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Tension High Among Kisii, Maasai After Arrest of Farmer

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Published on Thursday, 07 April 2011 23:53

Ethnic tension between the Kisii and Maasai is high after a farmer was arrested at the weekend at the Gucha South-Trans Mara West border.

The farmer was arrested by Keiyan Group Ranch security guards while planting sugarcane on a disputed farm. Both the Kisii and Maasai claim the property. Administrators last week agreed to call in surveyors to mark out the boundary between Nyanza and Rift Valley to end the dispute which has dragged on for 40 years.

During a joint security meeting between Maasais and Kisiis chaired by Gucha South DC Geoffrey Mayama and his Trans Mara West counterpart Mathioya Mbogo, no solution was reached. The meeting was held at Nyamaiya market on the border area. The DCs said the surveyors will be drawn from the two provinces. Mayama and Mbogo appealed for calm and patient. "This area has experienced clashes triggered by cultivating or grazing livestock on the disputed areas. We have moved in to prevent the tension from spiraling," said Mayama.There is a GSU camp at Keiyan Group Ranch formerly linked to retired President Daniel Moi.