Group: African rights body rules Kenya illegally removed indigenous population from their land
By APThursday, February 4, 2010
African body: Kenya illegally evicted group
NAIROBI, Kenya — A global group says a key African human rights body has determined Kenya illegally evicted an indigenous population to make way for a wildlife reserve.
Minority Rights Group says African leaders endorsed that decision during their three-day summit that ended Tuesday.
The group on Thursday said it was a landmark decision that sets a precedent for recognizing the land rights of indigenous people in Africa.
The case concerns the Endorois who were evicted from their land in western Kenya in the 1970s to form the Lake Bogoria National Reserve.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights said in May the evictions were illegal, but African Union leaders had to make the decision official.
Kenyan officials were not immediately available for comment.
