This archive report was first published on 26 July 2021.
Residents of Trans Mara West in Narok County are reeling from the loss of a 17-year-old student who was killed in clashes between two Maasai clans, the Uasin Gishu and Siria, over a 30-year land dispute.
The conflict, which started in the 1970s, has led to the loss of many lives and property, with the latest incident occurring on Friday morning when members of the two clans engaged in skirmishes at Enoretet.
According to village elder David Narupa, the fighting erupted barely one year after elders from the two clans met and agreed to live in peace following recurrence of conflict for the past four years.
“We are tired of having our people being killed every now and then. We have many widows and children suffering after their husbands and fathers died in this unnecessary conflicts which has been persistent for over 30 years, let our leaders intervene to restore order,” said Narupa.
The student, Joshua Kortom, was rushed to Kilgoris Sub County Hospital and later transferred to Narok County Hospital before being transferred to a hospital in Nairobi for specialized treatment, where he died on Friday evening.
Narok County Police Commander Kizito Mutoro said General Service Unit officers have been deployed to ensure that law and order was maintained and that anyone found causing a breach of peace would be arrested.
“We have launched a manhunt of the warriors from the two clans who ignited the latest round of violence,” said Mutoro.
Rift Valley Regional Commissioner George Natembeya had extended the dawn to dusk curfew in the volatile areas in Trans Mara West from 4pm to 7am in a bid to contain inter-clan conflict, but later reviewed it after elders agreed to implore their kinsmen to maintain peace.
“It is very disturbing that while the country is busy fighting the spread of coronavirus, some people are engaging in useless conflicts. We cannot allow the killing of people and destruction of property to go on,” said Natembeya.
