Report: Disinheritance main cause of land row

By Mangoa Mosota and Lawrence Aluru

More than 400 cases of land injustices have been recorded in Siaya County in the last six months, a report shows.

Most of the cases are on land disinheritance, in which individuals dispossess their next of kin of land.

Chris Owala, a co-ordinator of Community Initiatives Action Group (Ciag) said the most affected people are widows and orphans.

“We have realised that relatives of widows and orphans take advantage of their vulnerability and apportion land that does not belong to them,” Mr Owala said.

The preliminary report is from 15 meetings CIAG and Kenya Transitional Initiative (KTI) carried out with residents to enlighten them on land rights. “There were painful narrations, where one teenage boy indicated how his uncle has taken away land given to him by his late father,” said Owala.

In the findings of the organisations, the provincial administration has been accused of taking sides in the land disputes.

Since victims are often poor, chiefs and their assistants side with land grabbers within the community.

In one case, a land office disregarded a court ruling on a disputed land, and the issue has been taken back to court.

Josephine Opiyo, a lawyer, who was training land committees, said most land conflicts stem from transactions being done unprofessionally.

“Most of the conflicts are due to transactions being made orally, instead of being written down,” said Ms Opiyo.

Ciag and KTI are advocating for alternative land dispute mechanisms that are easily accessible and affordable to the poor.

 “In most instances, courts are out of reach for many rural folk, hence we have been advocating for use of local mechanisms such as village elders,” said Owala.

The findings also indicate that unresolved land disputes have resulted in many court cases and physical harm. Worse, there have been killings due to unresolved conflicts.

The delay in the implementation of a land commission has been cited as the main cause of land disputes.

For example, the delay in operationalisation of the National Land Commission has led to the continued challenges in addressing issues related to land.