ABSTRACT

This article explores how local inhabitants living near the Katimok Forest in Baringo County, Kenya, engage with the traces of their past embedded in the landscape, and refigure them into politically powerful ruins. Drawing on ethnographic and archival research, the study examines the traces left behind by former forest dwellers before they were relocated by colonial and post-colonial governments, and analyses the current residents’ interactions with these traces. The article shows that traces are mnemonic and affective devices that remind the local inhabitants of emotional stories of a lost past and foster a sense of belonging. In addition, former forest dwellers and their descendants use these traces as evidence and symbols of their belonging and suffering to demand recognition of their historical loss from current national authorities. By performing the traces as ruins of a lost past, claimants harness their political power. This study highlights the importance of considering forest politics in relation to affective and political engagements with the material landscape.

摘要

本文探讨了居住在肯尼亚巴林戈县卡蒂莫克森林附近的当地居民如何处理嵌入景观中的过去痕迹，并将其重新改造为具有政治影响力的废墟。该研究利用人种学和档案研究，研究了前森林居民在被殖民和后殖民政府搬迁之前留下的痕迹，并分析了当前居民与这些痕迹的互动。文章表明，痕迹是助记和情感的手段，可以提醒当地居民失去过去的情感故事并培养归属感。此外，前森林居民及其后代利用这些痕迹作为他们的归属和痛苦的证据和象征，要求现任国家当局承认他们的历史损失。通过将这些痕迹视为失落的过去的废墟，索赔者利用了他们的政治权力。这项研究强调了考虑森林政治与物质景观的情感和政治参与的重要性。