Kipsigis, Maasai animosity dates back to 1980s

It started as a seemingly trivial matter: A Kipsigis youth stole a bull from his father's herd and sold it to a livestock trader from the rival Maasai community.

An alarm was raised, the search for the bull began and it was traced to the home of a trader in Maasailand.

The trader said he had bought the bull legally, the owner claimed it had been stolen.

Elders and administrators failed to resolve the dispute. Fights broke out and houses were torched in retaliation by the Kipsigis over the stolen bull - that was a week before clashes really started.

Fighting has continued down the years.

It has escalated since Saturday and eight people from both sides have been killed. At least 20 people have died this year.

Peace meetings at the border have collapsed.

CAUSE OF FIGHTING

The recurrent inter-communal fighting between the Kipsigis and Maasai communities in Narok dates back to the 1980s.

While politics has been blamed for the wars, land issues are cited as the main source of the conflict. Maasais blame the Kipigis for venturing into their territory and taking over their land.

Narok is the traditional home of the Maasai but the Kipsigis over the years have continued to migrate into the territory in search of land.

The Kipsigis now control huge swaths of land and the Maasai consider it a humiliation.

Those who spoke to the Star said their parents acquired the land in Narok through sale or exchanging cattle for land.

"Our fathers bought these lands using cash while others gave cows to the Maasai in exchange for land ... nothing was free," Geoffrey Sang said.

The Maasais say if they continue tolerating the Kipsigis in their region, they will end up losing both their motherland and political power. The Kipsigis population is rapidly increasing, especially in Narok South.

Maa leaders have been urging their people not to sell land to non-Maasais anymore. Narok Senator Ledama ole Kina is the latest and most vocal leader telling people not to sell.

In 2010 during the boundaries review led by Andrew Ligale, former Narok South MP Nkoidilia ole Langas advocated a separate constituency for the Kipsigis. Other leaders opposed this proposal, however, saying the Maa leadership was paramount in Narok. Langas is now speaker of the Narok county assembly.

The theft of cattle, which happens from time to time, is provocative and aimed at sparking fights between the two communities.

While the Kipsigis community is happy with their stay in Narok, Maasais are bitter, which was apparent during the evictions from Mau Forest lands.

HISTORY

In the early 1980s, paramount chief Lerionka ole Ntutu helped the Kipsigis obtain parcels of land in Narok South in a registration process or listing. This helped build a good relationship between the two ethnic groups at the borders of Mulot, Ololwai, Irigat, Seneto and Ilubi.

As a result, most cattle thefts stopped but cases were occasionally reported and animosity remained.

When President Daniel Moi realised there would be no end to this, he met Narok MP William Ntimama and other Maa leaders. Some Tugen leaders were given land to act as a barrier separating the two feuding groups.

The Tugen are a subtribe of the Kalenjin in Baringo from which Moi came.

Moi used to tell the Kipsigis to leave leadership positions to the Maasai community.

"When you are invited to a friend's house and he offers you meat as part of the meal, you don't need to eat everything. You leave some parts to the host," Moi said.

Most of the lands bordering Mau Forest and owned by the Kipsigis have no title deeds. The few they have are frozen by a state-imposed caveat.

The recurrent wars continued for a long time until Langas was elected MP in Narok South and managed to end most strife. 

His soft spot for the Kipsigis enabled him to deal with the recurrent fighting.

Fighting restarted, however, in 2004.

POLITICS

The Maa community is also unhappy after the Kipsigis wrested two wards in Narok South from their leadership.

Melelo MCA Philemon Aruasa of Kanu and his Olulunga counterpart Jefferson Langat of NVP were elected after defeating Maasai leaders.

Based on this election, the Kipsigis are accusing Maa leaders of inciting their people to start fights against them.

Politicians from both sides now accuse each other of fuelling the clashes.

Narok South MP Korei ole Lemein and his Narok North counterpart MP Moitalel ole Kenta said some politicians fond of visiting the area should be held responsible for the violence.

They did not name them.

Lemein told the politicians to stick to their administrative units.

“This is Narok South and we are peace-loving people. Those coming here with an agenda against uniting people should think twice," Lemein told the Star.

He urged the two communities to find peaceful ways of resolving their disputes.

Kenta said, “We are aware these people were incited by certain politicians to cause violence with the hope that they will return to their former homes, which is a government forest [Mau Forest].” 

He also urged the government to stop such politicians from visiting the area until calm is restored.

Emurua Dikirr MP Johana Ngeno asked why Environment CS Keriako Tobiko is now claiming the title deeds are illegal, yet he was a lawyer for the Nkaroni group ranch in the Mau region. That was before he was appointed Director of Public Prosecutions.

“During that time, Tobiko petitioned the then Narok County Council for a no-objection so a particular parcel of land, Sheet 5, could be declared an adjudication section so members of that group ranch could be issued title deeds. ...

"Today, Tobiko wants to tell us he doesn’t know, he is not aware, unless he has lost his mind,” Ngeno said.

To completely end the on-and-off clashes, leaders from both communities are calling on the Ministry of Lands to deal with land issues in the area once and for all.

Segamian MCA Wesley Koech calls for lifting the caveat imposed on lands that were former group ranches around the Mau Complex. He says residents have been impoverished because they cannot invest in their farms.

The ranches are Sagamian, Sisiyan, Nkaroni, Enakishomi, Enosogon and Reiyo.

“The caveat imposed on title deeds of lands around the Mau Complex has really affected the education of these pupils. Young children are made to travel long distances with a majority dropping out,” Joseph Koech said.

Retired senior chief Christopher Bore, who was a member of the Mau Task Force but refused to sign its findings, said the settlers have genuine title deeds and are ready to conserve the forest if they are involved.

“The law has to be followed and the government has to respect the sanctity of the title deeds,” he said.

(Edited by V. Graham)