Kenya Conducts Controversial Census
The Kenyan government is conducting a controversial national census, where, among other questions, they ask respondents to identify their respective ethnic group, the BBC reports. This is a sore topic for many in the nation, considering last year’s horrific post-election violence that fell largely across ethnic lines. The violence left 1,000 dead. Many are concerned that politicians might use the information to their advantage. But officials insist that information about ethnic background is important for the government to know, saying to leave out such data would be “an exhibition of professional recklessness. If we do not have the official position and people come up with figures and numbers we cannot be able to dispute them,” an official from the National Bureau of Statistics told the BBC.  Information-gathering for the census will continue throughout this week.
 

Tanzanian Students to be Laid to Rest After Dorm Fire
The 12 Tanzanian students who died when a fire swept through their dorm this weekend will be laid to rest Tuesday, reports the BBC.  Since their bodies were burned beyond recognition, the girls will be buried in a mass grave. The fire occurred Saturday night when, it is believed, a candle caught a mosquito net on fire, setting the dormitory of the Idodi Secondary School ablaze. “It burned one dormitory completely and 12 students were killed. Another 20 have been injured,” a police official told Reuters. The candle was probably being used by a student to study at night, he continued. The school has no overnight electricity. Tanzania’s President Jakaya Kikwete will attend Tuesday’s burial. Fires in recent years have killed students in neighboring nations Kenya and Uganda as well, the BBC reports.