Protected Swahili Culture

"K2T Wisata"

Young Swahili “beach boys” ride in a traditional dhow in Lamu, which is threatened by a multi-billion dollar port project.

Lamu’s enclave of UNESCO-protected Swahili culture – an enduring tradition born from a fusion of coastal Bantu and Arab traders that settled here centuries ago – is threatened by a multi-billion dollar port project. For seven hundred years the Swahili people have led a tranquil existence among the mangroves and coral reef that, respectively, provide construction material for their homes and boats and shelter for fish.

In time, thanks to a Shariff named Habib Swaleh, Lamu became one of the most respected centers for Islamic education in Africa, a role that still stands today. But the Swahili culture has gradually eroded with an influx of wealthy foreigners and members of other, non-Muslim tribes; now the town’s spiritual leader, Imam Idarus, worries that the incoming port project (slated for the mainland nearby) will draw even more people that will eventually overrun the cultural fabric that knits this community together. … [visit site to read more]