Council moves to evict Ghana-linked ‘African tribe’ from Scottish land
Scottish Borders Council has launched fresh legal proceedings to remove a self-styled “African tribe” from land it owns, only hours after the group was evicted from private woodland near Jedburgh.
On Tuesday morning, sheriff officers, supported by police, dismantled the makeshift camp of the three members of the so-called Kingdom of Kubala, following an eviction order issued last week by Sheriff Peter Paterson. The order came after the group ignored earlier instructions to leave.
According to a BBC report, the eviction, carried out at 08:00, saw the officials spend about 90 minutes at the woodland site, dismantling tents and overseeing the removal of possessions. However, the group, who describe themselves as King Atehehe, Queen Nandi and handmaiden Asnat, immediately relocated just a few metres away across a fence.
It has since emerged that the new site belongs to Scottish Borders Council. The authority confirmed that it has submitted paperwork to the court to begin another eviction process.
The Kingdom of Kubala is made up of 'King Atehene', 'Queen Nandi' and 'Asnat'. Pic: PA
The group, made up of Ghanaian national Kofi Offeh, 36, Zimbabwe-born Jean Gasho, 42, and American citizen Kaura Taylor, have claimed they are reclaiming land allegedly stolen from their ancestors 400 years ago. They insist that the “Kingdom of Kubala” has been established and have attracted worldwide attention through social media, where they command more than 100,000 followers on TikTok and Facebook.
Mr Offeh told BBC Scotland after the eviction that he had “commanded” the sheriff officers to move their belongings. Despite repeated warnings, the group has refused to comply with orders to leave, instead moving from one encampment to another around Jedburgh since July.
Scott Hamilton, deputy leader of Scottish Borders Council, said the group’s refusal to vacate the land left owners with “no option” but to seek legal enforcement. “They have rebuffed every opportunity to engage with us. We can help them, but we won’t sit back and let them break the law,” he said.
The first eviction was initiated by landowners David and Mary Palmer, after the group set up camp in a hillside area above Jedburgh in July. Subsequent attempts to remove them from another woodland site next to an industrial estate also failed until Tuesday’s operation.
The council maintains that while the group frame their actions as ancestral reclamation, they are in breach of the law and must leave the land.
