Director of Boni enclave campaign Joseph Kanyiri during a past media briefing in his office. [Photo/ the-star.co.ke]
The Government will not bomb the entire Boni forest in its operation aimed at wiping out al-Shabaab militants who have been terrorising residents in Lamu since 2014.Authorities said security personnel will bomb specific areas where the militants are believed to have pitched camp.This comes after the government said it will adopt a collaborative approach in addressing insecurity in the forest, following a three-day stakeholder’s conference in Malindi.Joseph Kanyiri the director of Boni enclave campaign who attended the conference said there was a need for everyone to work towards the elimination of al-Shabaab from the forest.Operation Linda Boni which started on September 8, 2015, is expected to pave way for initiatives which will involve stakeholders in the fight against the terror gang.Speaking during the conference which involved representatives from Tana River, Lamu and Garrisa, Boni Enclave campaign stakeholders said there was a need to intensify the initiative for a sustainable peace process through inter county partnerships.The Boni Enclave conference which started on October 14 and ended on October 16 was meant to develop sustainable peace and security progresses geared towards harmonious co-existence within the Boni forest.Rana Famau a representative from Lamu and Mohamed Hussein Haji read the declaration on behalf of all the other stakeholders who participated in the conference.Haji said it was agreed that county governments set aside resources to complement existing efforts by the national government and stakeholders including the civil society to promote peaceful coexistence of communities within the Boni enclave.Speaking during the declaration at a Malindi hotel, Haji said there was need to work towards inculcating patriotic values among communities inthe Boni enclave to make it easier for them to volunteer information with security organs in helping combat possible terror attacks.“There should be clear modalities and information sharing in regarding the engagement, deployment and facilitating the National police reservists (NPR),” he said.Haji said even though there have been efforts by the government security apparatus to address insecurity concerns within the Boni forest through the Operation Linda Boni, there has been minimum involvement of the communities affected.“We appreciate the gesture by the government towards a collaborative approach in addressing insecurity within Boni enclave. However, there is need to intensify these initiatives for sustainable peace processes through inter-county, citizens and government collaboration and partnership,” he said.