Locals petition UN to help end Kerio Valley banditry

Kerio Valley residents have asked the United Nations to push for their compensation and an end to conflict in the region that has claimed 44 lives over the past four months.

In a letter addressed to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, residents accused the Kenyan government of failing to protecting its citizens and their property.

“There is blatant violation of the right to life and ownership of property in Kerio Valley and in the recent past there has been increasing cases of people being killed and their property stolen through unchecked cattle rustling,” reads the letter written by Mr Benson Cheserek, a local.

The letter goes on: “The insecurity incidents points to a deteriorating situation of human rights violation under the watch of the Kenyan government. Of concern is the frequent displacement of people and destruction of their property. It is disheartening there is no compensation.”

Residents told the UN that they are apprehensive by the apparent lack of concern by the Kenyan government to stop the cattle rustling menace.

Probe killings

“Over the past three decades, the Kenyan government has terribly abdicated its responsibility to protect the people of Kerio valley. The UN human rights division needs to investigate the unending cattle rustling and killings,” petitioned the locals.

They want the UN to pressurise the Kenyan government to ensure victims of insecurity are compensated.

Elgeyo Marakwet Deputy Governor Wesley Rotich said there is a lot of suffering in Kerio valley, especially by women and children, because the government has abdicated its core duty to protect lives and property.

“Allowing Tiaty Constituency to be [flooded with guns] since 1976 is a serious misstep by the government and, if no serious effort is made to reverse, we are courting a disaster that will pose a threat to national security similar to the ongoing Oromo rebellion in Ethiopia,” said the deputy governor.

He said at least 44 people have been killed in four months, with eight killed in November.

“Peace-loving residents in Tiaty are scared because of the increasing number of armed bandits. As we were burying our brothers, the same bandits staged three attacks simultaneously at Soko Bora, Kabetwa and Chesuman villages,” said Mr Rotich.

More police reservists

He urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to increase the number of police reservists and, in the long term, push for massive development of infrastructure to open Tiaty to the world. The government had pledged to recruit 40 police reservists this week.

 “The neglect of Tiaty Constituency by the government has led to an upsurge in banditry,” Mr Rotich said while calling upon residents to be vigilant.

“They kill and maim at will and government is extremely slow in its response,” he said.

Tension is still high following recent attacks in Soko Bora, Kabetwa and Chesuman, during which hundreds of livestock where stolen.

Last week, the bandits raided Chesuman and Kasagat, leading to the loss of unknown number of animals. One man was shot dead by the bandits in Kasagat in the mid-morning attack.

Elgeyo Marakwet County Police Commander Patrick Lumumba said measures have been put in place to ensure order is restored.

“We have intensified patrols in Baringo, West Pokot and Elgeyo Marakwet. The enlistment of police reservists will also reinforce security forces,” he said.

Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Alex Tolgos proposed the establishment of a wildlife conservancy along the borders of banditry prone West Pokot, Baringo and Elgeyo Marakwet counties.

He said a three-kilometre-wide conservancy will act as a buffer zone to deter bandits.

“This issue of cattle rusting has been with us for decades and it’s high time we changed our approach to tackling the menace,” the governor said in Tot, Marakwet East Sub-county.

“Locals should keep a small number of improved cattle breeds within their homesteads which are not as attractive to bandits as indigenous animals,” Mr Tolgos added.

He said the conservancy will also generate revenue for the locals.

Farms abandoned

“Thousands of acres of arable land along the borders of the three counties are now battle fields. Farms have been abandoned and the gainful thing to do is have wildlife inhabit the area,” he said.

Mr Tolgos lamented that several attempts to introduce crop farming as an alternative to livestock rearing have failed.

“We have farms which my administration wanted to convert to irrigation schemes but have since been abandoned. Contractors erecting fences fled because of the incessant attacks," said the governor.

He urged locals to give their views on how to turn around the region’s economic fortunes.