KENYA-VETERANS/MAU MAU British-funded memorial to those killed and tortured by British forces unveiled in Nairobi

Record ID: 141219

  • Title: KENYA-VETERANS/MAU MAU British-funded memorial to those killed and tortured by British forces unveiled in Nairobi
  • Date: 12th September 2015
  • Summary: MAU MAU VETERANS AND FAMILY MEMBERS DEPARTING THE MEMORIAL SITE
  • Embargoed: 27th September 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kenya
  • Country: Kenya
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA6A1ROVD1ZYKUNWVUB1DZUO5W7
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: A British-funded memorial for those jailed, killed and tortured during the Mau Mau rebellion in Kenya was unveiled in Nairobi on Saturday (September 12), as part of a multi-million dollar compensation settlement for thousands of Kenyans mistreated by colonial forces during an uprising at the tail end of the British Empire.
    Three years ago, a London court ruled that three elderly Kenyans, who suffered castration, rape and beatings while in detention during a crackdown by British forces and their Kenyan allies in the 1950s, could sue Britain.
    The torture took place during the so-called Kenyan "Emergency" of 1952-60, when fighters from the Mau Mau movement attacked British targets, causing panic among white settlers and alarming the government in London.
    London tried for three years to block the Mau Mau veterans' legal action in the courts, drawing condemnation from the elderly torture victims who accused Kenya's former colonial master of using legal technicalities to fight the case.
    But in 2013, Britain agreed on a out-of-court settlement.
    On Saturday, the Mau Mau veterans' spokesman Gitu Wa Kahengeri said the way forward was reconciliation.
    "We cannot always be enemies forever. If they accepted that they made a mistake, it is best if we all engaged in reconciliation," Kahengeri said.
    The Mau Mau nationalist movement originated in the 1950s among the Kikuyu people of Kenya. Its loyalists advocated violent resistance to British domination of the country.
    Attending the unveiling of the memorial in Nairobi was Britain's High Commissioner, Dr. Christian Turner.
    "As well as the expression of regret and a financial settlement, the British government also pledged to support the construction of a memorial in Nairobi to the victims of torture and ill-treatment during the colonial era, and to promote reconciliation between all sides. It is that memorial which we are here today to inaugurate," he told the crowd.
    Dr. Hassan Wario, Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Culture and Arts said the memorial was very significant.
    "This event is dear to our hearts as it reminds us of the sacrifice and the heroism of many Kenyans whose vision and conviction won us freedom and sovereignty," Wario said.
    For many of the Mau Mau veterans in attendance, it was a day full of traumatic memories.
    Peter Wakubwa remembered the suffering he went through while fighting in the bush, walking long distances on cold nights and facing torture and abuse when he was arrested by colonial forces.
    "I am happy today because this day is very symbolic of how we endured the struggle from 1954 when I was shot in the leg when I was still fighting in the bush up until the year 1955," said Wakubwa.
    The Mau Mau uprising pushed the East African country towards independence in 1963.
    They have long complained their role has not been recognised. Most Mau Mau had property, cattle, farmland and food confiscated in a British campaign of dispossession and detention. Many today live in poverty.
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