Turning to the present, Kaara spoke of the need for structural reform, particularly debt relief, in the globalized world order. Third World taxpayers pay heavily to service debt that they themselves never negotiated and from which they benefited very little. Kaara has spoken to the UN General Assembly, the European Union, the G8, and many other gatherings of world leaders.