SEPTEMBER 2013

“The Maasai of Olkaria Take Action Now are not against the development of geothermal projects in the region but we are without proper Global Response compensation. We also understand our rights and we cannot accept to Campaign Alert be violated in the name of power production.” – Narasha Community Organization

Kenya Demand the World Bank Compensate the Maasai

“ I owned land and or the Maasai people of the Rift Valley in Kenya, being evicted from their homeland has become all too common. Over the years, the government of Kenya has dispossessed over had built my own F4,000 families in the region. Without alternative land to settle on or compensation for the losses they incurred during forced evictions, these families’ fates are uncertain. homestead, but the In the 1980s, the Maasai were evicted from their land to facilitate the creation of the Hells Gate National Park. Discoveries of massive potential for geothermal energy within the park company came and made their land and homes an international point of interest for both local and international put their machin- power-generating companies. Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS), which “owns” and manages Hell’s Gate Park, leased part of the land to the Kenya Generation Company, KenGen, to under- ery right where I take extractive processes for the generation of geothermal energy. Now the Massai, who are sandwiched between Mt. Longonot, Hells Gate Park, and , are being built my home. I forced out again. The Olkaria geothermal plant, funded by the World Bank and supported by the UN Envi- had to hear about ronmental Program, is in its fourth phase of the development. With each new phase, the this from neighbors Maasai have been evicted from their homes—without their Free, Prior and Informed Consent. who told me, ‘your homestead has been destroyed.’ ” – Ben Koissaba, Maasai PhD student who left the area on political asylum in 2004

Call on the World Bank, the UN Environmental Program, and other collaborators to implement their tpolicieswww.cs.org through adequate compensation determined in consultation with the Maasai people.

Just Bene!t Sharing? What is Fair? Make Your Voice o date the Maasai have received no compensation for the devastating loss of Heard! their land, livelihoods, and cultural heritage. The current plan is to pay them Ta meager 30,000,000 Ksh (US $370,000) from a possible fund of 270,000,000 In your letter, urge the Kenyan Ksh (US $3.4 million). The Maasai seek compensation for past evictions, and assur- government, KenGen company, and ance against potential future evictions, by provision of alternative land. The im- the World Bank to: QFOEJOHFWJDUJPOTXPVMEEJTQMBDFPWFS GBNJMJFT SFNPWJOHUIFNGSPNUIF t &OTVSFUIBUUIFMBOESJHIUTPGUIF communities’ two churches and Maasai cultural center, and would take over pastoralist Maasai community in 1,000 children out of school in Narasha and Olomayiana. In a showdown between Olkaria be recognized. corporate interests and the community, they are refusing to comply with the t &OTVSFUIBUUIF.BBTBJPG0MLBSJBBSF JNQFOEJOHFWJDUJPOVOUJMTVDIUFSNTBSFBHSFFEVQPOø fully and adequately compensated for the losses of their land as well as for The World Bank reports that it has invested $409 million in geothermal the wrongful eviction. EFWFMPQNFOUTJODFJOJUBOOPVODFEQMBOTUPSBJTFBOPUIFSNJMMJPO t 6QIPMEUIFTUBOEBSEPGGSFF QSJPS for geothermal projects in the Rift Valley and other parts of the world. None of and informed consent as stipulated in this budget has been allocated to fairly compensate the Maasai community, the UN Declaration on the Rights of whose land has been usurped to make room for the projects. The evictions violate Indigenous Peoples by carrying out international human rights law, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of a proper environmental and social impact assessment on the Olkaria Indigenous Peoples, ILO Convention 169, and the African Charter on Human and geothermal projects in close con- Peoples’ Rights. The Maasai have resorted to the courts to stop further evictions, sultation with the Maasai. arguing that the government of Kenya is in violation of international law by forc- t &OTVSFUIBUBOZGVUVSFEFWFMPQNFOU ibly and continually removing them them from their ancestral lands around Mt. programs bene!t the Maasai of Longonot in the Naivasha Administrative Districts and the Narok North Adminis- Olkaria by implementing the right trative Districts within the , without proper prior consultation to free prior and informed consent. or adequate compensation. Send your letters to: The area is important to the Maasai both for its history and their dependency President Uhuru Kenyatta on the land for their livelihoods and culture. Mt. Longonot is central to the Maasai State House religious and traditional practices, and further dispossession will separate the , Kenya community from historical prayer sites, places of ritual, and other cultural cere- Email: [email protected] monies. These sites were used regularly for local ceremonies, and annually for Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ cultural festivities involving Maasai from the whole region. myuhurukenyatta Twitter: @UKenyatta Furthermore, geothermal resources in Olkaria have been exploited with no re- gard for the health or environment of the local communities. Despite being touted The World Bank Kenya as a green energy, KenGen’s Environmental and Social Impact Assessment shows Upperhill Road, Hill Park Building that geothermal power plants release certain pollutants into the environment includ- 10#PY /BJSPCJ ,FOZB 1IPOF   ing noise pollution, hydrogen sulphide gas, and trace metals like boron, arsenic, 'BY   and mercury. Toxic wastes from the power station in Naivasha have been emitted Email: [email protected], into the air and disposed in local waterways in violation of applicable international [email protected] FOWJSPONFOUBMTUBOEBSETø Despite these hazards, KenGen failed to conduct adequate consultation with KenGen Stima Plaza, Phase III the local community, which !rst expressed its dismay at the assessment in 2009. Kolobot Road, Parklands The Maasai have never been able to raise money to conduct an independent P. O. Box 47936, 00100 GPO, Nairobi, Kenya study on the harmful effects of the plant, but have noted increase of gastronomic 1IPOF  and skin diseases, stillbirths in cattle, premature death of livestock, and increased 'BY ø Email: rate of premature delivery in pregnant women. The company’s environmental Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ impact assessment notes potential health risks associated with the plant and KengenKenya recommends safe distances in the Narok district. However, since there was no Twitter: @KenGen effective consultation with community members, people were never informed of these health risks. Meseret Teklemariam Zemedkun United Nations Environment Programme The Maasai of Olkaria, in compliance with the national development agenda, Regional Of!ce for Africa are not opposed to the development of geothermal projects in the region. But 10#PY /BJSPCJ ,FOZB they are against the manner in which the government is sanctioning evictions Email: [email protected], without due process of free, prior, informed consent and adequate compensation. [email protected]

In 2011 the World Bank adopted policies that require lenders to secure the Free, www.cs.org/take-action/kenya Prior and Informed Consent of Indigenous communities prior to launching devel- opment activities expected to generate adverse impacts on their lands and natural resources. In 2013, the UN Environmental Program followed suit by launching its policy on Free, Prior, Informed Consent. Cultural Survival congratulates these institutions on taking this !rst step; however, these policies must be put to use in order to rectify the historical injustice being done to the Maasai. Global Response Call on the World Bank, the UN Environmental Program, and other collaborators to implement their Campaign Alert tpolicieswww.cs.org through adequate compensation determined in consultation with the Maasai people. Cultural Survival www.cs.org Cultural Survival Quarterly September 2013Kenyat