Kenya's Marsabit county has been a popular tourist destination, but the region is now plagued by ethnic conflicts that have paralyzed economic activities.
Nuno Galma, a driver in the town, has seen his business suffer due to the unrest. 'My business is affected whenever the bandits attack our town. As a businessman when I hear gunshots, I have to run.'
The conflicts between two major ethnic groups in the county, whose source of livelihood is pastoralism, are fueled by the fight over natural resources. The groups have access to illegal firearms smuggled from neighboring Ethiopia.
Kenyan authorities have declared a 30-day dusk to dawn curfew to crack down on illegal firearms and ammunition. Bruno Shioso, a Kenya police spokesperson, said, 'We have heightened surveillance because it has been declared a deserted area. We have increased the number of police. We are happy because leaders in the area are now talking, they are coming out to talk, so we believe as we continue with our work the leaders in the area will also preach peace.'
Security expert George Msamali attributed the unrest to conflicts across the border in Ethiopia, which have been sparked by the unsecured border that enables people to smuggle weapons. 'Remember some communities have families across the border and the Kenya-Ethiopia border is so porous so, you'll find that people moving from Ethiopia joining their kinsmen in Kenya and fighting against the other clan. It's easy for them to smuggle weapons from Kenya into Ethiopia and vice versa.'
Dozens of people have been killed in recent months in what authorities said amounts to a political struggle to control resources. Kenya's Interior Cabinet Secretary, Fred Matiang'i, said the security operation in Marsabit may be extended until the state can get rid of illegal weapons in the region.
