By Betty Luke
Residents from seven villages in Isiolo’s Burat ward have engaged in a community dialogue seeking to address injustices ranging from Gender-Based Violence (GBV) to land conflicts and environmental hazards.
The engagement convened by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in partnership with Samburu Women Trust (SWT) also sought to raise awareness on best practices for addressing violence against women and other vulnerable groups in the society.
The residents decried increased violence against children noting that a majority of young girls had been forced to drop out of school as a result of teen pregnancies.
“Handling teen pregnancies has been an uphill task because majority of perpetrators are juvenile. We often find ourselves in an ethical dilemma on whether or not such perpetrators should be put in custody,”shared Burat Assistant Chief Elim Ekai.
Ms Habiba Mohammed Sheikh, a resident, said although there existed a myriad of obstacles in addressing violence amongst women, pastoralists communities had made significant strides in providing solutions.
Establishment of women networks, she noted, had helped boost ongoing efforts in the fight against GBV.
“We have united and formed women movements where we offer guidance to survivors of GBV as well as educate them on the reporting mechanisms, which has significantly impacted the ongoing fight,” she said.
Land injustices also formed a significant part of the conversation with communities decrying lack of ownership documents, a situation they said had severely impacted their livelihoods.
The residents accused the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) School of Infantry (SOI) of consistent attempts to evict them from their ancestral land hindering farming activities.
“It is unfortunate that we can no longer practice farming comfortably due to the invasion. We call for an end to the threats and intimidation (from the soldiers) so that we can occupy our land,” noted Ali Hassan.
Another resident, John Esimit, raised alarm over reckless disposal of explosives, used by the soldiers during their training, near homes saying many people had been affected but no compensation had been offered.
Rights crusader Kuresha Bille appealed to security apparatus to assign a security officer to Kambi ya Juu integrated school to ensure safety of differently abled learners at the facility.
Ms Kuresha noted that due to the ongoing conflict perpetrated by rustlers, the learners risked being affected as they could not run for their safety.
SWT Executive Director Jane Meruwas urged community elders to unite and initiate dialogues to curb the persistent cattle rustling menace.
Also present at the forum was Kenya National Commission on Human Rights Regional Coordinator Kinyanjui Thuo who emphasized the need to follow the laid down reporting mechanisms for violence survivors.
Earlier in the day, OHCHR and Samburu Women Trust had also convened a meeting with Human Rights Defenders from Isiolo, Samburu, and Laikipia counties.
The Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) discussed rising cases of GBV, threats facing defenders especially women and called for increased support, security training, and improved access to justice for survivors in the three counties.
