A self-styled “African tribe” who are camping in woodland in the Scottish Borders are staying put despite a second eviction notice,the BBC has reported.
The so-called Kingdom of Kubala was ordered to vacate the land on the outskirts of Jedburgh by 12:00 on Monday, after Scottish Borders Council (SBC) began legal action to evict them.
They had previously been staying on private land a few metres away, but simply set up a new camp on council property when sheriff officers were sent in.
By Monday afternoon they were still sitting at a campfire singing songs and showed no intention of leaving, according to the PA News agency.
Ghanaian Kofi Offeh, 36, and Jean Gasho, 43, who is originally from Zimbabwe, first arrived in the area in the spring.
Describing themselves as King Atehehe and Queen Nandi, they set up camp on a hillside above the town in the Scottish Borders.
They were joined by “handmaiden” Kaura Taylor, from Texas, who calls herself Asnat.
The three members of the group have previously said they are reclaiming land that was stolen from their ancestors 400 years ago.
In a post on Facebook on Friday, they said: “The Kingdom of Kubala can never be destroyed.”
On the day the council deadline passed, Ms Taylor said Mr Offeh would not be speaking to the media unless gifts were brought in.
It is understood the council will shortly seek an order from a sheriff to remove the three.
On Tuesday last week, sheriff officers carried out the eviction from their previous campsite, though they simply set up a new camp on the other side of a small fence.
They had been camping near Jedburgh for the past few weeks and have ignored previous ultimatums to leave.
Last week, Scott Hamilton, the Conservative deputy leader of the council, said: “Nobody is above the law and no matter how long this takes you can be guaranteed we will not cease.”
He said the group had repeatedly failed to engage with the council and legal proceedings which would enable an eviction had begun.
A council spokesman said: “The legal process to remove the occupants from the council’s land has commenced and officers will proceed through the next steps as quickly as possible.”
SOURCE :BBC
