“It’s Really Up to Us”

When war broke out in Ukraine in 2022, Edward Okyere-Darko F25 had to act fast. He was a master’s student in international law and legal studies at West Ukrainian National University in Ternopil and fled the country for Poland. As a Ghanaian national, he quickly realized that he was in bureaucratic limbo. 

“When I moved to Europe, it was the first time that I felt the full power of international organizations,” he said. “I would hear, ‘The European Union has announced this, the Americans have done that.’ I never heard anything about Africa.”

To exacerbate matters, Okyere-Darko found that nobody was talking about the vacuum of support he described. When he enrolled in the MALD program at Fletcher, however, Professor Chidi Odinkalu’s Law and Development course provided him with the opportunity for advocacy that he had long been seeking. 

Advocating for Humanitarian Relief Through Diplomacy

Odinkalu connected Okyere-Darko with Fletcher alumna Chepkorir Sambu F23, a fellow in law at Kabarak University in Kenya. As a MALD student, Sambu studied International Legal Studies and International Negotiation and Conflict Resolution, with the aim of becoming a diplomat. 

“When I was 12, I read about how Kofi Annan was the outgoing Secretary General of the United Nations, and I was amazed at him achieving all this being an African,” she said. “Then, later that year, we had elections in Kenya, and it resulted in post-election violence. My hometown, Eldoret, had the most intense violence. I remember men passing through our compound and chanting war songs.”

“So many people had tried mediating the conflict between the two principals who were vying for the presidency without success,” she added. “Then Kofi Annan came in and was able to get them to settle. That got me thinking that I really want to be a diplomat. That was the language that I had for people who resolved conflicts.”

Sambu was at Fletcher when Russia commenced its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and she saw the potential for discrimination against Africans living there. With Odinkalu and members of the Africana Club, she convened a webinar about these issues. The group sought to create awareness and engage in advocacy and activism. Additionally, Sambu wrote an article about the neglect surrounding that discrimination issue, focusing on the government and double standards in the international community.

Thus, when Okyere-Darko met with Odinkalu to brainstorm ways to raise awareness, the potential for a partnership with Sambu came to mind. 

Powerful Dialogue on African Arguments

Sambu and Okyere-Darko’s partnership has been fruitful. Okyere-Darko penned an article about his experience in Ukraine for African Arguments. Sambu subsequently interviewed him, along with two other people who were in Lebanon and Sudan during times of war, for a podcast as well. 

“The recent increase in global wars has resulted in devastating humanitarian crises,” said Sambu in the episode’s introduction. “While the impact on civilians generally has been significant, it has been especially severe for Africans both on the continent and elsewhere.”

“Those living overseas have encountered racial discrimination limiting their access to aid and emergency services with the extent of their suffering largely undocumented,” she added. “Those on the continent, on the other hand, continue to face insecurity, insufficient or nonexistent humanitarian aid, and death. In both cases, African governments and institutions, primarily responsible for their protection, have failed in their duty.”

Advocacy Leading to Political Change

The partnership between Sambu and Okyere-Darko has caused them both to contemplate further ways to shed light on opportunities for governments and international organizations to better support people. 

“The goal isn’t only Ukraine,” said Okyere-Darko. “The goal has shifted to conflict and wars outside the African continent, whereby African governments have failed to to intercede on behalf of their people. Instead of tackling only one channel, we are moving into a series of wars and other conflicts where we feel the continent has failed.”

“You accept something implicitly when you don't talk about it,” said Okyere-Darko. “The hope is to raise awareness, to sensitize people on what is really on the ground and what is going on.”

Sambu is similarly motivated by this imperative to speak out. 

“I was reading Africa Must Unite by Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah. What stuck out was the fact that the people who fought for independence in Africa were very young. It got me thinking more deeply about my position in pursuing education relating to these issues. I started thinking more intentionally about the responsibility I have to actually address these issues.” 

“I observed how Professor Chidi, for example, has been working,” she added. “I’ve heard so many stories about his work as a human rights activist, and it became pretty clear to me that it is not enough to talk. He sees something wrong and he takes action. Someone actually has to sit down and write that paper or talk about it. It's really up to us.”

Read more about  Fletcher’s Global Governance and International Organizations field of study.