In 2005, an insurgent group known as the Sabaot Land Defence Force (SLDF) emerged in the Mount Elgon region, causing chaos for local residents.
This militia was led by 24-year-old Wycliffe Matakwei. At the time, the government, under President Mwai Kibaki, was conducting a land distribution exercise as part of a settlement process that had begun in 1972 in Chebyuk, located in the western Kenyan district of Mount Elgon.
Many residents and political leaders viewed this distribution as unfair, as there were reports that it was marred with mismanagement and corruption, and allegations of land grabbing.
The land distribution in Mount Elgon was a complex and contentious issue, particularly related to the Chebyuk Settlement Scheme, which aimed to resettle various communities, including the Ndorobo and Soy clans, which are part of the Sabaot community, displaced from their ancestral lands.
Wycliffe Matakwei Emerges with His Sabaot Land Defence Force
Wycliffe Matakwei formed the SLDF to address grievances regarding land distribution in the Chebyuk Settlement Scheme. He and his followers from the Soy clan believed that the Ndorobo clan disproportionately benefited from the land allocations, fostering resentment and tensions between the two clans.
Armed to resist government attempts to evict squatters, the militia’s actions were also supported by some local leaders who allegedly funded the group.
The SLDF was primarily formed to protect land rights and resist perceived injustices, but their violent actions resulted in widespread human rights abuses.
The militia primarily operated in areas like Kopsiro, Kaptama, and the Cheptais division. Following the emergence of the insurgency, Matakwei gained support by recruiting mainly young men from his Soy clan, often using coercive tactics to pressure them into joining.
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Residents of the Mount Elgon region lived in constant fear, as the militia invaded their homes at night, stealing valuables and torturing those who defied them, often mutilating their ears.
Reports also indicated cases of rape during these home invasions. Furthermore, Matakwei’s group collected illegal “taxes” from the local population to fund their operations, including the purchase of weapons.
One notable incident where the group wanted to make their presence felt was when it was involved in an attempted assassination of former Mount Elgon MP John Serut, who supported the government’s settlement program.
During a campaign in August 2007, while he was rallying for President Kibaki’s administration in the Mount Elgon region, Serut narrowly escaped death when the SLDF attacked him. He sustained a minor head injury as militants opened fire on his car from a nearby maize plantation.
Government Guns Down SLDF Leader
By 2008, the atrocities committed by the SLDF escalated, prompting government intervention.
In response, the government launched a large-scale military operation called “Operation Okoa Maisha” in March 2008, aiming to quell the SLDF’s activities and restore peace in the Mount Elgon region.
The operation was a joint mission including the Kenya Defence Forces and the Kenya Police.
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On May 16, 2008, Matakwei was killed by government forces along with other rebel leaders. Reports indicate he was killed in Cheptaburbur village in Kopsiro Division after some associates disclosed his whereabouts to the authorities, which led the army and police to track him down.
Matakwei’s death marked the end of a three-and-a-half-year reign of terror in the Mount Elgon region, during which it is estimated that over 600 people lost their lives.
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