Natural Justice partner, Save Lamu, successfully read and presented a memorandum on historical land injustices to the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission in Lamu, Kenya on the 9th January 2012. Save Lamu, a coalition of Indigenous communities of Lamu, has been working with Natural Justice to develop a biocultural community protocol (BCP) to call for transparency and full participation in the process of considering developing a mega-port on their traditional lands and waters from the Kenyan government. Save Lamu is a member of the BCP Initiative, a network of communities developing BCPs in Africa and Asia. The memorandum covered the following issues, all of which are exacerbated by the port development:
- Illegal/un-procedural Adjudication of Government Land;
- Lack of Compensation for Displaced persons;
- Un-procedural Settlement Schemes;
- Failure to Recognize Natural Resource Rights;
- Misuse of State Power to Gain Land without Consultation or Compensation;
- Intimidation by Organized Groups and Powerful Leaders.
The Save Lamu memorandum can be accessed here.
