Independent Kenya failed to recognize customary interests in land as possessing equal force as statutory derived rights. Issues related to land rights are perceived as  root causes of conflicts occurring in the 1990s and 2000s. The 2010 Constitution has embodied the fundaments of land reforms; it has acknowledged “communities” as legally entitled to hold land. Paper studies decision-making processes via a socio-anthropological approach showing how it contributes to understanding the issues at stake and the politics surrounding the design of new legislation around “community land”.

Covers global panorama, where the situation has worsened, the context for killings, moving forward. At least 200 land and environmental defenders were killed in 2016, the highest on record, spread across 24 countries. Cites their names. With many killings unreported, and even less investigated, likely that the true number is actually far higher. This tide of violence driven by an intensifying fight for land and natural resources, as mining, logging, hydro-electric and agricultural companies trample on people and the environment in their pursuit of profit.