In the 25th April, 2005 peace agreement signed after the culimation of a serious elders negotiation, between the Murule and Garre clans, it was agreed the borders be spelt out and that there will be payment in the form of a compensation for the loss of life and property. They agreed that clans must live in harmony and in the spirit of neigbourliness. At that time, The Murulles paid an equivalent of US$ 300,000/= (at current Kenya Shilling rate against the Dollar) to the Garres over the killings in Elgolicha where 23 people died. But now, even after killing some Murulles, the Garre clan is reluctant to pay them citing superiority in matters Mandera. For the past 1-3 yrs after that agreement, several Murulles were killed and issues kept going out of hand. The Government was also not really into the matter until recently when things went out of hand.
The Police claim the "Operation Mandera" as it is now called has been succesful. They claim to have arrested 165 foreign militias and six local chiefs believed to have played a role in the inter-clan skirmishes in Mandera notswithstanding the inhuman way the operation was done. They also mentioned that 21 people, including three security officers, have been killed in the violence since July.
Internal Security Assistant Minister Orwa Ojodeh told the parliament that 6 militias arrested in Mandera Central areas of Wargudud, Elwak have been jailed for six months for aiding the two clans to fight each other over control of a borehole.
Mr Fred Kapondi (Mt Elgon, ODM) and Mr Abdi Nassir (Bura) asked why it had taken the Government long to act and what role intelligence officers played while at the sametime, Nominated MPs Millie Odhiambo, Mohamed Affey and Amina Abdalla alleged that the Government took long to contain the situation, that was deteroriating day in day out, as clans sorted out their matter in guns but Ojdodeh defended that, it is now in history books..
"The Government is in control, had we not moved swiftly, we would have had more casualties."
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights has compiled a report implicating the military in rape and torture of residents and Ojodeh concurred that those are allegations and that his ministry had formed a committee to investigate such claims.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights has compiled a report implicating the military in rape and torture of residents and Ojodeh concurred that those are allegations and that his ministry had formed a committee to investigate such claims.
Ojodeh told parliament that Government surveyors had been sent to the district to determine the boundaries of Mandera Central and Mandera East. "Senior Government officers are engaged in peace efforts," Ojodeh added. But he was categorical that the security operation would not be withdrawn until tension eased. In the mind of many kenyans, government surveyors are sometime corrupt and they can end making inconclsuive evidence to show the truth. That is why, we are saying, They have a duty to make sure even if they refer to the Kenya National Archives to sort out the matter once and for all, they have to be accurate to reduce the tension between those communities. All land demarcations in Mandera and subsequent borders between these two communities are spelt out in history books.
It will be embarrasing to the government and to us, if the surveyors to come up with half truths on the matter in Mandera even as clans complain of human right abuses there.
It should however be noted that, Mandera Central was carved out of Mandera East by the KANU administration of President Moi in 1988.
