Ecological Protest: Karura Forest Violence (fwd)

WSN: Received the attached by mistake -- but it occurred to me it may be
something of an historic first: popular violence in Africa on behalf
of...trees.  
	In my experience, the notion we have from Amerindian cultures, of
indigenous ideologies & practices favorable to conservation and so on,
did not hold in tropical Africa. Rather, the mindset tends to be quite
ambivalent and certainly unsentimental about "nature," and positively
hostile towards forests, the site of  both physical and ritual danger.
This no doubt reflects the relatively recent settlement of the West (and
Central?) African forests (the Pygmies aside), and the challenge such
primary forests presented  to slash-and-burn 
agriculturalists.

	On ReOrient... find it a wonderful irony that it sparked further
discussion of...(Weberian) concepts of rationality!! I am currently
trying to look again at early modern Africa in light of  the revised
picture of the world economy that ReOrient helps crystallize. In this
connection, I am desperate for a copy of Barendse's "Arabian Seas." Have
misplaced the order info. from CNWS/Leiden (assume that would take a long
time in any case). Can anyone advise? 			Thanks --  kpm

	 
--------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Larry Bowman <BOWMAN@UCONNVM.UCONN.EDU>
To: CTAFRI-L@UCONNVM.UCONN.EDU
Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 13:59:44 -0500
Subject: Karura Forest Violence (fwd)

>From: "Marion E. Doro" <medor@conncoll.edu>
>X-Sender: medor@oak.cc.conncoll.edu
>To: bowman@uconnvm.uconn.edu
>Subject: Karura Forest Violence (fwd)
>
>Don't know if you have been following the Wangari Maathai episode in
>Kenya;  she and a number of her Greenbelt movement followers were beaten
>up by police as they tried to plant trees in a national forest outside
>Nairobi.  Moi has been "selling" portions of the forest and the owners
>have been busy cutting down trees....
>       I am sending you several  recent emails from Wangari's daughter
>[Wangiri Mathai -- spelled with one "a" -- who works at the Carter
Center
>in Emory]........
>       Is there any possibility of circulating  these to the Conn Notes
>list?  Or, at least to the Consortium List....
>       Marion
>
>
>Marion E. Doro, PhD
>Lucy Marsh Haskell Professor emeritus of Government
>P.O. Box 5457  Connecticut College 270 Mohegan Ave, New London,CT  06320
>Tel: 860-442-7513       Fax: 860-439-5333
>
>       Everybody brings us happiness.
>               Some by arriving.  Others by leaving.
>
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 23:12:46 -0000
>From: Wanjira Mathai <wmathai@emory.edu>
>Subject: Karura Forest Violence
>
>Dear Friends:
>
>Below are some articles formt the Kenyan NATION newspaper about the
>violence that broke out yesterday in Nairobi.

