Cattle Raiding, Cultural Survival, and Adaptability of East African Pastoralists

Abstract

Since the late 1970s, cattle raiding with automatic weapons has escalated among nomadic herding societies in northern East Africa. We examine the impact of AK-47 raiding on the adaptability of Karimojong agropastoralists in northern Uganda. Most notably, raiding is linked to a loss of population resilience in Karamoja, measured in increased mortality of young children and of adult males in their prime reproductive years and decreased female fertility. AK-47 raiding has acted both directly and indirectly as a Darwinian stressor in this population, compromising long-standing adaptive strategies and intensifying selection pressure. We briefly discuss similar effects of recently altered patterns of raiding among related Turkana pastoralists in Kenya. We then consider the process by which this traditional cultural institution was modified in the interests of preserving cultural identity. We conclude nonetheless that cattle raiding with automatic weapons constitutes singularly maladaptive cultural behavior in contemporary pastoralist societies. Indeed, it represents the single greatest threat to their biobehavioral resilience and ultimately may have profound evolutionary costs in terms of pastoralists' survival. I. We are indebted to the Karimojong women who spoke with eloquence and honesty of the deaths of so many of their parents, husbands, siblings, and children during the terrible closing decades of the 20th century. Their stories were united by stark themes of violence that overshadowed all other considerations, compelling us SANDRA GRAY is

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