Local people object to politicians having a permit to cut protected forest while they have no access
THARAKA NITHI, Kenya, Julai 20 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Uharibifu wa msitu wa mlima Kenya umeleta hofu dhidi ya kikundi cha wanasiasa na jamii, kuhusu mzozo juu ya haki za ardhi, madai ya upendeleo, unyanyasaji na vurugu.
Atiriri Bururi ma Chuka, kundi la uhifadhi ambalo jina lake latafsiri kama “walinzi wa ardhi ya jamii ya Chuka” lasema wanasiasa wanne wameshirikiana na kampuni ambayo inakata miti katika ekari elfu ishirini na nne za msitu wa umma.
Kampuni hii, Kamweru Farm, imesha kata miti katika zaidi ya ekari 15, asema Atiriri, imetenga ardhi na kazi yaendelea, ambapo inaweza kutisha wanyamapori, kuchangia kwa mabadiliko ya hali ya hewa, na kuzuia uwezo wa msitu kuhifadhi maji, hivi kuathiri maisha ya wenyeji.
Ukataji wa miti kwa msitu umepigwa marufuku kwa kipande hiki cha ardhi ambacho ni hifadhi ya serikali na pia kinadaiwa na jamii ya Chuka. Hata hivyo, wanasiasa wasema walipokea kibali mwaka wa 2014 kutoka kwa ofisi ya msitu ya wilaya, ili kukata miti.
Ofisi hii ilidhibitisha kibali kilitolewa miaka miwili iliyopita ili kuwezesha “utafiti wa msitu” chini ya mamlaka ya chama cha msitu wa mlima wa Kenya, ama CFA.
Chama hiki kimetambuliwa kisheria na serikali kufanya shughuli katika msitu kama vile upandaji wa miti na kuzuia moto msituni.
Mwenyekiti wa Atiriri, Ngai M’Uboro alisema wanasiasa walipata hiki kibali kwa njia ambazo jamii kamwe haingeweza kupata, na kuchukua rasilimali yenye thamani.
Mwanasiasa John Muchiri, ambaye ni spika katika kata ya Tharaka Nithi alisema yeye na wanasiasa wengine watatu wanaohusishwa na Kamweru Farm walipata kibali kisheria kukata miti, huku wakituhumu wapinzani wa kisiasa kwa kujaribu kuharibu jina lake kabla ya uchaguzi mwaka ujao.
“Mimi sishiriki kwa shughuli zozote haramu kwa sababu mimi niko na kibali kinachoruhusu mimi na washirika wangu kukata miti kutoka kwa msitu,” Muchiri aliambia Thomson Reuters Foundation kwa simu.
“Vile mimi ninajua ni kwamba kuna baadhi ya vikundi ambavyo sitataja, vinavyofanya kazi na wapinzani wangu wa kisiasa ili kupinga juhudi zangu za kushinda kiti cha ubunge cha Tharaka Nithi mwaka wa elfu mbili na kumi na saba.”
Mabishano juu ya ukataji wa miti katika msitu hifadhi uliotajwa kama wa muhimu na UNESCO, yamesababisha hasira - na hata vurugu - na kuonyesha mivutano katika migogoro ya ardhi inayopiganiwa barani Afrika.
Mwanachama mmoja wa Atiriri alipigwa risasi na walinzi wa usalama mapema mwaka huu, wakati wanachama walikuwa wakipiga doria katika eneo hilo ili kuangalia wakataji miti haramu.
Serikali ya mtaa ilisema haijapokea habari zozote kuhusu ukataji miti haramu, na ingechukua hatua kama kuna udhibitisho.
Waziri wa Mazingira wa kata ya Tharaka Nithi, Albert Mugambi, alisema anaamini msitu umelindwa kikamilifu na shirika la misitu la Kenya, KFS.
“Sisi hatujui mwanasiasa yeyote ambaye anashiriki katika ukataji haramu wa miti,” Mugambi alisema katika mahojiano ya simu. “Kama mtu yeyote anafanya hivi, ni kinyume cha sheria. Wao ni wezi na ni lazima washtakiwe.”
MGOGORO WA UMILIKI
Mgogoro dhidi ya uhalali wa ukataji wa miti umeleta musuala ya kimsingi: Mwenye kumiliki ardhi hii ni nani?
“Msitu wa mlima Kenya umekuwa ukitumiwa vibaya kwa sababu kuna masuala ambayo hayajatatuliwa, kama sehemu ya msitu iko kwa ardhi ya jamii au sio,” alisema James Mugambi, ofisa wa kituo cha utafiti wa mazingira, Kenya.
Wanasiasa watatu wanaohusika wanatoka kata ya Tharaka Nithi na huyo mwingine kata ya Meru.
KFS inalinda maeneo muhimu ya kuingia kwa msitu na inafanya ufuatiliaji kupitia anga ili kulinda msitu, kwa mujibu wa askari mlinzi katika kituo cha msitu cha Chuka, huko Tharaka Nithi.
Ukanda wa shamba la chai linalotenga msitu na jamii ulianzishwa na Rais mstaafu, Daniel Arap Moi. Hivi karibuni, uzio wa umeme ili kuzuia uvamiaji harakati wa tembo ulijengwa katika ukanda wa msitu wa Tharaka Nithi na Meru.
Hata hivyo, licha ya hatua hizi, sehemu za msitu bado zinatishwa, ikiwa ni pamoja na eneo linalodaiwa na jamii ya Chuka. Ilitengwa na serikali kama hifadhi ya ardhi mwaka elfu mia tisa thelathini na nne.
Kwa mujibu wa Wendy Wanja, wakili anayewakilisha kundi la Atiriri, utata kuhusu nani anayemiliki ardhi hii inaweza kueleza ni kwa nini wanasiasa wamekuwa wakikata miti huko.
“Serikali inadai kumiliki kipande hiki cha ardhi ambacho kimetengwa kwa ajili ya utafiti wa msitu,” alifafanua.
Rekodi rasmi za bunge, zilizoonekana na Thomson Reuters Foundation, zaonyesha jamii ya Chuka wana umiliki wa kimila wa ardhi hii, kama alivyoeleza Wanja.
Wenyeji wamekasirika kwamba wanasiasa wamekuwa wakikata miti kwa msitu wakati wao wenyewe hawana hata kuni za kutosha.
“Hatuna uwezo wa kujenga na kukarabati madarasa kwa sababu ya kukosa mbao,” alisema Njiru Kirimo, mwenye miaka thelathini na sita na ambaye ni mkulima huko kijiji cha Kiang'ondu.
Alisema alipigwa mara mbili katika mwaka wa 2014 na walinzi wa msitu, ambapo walimtuhumu kwa kuingia msituni kinyume cha sheria kukusanya kuni.
“Sheria ya sasa inahitaji mtu kupata kibali kutoka kwa chifu kuruhusu hata kukata mti katika shamba lake. Hata hivyo, kwa karibu miaka mitatu tumeona malori yakibeba mbao kutoka kwa msitu.”
M'Uboro alisema ako na ushahidi wa kuonyesha mbao ambazo hutolewa kwa msitu zinauzwa katika masoko ya mjini Nairobi na Isiolo, kaskazini mwa Kenya.
“Ukataji wa miti haramu katika msitu wa mlima Kenya ni biashara kubwa, lakini fedha hizi zinafaidi tu watu wachache,” aliongeza.
Taarifa na Kagondu Njagi; Uhariri na Megan Rowling na Belinda Goldsmith; Tafadhali tembelea Thomson Reuters Foundation, mkono hisani wa Thomson Reuters, unaoripoti shughuli za misaada, mabadiliko ya hali ya hewa, haki za wanawake na biashara rushwa. Tembelea http://news.trust.org.)
DISPUTED OWNERSHIP
The row over the legality of the logging has highlighted a major underlying tension: Who actually owns the land?
"Mount Kenya forest has always been vulnerable to encroachment because there are issues that remain unresolved as to whether part of the forest lies on community land or not," said James Mugambi, a programme officer with Centre for Research in Environment Kenya.
The counties of Tharaka Nithi, home to three of the politicians involved, and Meru, home to the other, flank the forest to the east.
The Kenya Forest Service has placed protection posts at key entry points around the forest and conducts aerial surveillance, according to a ranger at Chuka Forest Station in Tharaka Nithi.
A tea plantation belt separating the forest and upper eastern communities was established by former President Daniel Arap Moi. Recently, an electric fence to restrict encroachment and the movement of elephants was erected along the Tharaka Nithi and Meru forest corridor.
Yet, despite these measures, parts of the forest are still under threat, including the area claimed by the Chuka community. It was incorporated by the government as reserve land in 1934.
According to Wendy Wanja, a lawyer representing the Atiriri group, controversy over who owns the land may explain why politicians have been able to harvest trees there.
"The government claims ownership of this piece of land which they have earmarked for forestry research," she explained.
Official parliamentary records, seen by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, show the Chuka people have customary tenure of the land, as noted by Wanja.
Local people are angry that politicians have been taking wood from the forest when they do not have enough themselves.
"We are not able to build and repair classrooms because of a lack of timber," said Njiru Kirimo, 36, a farmer in Kiang'ondu village, who said he was beaten twice in 2014 by rangers who accused him of entering the forest illegally to collect wood.
"The current law requires someone to obtain permission from the chief to even cut a tree on their farm. Yet for nearly three years we've seen trucks carrying timber from the forest."
M'Uboro's said he had evidence to show the harvested wood was sold in markets in Nairobi and in Isiolo, northern Kenya.
"Illegal logging in Mount Kenya is a big business, but the money acquired only benefits a few individuals," he added. (Editing by Megan Rowling and Belinda Goldsmith; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
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