>News
>Tuesday, February 2, 1999
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>Moi blames Karura violence on hatred, tribalism
>
>
>
>President Moi yesterday said the Karura Forest controversy was propelled
by
>hatred and tribalism.
>
>He wondered why the issue had generated such a heated controversy
>considering that Karen, the Old Muthaiga, the New Muthaiga and Kitsuru
>residential areas which were at one time a forest, had given way to
human
>settlement.
>
>The President also wondered what had happened to the forest surrounding
>Kiambu municipality.
>
>The President once again cautioned against politics of tribalism and
hatred
>noting that they were not only destructive but as extremely dangerous.
>
>President Moi was speaking at Taaita Toweet Secondary School grounds
where
>he addressed a public rally after making an extensive tour of the
>development projects in Kericho District.
>
>He told Kenyans to seek for their rights in a peaceful manner, adding
that
>without peace to development could be achieved.
>
>The President once again advised different communities in Kipkelion
>constituency to continue living in peace and strengthen their resolve of
>unity of purpose.
>
>He said no Kenyan should spill the blood of another for whatever reason
and
>called for an amicable solution to any problem that may arise.
>
>On women representation to the constitution review commission, President
>Moi said it was not possible for 80 per cent of women who live in the
rural
>areas to be represented by a handful of urban women.
>
>He made it clear that constitutional changes should be made by consensus
by
>all Kenyans.
>
>President Moi said the Constitution should not be forced to cater for
the
>interest of a few people adding that it must reflect the will of all
>Kenyans.
>
>President Moi called on the local people to build quality schools to
cater
>for the increasing population, noting that many students who excelled
>failed to pursue further studies due to inadequate facilities.
>
>On medical care, the President said the government will look into better
>ways in which public medical facilities could better serve Kenyans.
>
>He also called on the provincial administration to revitalise soil
>conservation committees, noting that soil erosion impeded yields.
>
>O the infrastructure in the district, President Moi said the government
>will spend Sh304 million on road maintenance in Kericho and Buret
>districts.
>
>Cabinet Ministers at the rally were Kipng'eno arap Ngeny, William ole
>Ntimama and Kipkalia Kones, Assistant Ministers Charles Kirui, Julius
>Sunkuli and Francis Tarar.
>
>Also present were Members of parliament Samuel Rotich, Isaac Ruto,
Anthony
>Kimeto, James Koskei, Raphael Kitur, Paul Sang and former nominated MP
>Taita Towett.
>
>Comments\Views about this article
>
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>Article # 2:
>News
>Tuesday, February 2, 1999
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>Nairobi University closed after fresh riots
>
>
>
>By NATION Team
>
>The University of Nairobi was closed indefinately yesterday as students
>rioted for the third day running over allocation of Karura Forest.
>
>The university's Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Administration and Finance,
>Prof C.M. Kiamba said all students must leave the campus by 6pm.
>
>He ordered them home after they ignored a memo asking them to remain
calm
>and "not engage in activities that may disrupt the normal operations of
the
>university."
>
>The closure came after a day in which street battles between students
and
>police - fought out under a blistering sun - brought the capital
shuddering
>to a halt.
>
>The students took to the streets shortly after 1 pm, lighting bonfires
and
>erecting barriers - using uprooted signposts - along State House Road
which
>cuts through their halls of residence.
>
>They also immobilised the cars of more than 20 of their lecturers and
>professors, by deflating their tyres.
>
>Outside Kenyatta University a UN car was looted, then overturned and set
>ablaze, as students attacked police with petrol bombs, arrows and
stones.
>
>A lorry and another saloon car were vandalised, with the lorry pushed
into
>a ditch.
>
>Scores of students from both the University of Nairobi and Kenyatta
>University were injured following protracted street fighting with the
>police which lasted the whole afternoon.
>
>At the height of the violence, one policeman was waylaid by the students
>and beaten senseless. He was among a group of armed officers who were
>chased down University Way.
>
>Bleeding heavily, the officer was rescued by his colleagues and rushed
to
>the Forces Memorial Hospital.
>
>Others caught up in the melee were injured by flying stones.
>
>Many students were injured when cornered by police who beat them
>mercilessly with their batons.
>
>Red Cross workers were standing by to offer first aid and rush the
injured
>to hospitals.
>
>Several times the police had to retreat as the students chanting war
cries
>closed in on them, hurling stones.
>
>Police fired teargas canisters at the students holed up at St Paul's
>Catholic Chapel, St Andrew's PCEA Church and the First Christian
Scientist
>Church.
>
>The University of Nairobi campus lay beneath a blanket of thick smoke as
>police fought to stop the rioting students from reaching the city
centre.
>
>Panic gripped the western part of the city as police were forced to open
>fire with rubber bullets to contain the students.
>
>Several offices and businesses on the multi-storey Anniversary Towers,
>Posta Sacco Plaza, Ambank House and View Park Towers closed early as
>windows were smashed by the flying mkissiles.
>
>University Way, Uhuru Highway and Nyerere Road were closed to drivers.
Some
>of those who ignored the police orders to hold back got caught up in the
>violence and were injured.
>
>Some risked being beaten by the police who mistook them for students, or
>attacked by the students who thought they were plain-clothes policemen.
>
>By late afternoon the roads were littered with broken glasse, stones and
>the remains of rubber bullets.
>
>The students scribbled statements denouncing the allocation of Kararu
>Forest to private developers on the tarmac.
>
>One message read: "Dead sentence to Lotodo;" another stated: "We shall
not
>let Karura Forest slip into the hands of grabbers, we shall defend it
with
>our blood."
>
>Mr Francis Lotodo, the Minister for Natural Resources, stated recently
that
>the revocation of the Karura allocations would not take place so long as
he
>was responsible for that ministry - an announcement that infuriated the
>students.
>
>At Kenyatta University, students were seriously injured and a UN car was
>set ablaze as clashes continued.
>
>Students barricaded Thika Road using stones and bonfires, forcing
traffic
>to divert to Kamiti Road until 2 pm.
>
>They used petrol bombs, arrows and stones to fight police officers who
>fired teargas canisters and rubber bullets at them.
>
>A bow and several arrows were recovered.
>
>At one point the police, backed by a GSU riot squad, defied their
senior's
>orders to enter the compound where they attacked the students.
>
>They clobbered a first year BA student, Mr George Gitahi Macharia,
outside
>the gate.
>
>Comments\Views about this article
>
>
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>This page was last updated on Mon Feb 01 18:43:09 1999
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>
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