Clan clashes rekindle Wagalla massacre memories

Fresh clan conflicts over resources in Wajir have led to calls for disarmament and memories of the 1984 Wagalla massacre that left hundreds dead.

Since December, more than 10 people have been killed in clashes between members of the Arjuran and Degodia clans at the Eldas and Wajir North sub-counties boundary. 

ATTACKS

Among the first casualties of the skirmishes were a chief, a Kenya Police Reservist, a secondary school student and a 70-year-old herdsman.

The latest was a pregnant woman who was shot and her body mutilated at Malkagufu area in broad daylight. A man who was killed had his eyes gouged out.

Kenya National Commission on Human Rights North-Eastern regional coordinator Kinyanjui Thuo expressed fears of a Wagalla-like massacre should the government resort to disarming the fighters. 

In a past interview, Wajir County Administration Police boss Mohammed Sheikh said the government was contemplating a major security operation in the area. 

“We want to apply different approaches as we attempt to bring an end to the senseless killings, including dialogue and a weapon mop-up,” he said.

The county security team, which includes chiefs and their assistants, has hosted several peace meetings.

Mr Sheikh said Tuluw Roba, Malkagufu, Batalu and Lakoley were the violence hotspots.

The killings have led to closure of several schools in the two sub-counties.

The Wagalla monument, which acts  as a reminder of the dark period, lies in ruins after residents destroyed it, accusing unnamed individuals of plotting to grab the Qorahey grounds where it sits.

Last week, the family of Wajir’s first senator Noor Adan, who was among the victims of the Wagalla massacre, demanded justice and asked the government to explain what happened.

The February 1984 massacre took place as security forces attempted to disarm the Degodia following clan-related skirmishes.

Men were rounded up by the military and delivered to Wagalla airstrip in lorries. With no food or water in the scorching sun, the men were beaten, tortured, ordered to lie on the ground for days, while some were executed.

Although the government puts the number of the dead at 57, residents and rights organisations say as many as 5,000 people were killed.

The Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, which was set up to investigate historical injustices, said close to 1,000 people were killed in the massacre.

The commission added that it was unable to determine the precise number.

It said security agents committed atrocities, including torture, beatings, rape and sexual violence, burning houses and looting.

Adan’s son Mohamed Noor said justice for his father and others killed had become a distant dream.

Noor, who was popularly known as Ngamia, was nominated a senator by President Jomo Kenyatta in 1963 and served until the Senate was scrapped. He was then nominated an MP, a position he held until 1969.

Close friends

In an interview recently, Mr Mohamed recalled former Interior minister Justus ole Tipis denying the massacre had happened during a Voice of Kenya radio show one Sunday morning in 1984. Tipis said those killed were secessionist Shifta bandits.

“Was my father a decorated lawmaker or a Shifta?” Mr Mohamed asked.

He said President Kenyatta should end the cry for justice by survivors of the massacre “as my father and his were close friends” by implementing the TJRC report.

Almost all key players mentioned in the TJRC report have died.

Key officials mentioned in the TJRC report have died as survivors demand its implementation.