SOAS, University of London (The School of Oriental and African Studies)

Law and War in Rural Kenya by Suzette Heald, 2010, 64 min

In 1998, a new movement swept through Kuria, in S.W. Kenya with dramatic effect. Cattle raiding fuelled by the increasing presence of guns had led to a situation of total insecurity, with all in fear of the thieves. A group of men in Bukira East effected a new organisation merging ideas from the Tanzanian vigilante movement with their own indigenous assembly, the iritongo. Within a year the movement had spread throughout Kuria and the District as a whole was at peace.  This film revisits the iritongo movement ten years later. In telling the story of its origin, and its current operation, it reveals a broad contrast between the areas where the iritongo still operates and those where it has faltered and died. 

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmaker.