Action plan to have women play key in conflict resolutions

Iten,

Wednesday, September 13, 2023

KNA by Alice Wanjiru

Elgeyo Marakwet Deputy Governor Prof Grace Cheserek has called on different organisations to partner with the county in the implementation of the County Action Plan (CAP), with each picking the area they can comfortably deliver.

Speaking when she launched the CAP, the DG said there is need to put the woman at the center of conflict resolution as they are key in gathering information which can be used in early warning leading to early response and thus averting conflict.         

The CAP was developed in partnership with Rural Women Peace Link with technical and financial Support of the Embassy of Finland.

The Elgeyo Marakwet County Action Plan on the advancement of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security said due to patriarchy, women have traditionally been left out in decision making structures despite being the most affected by conflicts.

According to the CAP, there is a rising number of female headed households in the county due to the incessant conflicts in the Kerio Valley as men who opt to live in the wilderness to protect their property and families are killed, leaving widows to take charge of the families.

Noting that the county is rich in culture, the CAP seeks to upscale indigenous knowledge that can be utilized in solving disputes under the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) citing the legetio, a belt used by women to stop conflicts.

The CAP reveals that women are impoverished as they cannot inherit land from their families and where land is communally owned, which is common in the county women lose their rights to inherit the same.

“The law requiring women to inherit their parents property is just a theory in the county, however in cases where one is married, they may get their husband’s property. But where land is clan based with no title deeds to such land, women lose their rights to the inheritance,” said the CAP.

The CAP added that the county has been listed among the 22 FGM hotspots in the country citing Endo, lower parts of Sambirir, Arror, Embobut and Lower Emsoo as leading in the practice of the outlawed vice.

The report said women who escaped the practice in their youth are being forced to undergo the right in old age due to pressure from the community who view them as girls and not mature women.

The action plan also calls for the establishment of a polycare which will be a one stop shop where once the victims of gender based violence report to the authorities concerned, the information will be used in the whole process of seeking justice instead of being forced to relive the experience as they narrate at each of the stages.

The DG said the county is ready to provide land for the construction of a safe house where victims of violence can seek shelter.

Courtesy; KNA