§ 64. Mr. ERNEST BROWNasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether any Report has yet been received of a conflict with Somalis in the district of Nyeri, in Kenya Colony; whether he can say if this conflict was due to the seizure of Somali cattle by the police; and what casualties resulted from these hostilities?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREI have no information beyond Press reports, which show that the encounter arose out of Government measures to prevent the spread of cattle disease, that the seizure of some of the Somali cattle was for the purpose of carrying out those measures, and that the nomad Somalis were the first to fire. Statements as to casualties are conflicting.
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREYes, we shall certainly get information.
§ Mr. KIRKWOODI hope this is not another Jameson raid.
§ Mr. THURTLEThe right hon. Gentleman says the statements as to casualties are conflicting. Will he tell us what those statements are?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREI cannot offhand, but the newspaper reports are conflicting and we have had no official report yet. Here is an outlying district. The Somalis come from a considerable distance wandering with their cattle and if they are diseased they are a menace to native as well as European cattle. We have not heard any detailed accounts of the particular incident.
§ Mr. SHEPHERDAre the natives compensated when their cattle are confiscated?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREI shall have to have notice of that question. It depends on circumstances.