The genesis of land-based violence in Mt. Elgon from the precolonial period to the postcolonial period
Keywords:
Genesis, inter-ethnic conflicts, land-based violence, postcolonial period, precolonial periodAbstract
This study traces the genesis of land-based conflicts in Mt. Elgon from the precolonial period to the postcolonial period. This research was conducted in Mount Elgon Sub County in Kapsokwony, Kaptama, Kopsiro, and Cheptais. This research utilised primary as well as secondary sources of data. Secondary data was procured from Kenyatta University Library, among other libraries. Primary data was collected from the Kenya National Archives as well as from oral sources through interviewing the identified respondents in the field. Data instruments that were used include questionnaires and question guides. The procedures employed in collecting primary data included in-depth interviews and Focus Group Discussions. The primary oral data was analysed by first translating oral interviews from the Sabaot language to English, grouping data according to the objectives, and verifying any possible contradicting information. After that, the data was coroborated with archival and secondary data and then presented through descriptive narratives. The families in the Mount Elgon area faced several difficulties, which called for the government to handle the issues, which undermined the significance of peace in the region. This study concludes that the land issue and the emergence of the Sabaot Land Defense Force in Mount Elgon, Bungoma, dates back to the pre-colonial and post-colonial periods and the post-colonial Government's inefficiency. The colonial Government's land ordinances, laws, and concessions played a significant part in the challenges facing the land issues in Kenya.
Downloads
References
Alden W. L. (2018). The Community Land Act in Kenya Opportunities and Challenges for Communities, Land 7(1), 12. https://doi.org/10.3390/land7010012
Boone, C (2007). Property and constitutional order: land tenure reform and the future of the African state. African Affairs, 106(425), 557–586.
Coray, M. (1978). The Kenya Land Commission and the Kikuyu of Kiambu.AgriculturalHistory, (1, 179193. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3742957
Human Rights Watch. (2008). All-the-men-have-gone-war-crimes-in-kenyas-mt-elgon-conflict-july-2008-53-pp. Human Rights Documents Online. https://doi.org/10.1163/2210-7975_hrd-2156-0547
Human Rights Watch. (2008). Kenya: Army and Rebel Militia Commit War Crimes in Mt Elgon, 4 April. http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900sid/ASAZ-7DDCD5?opendocument
Kariuki, F., & Ng’etich, R. (2016). Land Grabbing, Tenure Security and Livelihoods in Kenya. African Journal of Legal Studies, 9(2), 79-99. https://doi.org/10.1163/17087384-12340004
Kariuki, S. M. (2004). Can negotiated land reforms deliver? A case of Kenya’s, South Africa’s and Zimbabwe’s land reform policy debates. ASC Working Paper Series, (59).
Kimkung, P. (2012). Inter-ethnic land Conflict in Mt. Elgon. Boston, Brandeis University.
Kimkung, P. (2012). The gender dimensions of violence and conflict: The case of inter-ethnic land conflict in Mt. Elgon Kenya. http://www.worldscientific.com/downloads
Kimkung, P., & Espinosa, C. (2012). The Gender Dimensions of Violence and Conflict: The Case of inter-ethnic land conflict in Mt. Elgon.
Kitching, G. N. (1980). Class and Economic Change in Kenya: The Making of an African Petite Bourgeoisie 1905–1970. Yale University Press.
KNA/Bungoma District Annual Report, 1965.
KNA/Bungoma District, Annual Report, 1964.
KNA/Bungoma District, Annual Report, 1969.
Lumumba, O. (2020). Kenya land Policy Making, Implementation and Outcomes so Far. PhD Thesis, University of the Western Cape.
Lynch, G. (2011). The Wars of Who Belongs Where: The Unstable Politics of Autochthony on Kenya's Mt Elgon. Ethnopolitics, 10(3-4), pp. 391–410. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449057.2011.596671
Mkutu, K. (2006). Small Arms and Light Weapons among Pastoral Groups in the Kenya–Uganda Border Area. African Affairs, 106(422), 47–70. https://doi.org/10.1093/afraf/adl002
Murshed, S. (2002). Conflict, Civil War and Underdevelopment: An Introduction. Journal of Peace Research, 39(4), 387-393. http://www.jstor.org/ stable/1555273
Mwasserah, A. K. (2008). An Overview of the Causes of the Mt Elgon Crisis and its Effects on the Province and Possible Solutions. Paper presented at Mt Elgon crisis workshop held at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, Kakamega, Kenya, from 28 to 29 June.
Nasimiyu, R. K. (1984). The Participation of Women in the Political Economy of Kenya: A Case Study of Bukusu Women in Bungoma District, 1902-1960. MA Thesis, University of Nairobi.
Ngugi, J. M. (2011). Colonial Legacy and Land Conflict in Kenya: A Case Study of the Rift Valley Province. Published Master Thesis University of Nairobi.
O’Brien, E., & Kenya Land Alliance (2011). Irregular and Illegal Land Acquisition by Kenya’s Elites: Trends, Processes and Impacts of Kenya’s Land-grabbing Phenomenon. International Land Coalition, Rome.
Obi, C. I. (1999). Resources, Population and Conflicts: Two African Case Studies. Africa Development, XXIV (3 & 4), 47–69
Osamba, J. (2001). The dynamics of ethnopolitical conflict and violence in the Rift Valley province of Kenya. Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, 7(4), 87–112. https://doi.org/10.1080/13537110108428646
Simiyu, R. R. (2008). Militianisation of resource conflicts: the case of land-based conflict in the Mount Elgon region of western Kenya. Institute for Security Studies Monographs, 2008(152), 80.
Theisen, O. (2009). Militianisation of Resource Conflicts: The Case of Land-Based Conflict in the Mount Elgon region of Western Kenya. Tshwane (Pretoria): Institute for Security Studies. Journal of Peace Research, 46(4), 606–606. https://doi.org/10.1177/00223433090460040816
Thuo, A. (2013). Genealogy of Land Ownership, Use and Management Problems in Kenya during the Pre-August 2010 Constitution Period. A Review, 2.
Truth justice and reconciliation commission (2015), Historical land Injustices and Forcible Transfer of Population. TJRC Kenya.
Veit, P. (2011). History of Land conflicts in Kenya. Policy Brief by Focus on Land. htttps//doi.org/10.21955/gatesopenres.1115885/
Waithaka, L. N. (2013). The Role of Ethnicity in the Land Conflict in Mt. Elgon Region in Western Kenya. Nairobi PhD Thesis. University of Nairobi.
Wasike E, (2018). Alienation of Abashitaho’s Land Rights, 1920-1963. M.A. Thesis Kenyatta University.
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2023 Kiptoch William Ndiema
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
