First, an aside: I told myself a long time ago that the day I found out that Kenyans have settled in Iceland, that would be the confirmation I need to declare that “Kenyans finally have arrived” on the world stage. Little did I know we were going to arrive up there with a story like this one.
I came across this story a while back and decided not to make reference to it here because it just did not make sense and I did not want to make a fool of myself if it turned out to be a dud. So I decided to wait and monitor it and today after two Kenyans commented on the local Iceland paper article (see link below), I’m able to put all the pieces together;
Paul Ramses (also known as “Paul Oduor” or “Paul Ramses Oduor” or “Paul Oduor Pata”) claims to be a political refugee from Kenya. He claims that he had contested a seat for councillor in one of the wards in Nairobi, lost and his political rivals were after him. So he was approved for a visa by Italy but settled in Iceland with his wife because Iceland is a participating member of the EU/EEA.
When he got to Iceland, he applied for political asylum, was denied and deported to Italy, the original country that approved his visa.
Activists in Iceland have rallied up for his cause especially because he has left his wife and one month old son in Iceland and his fate in Italy is not known. As a result, Iceland’s foreign minister, Ingibjorg Solrun Gisladottir, has instructed the Italian embassy to ensure that Paul Ramses stays in Europe.
Here is the article on the local paper. Make sure to read the comments.
Filed under: NEWS HEADLINES | Tagged: atieno athiembo, iceland, paul ramses, paul ramses oduor
Two Kenyans commented? Is Svanhvit a kenyan name?
Is it wrong that Paul Ramses Oduor has been involved with politics?
There is no way to tell which name is Kenyan and which one is not these days, except of course the obvious ones. There are many Kenyan women married to non-Kenyans all over the world who no longer use their original names. There are also many Kenyan children born to non-Kenyan fathers who do not use Kenyan names.
Ramses is not a typical Kenyan last name and that is what caught my interest in this story. I stand corrected if I made an assumption that Svanhvit was a Kenyan.
It is after the comments came out that I found out more about this person and I was even more interested in what was going on and decided to share this story with other Kenyans.
It is not wrong that Paul was involved with politics. It is also not wrong that he is trying to protect his family.
The questions is, why are some people saying things that seem to be the opposite of what the Iceland media is reporting? That is what is of interest in this story. Are other Kenyans smearing this guy for personal grudges? Is this guy really a conman?
The purpose of my blog is not to demean anyone. The purpose of my blog is to make my readers aware of what is happening to Kenyans all over the world without twisting the story and to give my opinion when I have a strong feeling about something.
I just went back and read that comment again. Svanhvit says very clearly that he or she is a Kenyan.
svanhvit is an Icelandic name, right! So if Kenyan she/he must have got it from Iceland! So, when I read svanhvit’s comment, it was rather obvious this person is most likely Icelandic!
the comments by the readers r true and it seems that they r well researched Paul Ramses life is not in danger and if he campaigned for Raila Odinga who is the prime minister of kenya then icelandic government should contact kenya.Svanhvit has raised serious issues can AHUS deny if they never gave Paul Ramses money,once and for all he has lied for long let him face the music.