Kenya's Ogiek people are being violently evicted from their ancestral lands

After being evicted from their homes by 50 police and Kenya Forest Service (KFS) rangers last June, more than 200 families from the indigenous Ogiek minority are now living in temporary shelters or in the open without food or blanckets to protect themselves from the cold. The news has been reported by The Guardian.The article reads:  

 

They came without warning, forcing people from their homes with no time to collect their possessions. A deaf old man was attacked when he didn’t hear the orders to leave. Then the houses were burned to the ground.

More than 200 families, all from the indigenous Ogiek minority, were evicted from their homes on the slopes of Mount Elgon in western Kenya by a force of about 50 police and Kenya Forest Service (KFS) rangers in June. “They were armed,” says Peter Kitelo, an Ogiek activist.

While some people found refuge with friends and family, or have been able to build shelters, many still have only trees for cover. “We are really cold. There is no food, there [are] no blankets, there is no shelter,” says Cosmas Murunga, 68, who fled his home with 10 family members as it was set on fire.

 

The full article is available here.