Evictions from Kenya’s Mau Forest be “humane, in dignity”, Bishops Demand

In a bid to save the water tower, Kenya’s Ministry of Environment issued a 60-day eviction notice to the over 10,000 families starting August 2019 to voluntarily leave the forest so as to pave way for its restoration.

“According to the latest government statistics, more than 3,000 families have voluntarily vacated the 17,101 acres of land in the Mau Forest complex ahead of the looming evictions,” Kenya’s Daily Nation newspaper reported.

At the expiry of the notice on October 31, the government attempted to make true its threat of forcible eviction.

The Bishop of Murang’a diocese in Kenya, James Maria Wainaina decried the lack of compassion in reclaiming one of Kenya’s critical water towers saying, “We would want that the process of the eviction is done in a very humane way.”

He added, “recovering the Mau forest is very important because first of all it was meant to be there. It was planned. It was in the plan of our country that the whole of that area would be a forest or it was to be a water tower and it would be serving the nation in that way.”

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“I hear that people have already left the place as the deadline was nearing and that was very good,” the Bishop of Kenya’s Murang’a said and continued, “those who have not gone now, they should be assisted to go out peacefully, in a good way.”

On his part, Archbishop Anthony Muheria of Nyeri said that the Mau evictions had been politicized whereas the real issue is the plight of the evictees who are suffering.

“We should not just jump on the political discussion, which is what has happened in Mau evictions,” the Archbishop said and added, “That is not the main issue here.”

He explained, “The issue is who has died, who has been hurt, who are crying because their people are in hospital and they can’t pay, who are the people who are not going to have food because that is the real plight that we must address.”

The Archbishop of Kenya’s Nyeri diocese added that politicizing the eviction and inhumane treatment of the evictees is a crime before God and though the government may have “a right to evict,” the eviction process should be done minding the human dignity.

“For us as the Church, we always say, first and foremost human dignity is important. The human dignity comes before the law,” Bishop Muheria said and added, “So, even when enforcing a law, you have to give the dignity back to the persons.”

Kenya’s Senate summoned the Cabinet Secretary of Environment, Keriako Tobiko and the Rift Valley Regional Commissioner George Natembeya to explain the ongoing evictions. 

The Human Rights Watch also expressed concern over the way the Kenyan government is conducting the evictions. 

“While forest conservation goals are laudable, the way the government is carrying out the evictions raises serious human rights concerns,” reads in part the statement by Human Rights Watch.

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.