"Routine Tribal Clashes": Will They Ever End?

[MOON Ki]

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I am always astonished by the numbers who die, or are otherwise affected, each year.   Year after year, since ...    And it seems the government is either unable or unwilling to seriously tackle the problems.

The past week alone has seen close to 100 dead:

http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/350-families-displaced-turkana-east-clashes-92-dead#sthash.Y6tPcYMC.dpbs

[mya88]

I am always astonished by the numbers who die, or are otherwise affected, each year.   Year after year, since ...    And it seems the government is either unable or unwilling to seriously tackle the problems.

The past week alone has seen close to 100 dead:

http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/350-families-displaced-turkana-east-clashes-92-dead#sthash.Y6tPcYMC.dpbs

I am always amazed at the same...its like human beings lives do not even matter in some of these quarters. The government is unwilling to tackle this issue. During Moi's term, we didn't hear of such or at least they weren't as common. Nowadays its so common its almost being accepted as part of life. I don't know what changed in us. Communities used to regard life and actually protect and guard lives. Bandits would raid villages to steal cattle but not to massacre people....tis new level of unabated violence is disturbing. I am afraid if its not nipped.....it will continue rearing its ugly head. So much so, that terrorists have no problem capitalizing in on it. This is a country where 50% of population is jobless. Why not recruit and train them into the police, security etc. and deploy them to these areas to establish some sort of governance?

[Kim Jong-Un's Pajama Pants]

One gets the impression that because successive governments have done exactly NOTHING to change the state of affairs for over half a century, Turkanas killing Pokots en masse and vice versa will remain news for the middle pages.

There is no sense that anyone outside these areas is pained by these events.

[Kadudu]

Add another 13 as Turkanas and Rendile clash in Marsabit.

http://www.nation.co.ke/counties/Turkana-Rendille-herders-clash-Marsabit/-/1107872/2707924/-/ud5b8iz/-/index.html

[MOON Ki]

One gets the impression that because successive governments have done exactly NOTHING to change the state of affairs for over half a century, Turkanas killing Pokots en masse and vice versa will remain news for the middle pages.

There is no sense that anyone outside these areas is pained by these events.

I thought (or at least hoped) that some things would have changed by now, but, sadly, that is apparently not the case.

When I was growing up, the NEP was not really considered a real part of Kenya, nor were Kenyans of "Somalian ethnicity" considered "real Kenyans".   Many could not understand why there was concern---especially that there had been the so-called Shifta War---over a "dusty and useless piece" of real estate that, moreover, was not occupied by "Kenyans".

Turkana/Pokot and their areas were, however, viewed differently: those were parts of Kenya, and the people were Kenyans but generally viewed as some sort of "lesser Kenyans".   Voice of Kenya would routinely include, in the 7PM news, this-and-that in "routine tribal clashes", and that would be that.   It is amazing that so little has changed, and one wonders when it will.

Incredibly, even the usual "civil-rights groups" never make much noise on this one.

[vooke]

It's obvious no amount of 'security' will stem the clashes. What is there to be done? Like now not 20 years from now. They keep on talking of infrastructure but I don't understand how roads leading to nowhere will solve nothing. And how has the devilution helped, or is it stoking the flames?

[MOON Ki]

I am always amazed at the same...its like human beings lives do not even matter in some of these quarters. The government is unwilling to tackle this issue. During Moi's term, we didn't hear of such or at least they weren't as common. Nowadays its so common its almost being accepted as part of life. I don't know what changed in us. Communities used to regard life and actually protect and guard lives. Bandits would raid villages to steal cattle but not to massacre people....tis new level of unabated violence is disturbing. I am afraid if its not nipped.....it will continue rearing its ugly head. So much so, that terrorists have no problem capitalizing in on it. This is a country where 50% of population is jobless. Why not recruit and train them into the police, security etc. and deploy them to these areas to establish some sort of governance?

One thing that seems to have changed over the years is that the "bandits" have moved from bows-and-arrows to assault rifles; just that alone would probably increase the level of mayhem.  (It should also increase the urgency in the search for a permanent solution.)   Remember that it was not that long ago that these "bandits" slaughtered over 40 coppers in Baragoi.

What hasn't changed is GoK's willingness to tackle matter properly.    Baragoi quickly went the way of accept-and-move-on.   The only person who got some heat over it was the fake Asst. Commissioner of Police---a Mr. Waigango.

Another curious things is that quite a few of the "looted" cattle appear---at least there have been credible claims to that end---to have ended up in slaughter-houses in Uganda.   Is it really the case that "traditional rustling" is behind  such business?

[Georgesoros]

How about bringing real govt? Better schools, hospital, etc
This will give a few hundreds jobs to start.
All these tribes know is COWS.

[RV Pundit]

I think we might have to do what brits generally did. Carve out say 10-20Km border buffer btw tribes and give them to gov . This is esp true in northern kenya..from turkana to somali.

It risky to have tribes leaving near each other....the more cosmopolitan we become (without civilising and while retaining our strong ethnic identity)..the closer we will get to Rwanda like situation when shit hit the fan...and everyone is just a machete away.

There are no quick fixes for this..education (turkana and pokot have illiteracy of 90%) will take generations to produce results...ands so is developing those terrains that appear to have nothing above ground.