Ancestral Roots and Colonial Wounds: The Mijikenda Fight for Reparations

 

Ancestral Roots and Colonial Wounds: The Mijikenda Fight for Reparations


​By Linda Dabo/Editorial

On February 14, 2025,  the African Union (AU) convenes in Ethiopia to launch a continental push for colonial reparations, for the Mijikenda community of Kenya’s coast. For the Mijikenda, the debate is not an abstract geopolitical struggle; it is a fight for the very soil and forests that define their spiritual existence.

​The Heart of the Grievance: The Kayas

​At the center of the Mijikenda’s claim are the Kayas—sacred forest settlements that have served as the community's spiritual and cultural bedrock since the 16th century. Historically, these forests were fortified villages; today, they are UNESCO World Heritage sites and the sites of ancestral graves and prayer.

​Community elder David Garera highlights a dual tragedy: the physical loss of land and the subsequent erosion of custom. "Our traditions and customs have been affected in a very big place," Garera told Reuters. "The trees that we used to pray under have been cut down." For the Mijikenda, deforestation is not merely environmental damage—it is a form of cultural erasure.

​The Legal Battleground: Land Acts and Injustices

​The struggle for reparations in Kenya is rooted in a complex legal history.

  • ​The 1908 Land Title Ordinance: This colonial-era law required coastal residents to register land claims within six months. The Mijikenda, who held land communally and did not recognize individual titles, were largely bypassed, rendering them "squatters" on their own ancestral soil.
  • ​The Community Land Act (2016): While designed to recognize customary land rights, its implementation has been sluggish. Many Mijikenda communities still lack formal titles, leaving sacred sites vulnerable to private development and government co-option.
  • ​The National Land Commission (NLC): Recent legislative changes have re-opened a five-year window for the NLC to receive "Historical Land Injustice" claims. This provides a critical, albeit difficult, path for the Mijikenda to seek restitution or compensation for land lost during the colonial and post-independence eras.

​Ecological Reparations: A New Model

​The Mijikenda case introduces the vital concept of "Ecological Reparations." Unlike claims that focus solely on financial payouts, the Mijikenda are calling for the restoration of the biodiversity of the coastal forests. They argue that because their spirituality is tied to specific flora and fauna, the environment must be repaired for the community to "self-repair."

​A Race Against Time

​The challenge remains daunting. As elders like David Garera age, the community risks losing the oral histories necessary to prove their ancestral claims. "The collecting of the data and proving their claim will be an immense undertaking," notes political analyst James Shikwati, "especially when the knowledge keepers are starting to die out."

​As African leaders push for global recognition of colonial wrongs, the Mijikenda stand as a poignant reminder that justice must be served locally—in the forests and on the soil—as much as in the halls of international diplomacy.

​Mijikenda Community in Kenya Fights for Reparations

This video provides a direct account from the Mijikenda elders and community members about the specific cultural and land-based losses they are currently seeking to address through the reparations movement.

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