About Us
Benet mosop community association was formed by Mosopisiek community as a platform to air out their plight of marginalization, discrimination and human rights abuses committed to them when their ancestral home lands in Mount Elgon forest and grass lands were turned into wildlife protected areas.
Since the community was not politically represented by anybody or were not given chance to elect their leadership, they found that all decisions where made for them without free prior and informed consent.
Therefore, through the formation of Benet mosop community association,
1. able to dialogue with government over the disparities that the community is going through.
2. Demand services such as Health and education of children.
3. Advocate for Rights of the community and individuals from marginalization and human rights abuses.
4. Reaching out to political actors and government entities for change of policies.
HISTORICAL FACTS ABOUT THE MOSOPISIEK TRIBE.
Mosopisiek is an indigenous people who have lived in Mount Elgon forest and grass lands in eastern Uganda since time immemorial. It dates back 500years and before the coming of the first explorers.
Their land borders Kenya at suam River in the East and upto Rokok River in the west and from the colonial boundary of the 1936-37 and Sessik in the south.
ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES
The Mosopisiek people reared cattle, sheep and goats for their livelihoods. They were more passionate to their cows to the point that they could swore by it as “Ndoye Tany”.
Cows gave them milk and beef same as goats and sheep.
They are also hunters and food gatherers. They roam the mountain in such for food and also honey.
Women wove baskets and trade with the sabiny community in the lower land areas in exchange for grain, milet and makaknik. (dried bananas) (Artifacts)
They also make local Brew from honey and Roots including herbs of different types of plants.
They also make beehives and sell or exchange for domestic animals. They would also exchange milk with food.
Mosopisiek had a very unique culture which ranged from marriage, dressing, dance and drama, story telling and sports & wrestling, arrow shooting, quivers, lighting fires, making arrows and bows and spirituality and circumcision.
- Marriage was arranged between the families of both the boy and girl after the boy had been well informed by friends the abouts of the girl’s family background. Areas of concern was ‘ whether the girl or boy’s family had a previous conflicts or other underlying issues like sickness before they could joined together.
Dowry was paid infom of 12 cows 8 goats and a donkey for the family of the girl for transporting water and food since the girl who used to Go for work in married.
2.Mosopisiek used skin or hides from both wild animals and domestic as clothes.
This animal skins and hides were made from Blue monkey, white colobus monkey, antelope skins and cow’s hides as sleeping mats before the introduction of blankets. Later white blankets were introduced and they used All interchangeably.
- in dance, they used “kiranchit” (using two small sticks to beat a large wood placed in the ground) during dance and hand clapping and Jumping up. It was followed by by the making of a drum 🛢 “kiriinket” made from a cow’s hides. The instrument became a very Vidal instrumental during twin child ceremony. There’s a saying that, ” you can steal a drum but where to beat it from is a problem. It’s assumed that kiriinket could send a loud sound to inform the entire community about the start of a ceremony. Drama was more of comedy that was performed by anybody with high intellectual sense of the community.
- Story telling was done by old men and women to the younger generation. Stories cover the ancient times and predictions point to the current affairs. They were very informative and it was in form of informal education..
- Sports. Hunting of wild animals was for sports and recreation. It helped the Mosopisiek to run after an animal in hunting for the very animal and hence helped them in fiscal fitness and their DNA manifestation to become Marathon athletes. Examples:
- Kiprotich Stephen.
- Joshua cheptegei
- Kiplimo Jacob
- Kipsiro
- Peruth
- Cheropen, And many upcoming others.
Mosopisiek were led by prophets like Arapchesorr from kaparkach clan. The prophet was highly respected by Mosopisiek for reasons.
- He used to foretell what was coming or expected to come.
- To perform rituals in case a disaster is forecast.
- To call for elders meeting ( Balmoishek) and to tell them to mobilize the community.
- Under agreement from the community, to act upon himself to defend what’s right through his spiritual powers over any actions of grief on family problems and days to come.
- Perform sacrifice and block some short comings like femine, danger of invasion by enemies, drought and food security. Choosing from who should do what.
Mount Elgon forest and grass lands is very cold, and Mosopisiek endured the cold to be initiated to man/woman Hood since preparation to the final day.
First, they walked barefoot at all night and during day. First, there was no network, neither phones to call relatives and friends. Even when someone passed on, they would walk to invite relatives in Case of a feast or occurrence.
As culture dictates, brewing local alcohol called komek was the order. The initiates had with their fami
DISMANTLEMENT OF THE MOSOPISIEK FROM THEIR ANCESTRAL HOME LANDS.
What bedevilled the social life of Mosopisiek community was when the post colonial Uganda created a wildlife protected area in the Mosopisiek ancestral home lands.
The policy dismantled the community land tenure system and created a wildlife protected area in their ancestral lands as if no lives were living their. People were displaced from their ancestral home lands in and around 1990 and subsequent displacements.
People who were hitherto in one place found themselves scattered in the whole of sebei Sub region. I.e Bukwo, kween District and others went to Kenya.
The displacement occurred when the community had requested land for cultivation from the forest department since they had gotten information that forest department had taken lead of of all the forests in Uganda from the colonial administration and they didn’t want to be criminalized as a result.
It was later used as an advantage to evict the indigenous community from their ancestral home lands, as the status of the forest department changed to Uganda wildlife authority, that’s when the trajectory changed completely
