Progress is slow – Northern Kenya: fighting war among children

The steppe of northern Kenya has dried up, with no sign of lush grassland or rivers. Dromedaries, goats and cows are emaciated, the search for something to eat often takes more than a day’s walk. When the herders take their livestock for essential food and leave their usual habitat, they often move into hostile tribal areas. In this area, a distinction is made between the regions and peoples of Pokot, Marsabit, Turkana and Samburu, the latter two in particular living in bitter rivalry with each other. The increasing drought increases mutual hostility and attacks. It is no longer just about local patriotism and defending your own country, but about pure survival.

hell of the earth
Samburu resident Andrew Odinga Lepatoye witnessed the hell of this reality firsthand. His family lives about a mile from the town of Tuum in the Turkana region. His parents keep a herd of dromedaries and go to bed on a hot July night in the summer of 2021. Undeterred by the darkness, Andrew’s sister’s eight-year-old son plays another round outside. A few hours later he is dead because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Three warriors from Turkana want to steal dromedaries when the boy gets in their way. First a thrown stone hits him in the temple, with a precise knife thrust one of the thieves extinguishes the child’s life light. For Andrew’s family, cattle theft becomes a minor matter, even though it is life-threatening given the climate.

The sympathetic 28-year-old remembers the atrocity with a voice choked with tears, but his family quickly recovered from the shock of the tragic event. She needed to recover, because the daily struggle for survival in one of the most inhospitable areas in the world leaves no time for sadness. The battle between Samburu and Turkana peoples has been going on for decades and has claimed countless lives. It especially affects the warriors themselves, involuntary participants who, according to the traditions of their homeland, have no other choice. In northern Kenya, becoming a man is not defined by age, but by circumcision. This can happen at the age of eight or as young as 18 – a lottery game. It is decided by the fathers of the family. Everything changes overnight for the boys as they grow up from child to adult without being asked.

From child to man
They have to leave their families at night and move around with herds of cattle. The smallest usually with goats, older and more robust boys with cows or dromedaries. In principle, they are not allowed to eat or sleep in the parental home and it is strictly forbidden to go to school. “You are on your own. Where you sleep, how and what you eat – no one helps you,” says Judge Leorto, who was once a warrior with the Pokot tribe for twelve years. Today, the 41-year-old acts as a peacemaker between peoples, made possible by the local Yarumal mission around the Colombian Father Guillermo Alvarez, which is strongly supported by the Dreikönigsaktion, the aid organization of the Catholic youth movement.

‘Father Memo’, as the people of the mission in Barsaloi affectionately call him, has seen a lot over the years. He opened the gates as a temporary refugee camp for women and children fleeing tribal wars, or drove a bullet-wounded warrior through the thigh over bumpy and unpaved roads to the nearest hospital, more than two hours away. Without a happy ending, because the rescue mission failed due to a lack of blood reserves. Firearms have become more common in conflicts in recent years. They enter northern Kenya from surrounding countries and fall into the hands of underage children or teenagers who often do not know how to handle them.

Father, teacher and psychologist
“It’s an extra drama to the already existing,” says “Peacekeeper” Leorto, “at this age, children like to play the strong man and are open to guns. They have no idea how they work, but they feel very mighty with them.” When we meet a group of warriors in a small shady area near a dry river in the scorching midday heat, they are dissecting a freshly slaughtered goat with sharp hunting knives. . A euphoric youth wants to pose next to me with his rifle. , he admits that he has no idea whether it is secure or not. Leorto acts with the children as a kind of mixture of father, teacher and psychologist. “I explain to them that peace is the most important thing. That we are all human beings. It doesn’t matter which tribe we belong to, and that you can achieve a lot with education.”

After the strenuous shepherding service, which usually lasts about twelve hours, the Yarumal mission enables the warriors in Barsaloi and other villages to attend a shepherd’s school at night, and later perhaps even a public primary school. There the children learn to read, write and count. Basic building blocks for a future far away from guns, death and suffering. Few make it, but dream of a career as a doctor in Nairobi or a professional football player in Spain. Even under the strict rules of the Warriors, certain dogmas are slowly softening. The warriors no longer always cross the street when they meet women, and the strict ban on coming home to the family is also relaxed. Technologies such as the widespread use of smartphones, which convey more than just a sense of global freedom, are partly responsible for this.

to combine forces
Everywhere regional initiatives and the tribal elders try to ensure peace between the peoples. You cannot count on the police and the new government in Kenya seems to pay little attention to Northern Kenya, which is not interesting for tourists. A long but rewarding journey, as Leorto knows, sparing no effort in his task. “It should not be forgotten that most of them are children and young people. They really don’t feel like fighting and killing. And certainly in a climatically precarious situation like the current one, it would be wiser to join forces and work together to ensure that we can survive and make the land as arable as possible.”

Andrew Lepatoye also acts as a peacemaker, despite his incredible family drama. He has swallowed his anger and put aside the personal to bring about the long-awaited peace throughout the land. “There isn’t a day that I don’t think about my niece and her cruel fate, but revenge has never solved a problem. It hasn’t rained in our region for over three years and we all need to think together about how to secure our future. This can only work if we don’t kill each other.” The ground has been prepared and many people are working fervently to permanently improve the situation: “We must never give up and must continue on our way.”

You too can help!
500 carol singer projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America help people in need whose poverty has drastically worsened due to the pandemic and climate crisis. This support can be given at any time by making a donation to the donation account of the Dreikönigsaktion (IBAN: AT23 6000 0000 9300 0330) or online at sternsingen.at/spender. You too can help and make the world a better place!