Where guns now sell for five cows down from 14

Critics say the gun culture in the arid north is as a result of the Government’s continued neglect. “It is true that thousands of guns are in the wrong hands in northern Kenya. But what are the pastoralists to do when the Government has failed to provide adequate protection to them and their livestock? Young warriors have no alternative but to protect their families and herds from outside attacks,” says Raphael Letimalo, MP for Samburu East.

The disarmament processes, like the Mandera Security Operation early last year, have been cited in serious human rights abuses where women and girls are gang-raped and children and the elderly killed. The Government has largely been blamed for its failure to implement serious disarming operations.

“Over the years, we have experienced partial disarmament, where some communities are disarmed and others are left armed. If it is disarmament, let it be done without favouritism,” says Simeon Lesrima, assistant minister for Internal Security. Statistics from Institute for Security Studies shows that the two major hurdles which afflict frequent government disarmament programmes in Northern Kenya are limited budget and lack of organized cross-border disarmament programmes.

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