A Big Win for the Indigenous People of Kenya

NAIROBI, Kenya- A landmark ruling on indigenous land rights in Africa took place today in Nairobi, Kenya.  A ruling by the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights condemned the eviction of the Endorois people from their land in Kenya. In the 1970’s the Kenyan Government ousted the Endorois people, a traditional pastoralist community, from their homes at Lake Bogoria in central Kenya. The purpose of evicting the Endorois people was to make way for a national reserve and tourist facilities.

Lake Bogoria is considered to be a great cite for tourism in Kenya because of its hot springs and abundant wildlife that includes one of Africa’s largest populations of flamingos. The decision to remove them from the land over 30 years ago was clearly an economic decision that many have believed needed to be addressed and remedied.

With today’s ruling, many human rights advocates believe precedent has been set for recognizing the land rights of indigenous people in Africa.  The commission found that the eviction, with insufficient compensation, violated the Endorois’ right as an indigenous people to “property, health, culture, religion, and natural resources.” The commission ordered Kenya to restore the Endorois to their historic land, and to compensate them. This is the first ruling that defines who indigenous people to a particular land are and what their rights to that land are.

Working on this case as the advocate for the Endorois community was a London-based Canadian lawyer, Cynthia Morel. Morel said in a statement, “This landmark decision marks the beginning of a new dawn, not only for the Endorois community, but for all indigenous peoples across Africa.”

For more information, please see:

Montreal Gazette – Canadian Lawyer Helps Win Compensation for Indigenous Kenyans – 4 February 2010

Reuters – Landmark Ruling on Indigenous Land Rights – 4 February 2010

Washington post – Kenya Illegally Evicted Group – 4 February 2010