The Role Of Community In Conflict Resolution And Reconciliation. A Case Study Of Molo District, Nakuru County

ABSTRACT

The study on conflict resolution and reconciliation in Molo District, Nakuru County was guided

by main four objectives; first to identify existing gaps in conflict resolution and reconciliation,

secondly, strategies communities can employ in reconciling various communities in Molo

District, thirdly to establish community leaders ability to predict early warning signs of conflict

and fourthly, role of communitie~ in ethnic conflict violence and reconciliation in Molo District.

The researcher employed purposive sampling technique to collect data from various categories of

the target population. This enabled the researcher to get respondents with the actual and quality

information from target population regarding ethnic conflict in Molo district.139 respondents

were reached through questionnaire. 36 people were interviewed and later engaged in focus

group discussion to obtain in-depth understanding regarding the much spoken historical

injustices that cause conflict every five years in the last 20 years, failure by the government to

hold accountable ethnic leaders who incite their ethnic community blocks for political reasons,

massive destruction of property

The researcher therefore recommends that priority should be given to ending the ethnic conflict.

The researcher therefore recommends that functioning local conflict resolution mechanisms

should be given priority, young people facilitated for income generating activities, simple early

warning signs developed and agreed by the community, effective and timely interventions,

establishment of village dialogue meetings, national cohesion and integration commission

intervention, national land policy to heal historical injustices, issue based politics, systematic and

structured learning from the past and political goodwill to resolve historical. Further, the research

recommended that the goverrunent alter its conflict resolution and peacebuilding strategic focus

from one of seeking to deal with symptoms to one of protecting life and maximizing the

protection of properties. Such a change in strategy is important while acknowledging that it is a

state's legal responsibility to protect communities. This shift in strategy may serve to open the

political and social space needed to address negative ethnicity and historical injustices that lie at

the root of the ethnic conflict in Molo District.