When the British colonised Kenya, they claimed the fertile highlands that belonged to the Kikuyu and Kamba people who were the main group of agriculturists in central Kenya and allocated it to white settlers. The Kikuyus were not compensated for the land that they lost and were not allowed to lease or buy back their land. The British government did nothing but make empty promises to the people. (Bailey, 1993). This made them bitter and led to the creation of groups such as the Mau Mau and the Kenya African Union (KAU) which were supported by the general population of Kenya as they strived to get a settlement for the grievances of the people and to enable them to have political rights which was one of the major grievances. These grievances were over land; the Kipande (a system of identification and a registration document) and political rights. The forcing of taxes and labour were an important basis for the rise of African nationalism.
Other tribal groups including the Nandi in the Nyando Valley, the Kipsigis, Luhya and the Gusii also offered resistance against colonial rule. Expeditions were organised against them and they were all subdued and some of their leaders were exiled. (Bailey, 1993) With most of the tribes resisting British rule, they needed someone to bring them together so that they could fight against British rule together. This person was Jomo Kenyatta and with his influence amongst the people, he was able to unite the country to fight against colonial rule.
The Kikuyu Central Association (KCA) which was derived from the Young Kikuyu Association which was formed in 1921 by Harry Thuku, played a great role in Kenyatta’s political career. Its leader at the time, James Beuttah made a decision that would act as the be...
... middle of paper ...
...abled them to gain more political rights by allowing five Indians to be elected onto the Legislative Council in the Kenyan Parliament.
The Asian community in Kenya also resisted colonial rule. The advocates such as A.R. Kapila, Fitz de Souza, and Jaswant Singh defended Kenyatta and five other independence leaders at the Kapenguria trial in 1952. Others such as Chanan Singh defended in many of Mau Mau cases. Asian African journalists and publishers also played a critical part as the printing of newspapers as between 1920 and 1963 there was a struggle for Freedom of the Press as the colonial government wanted to suppress the African voice against colonialism. These included: Sitaram Achariar who printed the Muigwithania which was the Kikuyu Central Association (KCA) paper and the Vidyarthi family who published Sauti ya Mwafrika the Kenya African Union newspaper.
Some Colonists believed their society was backwards and needed the aid that Europeans could provide. Naoroji, an Indian politician, wrote about the benefits of the British rule listing that the British helped aid Indians in “Civilization, Politically, Materially, and Generally” talking about increased “education, both male and female” and several other benefits (Document 3). Typically the upper class Indians who placed taxes on other Indians, known as Lagaans, supported the British rule because they were able to become wealthy off of Colonization. Naoroji could have been apart of the Lagaan class that profited from British rule, but he also could have just been a politician who saw British control as beneficial for Indian society, thus creating his point of view. Similarly, the Fanti people of Africa recognized their need for the British authorities by stating, “we do not for one single moment pretend to be able to carry on a Government in the interior without such recognition and assistance” (Document 4). The Fanti believed that the British were vital to their modernization and improvements. This led to their optimism toward British
Hailing from the African state of Ndongo and born in 1581 during the start of Luandan disagreement with Portuguese settlers (Toler 265), Queen Nzinga of the African Mbundu tribe stood up for her country and reestablished power over her people. Nzinga came in a time period that needed her. She got her country of Matamba (present day Angola) equal, both economically and socially, to the Portuguese. In order to do this, Nzinga took measures to place herself in the right position to eventually seize rule and steer her country in the right direction, even though it prompted a steady flow of opposition from her enemies. These initial enemies included the Imbangala tribes and irritated Portuguese Settlers, both of which she succeeded in turning into allies. Queen Nzinga's rule was well justified by a legal rise to the throne, and her subsequent role as a skilled ruler counteracted her reputation as a thriving slave trader.
We decided that the Mau Mau’s violence was justifiable in this case.The one fact that made us lean towards the decision was that there were among 30,000 Kenyans who lost their lives toward this uprising, and only 30 British died. As both the defendants and prosecutors did an excellent job, I believed that the Defense's case was more organized with facts, arguments and quotes that helped me
The situation became even more complex when the British colonial administration introduced a currency-based income tax system. For centuries, the Kenyan economy had largely rested on the exchange of livestock and other goods. With this in mind, it should come as little su...
... has been labeled “terroristic”, yet this was completely overshadowed by the colonial government and vigilantes killing over 11,000 suspected rebels. The Mau Mau movement and the heavyhanded response helped to bring an end to British rule, but when Kenya was granted independence, Mau Mau had nothing to do with it. The poor people of Kenya were terrified as the government responded to the Mau Mau movement, the armed forces didn’t know where to attack, so they used terrorist tactics in response, murdering whoever they could find, destroying entire villages, in order to stop the Mau Mau.
With Kenya being a massive agricultural haven, and the need to expand their trade to different countries, Great Britain colonized Kenya in 1895. A secondary effect of this colonization was establishing a greater world influence, as Germans were setting the conditions to do the same. In 1920, Great Britain established British East Africa as an official crown colony of the British Empire. In the late 1940’s resentment of the British intruders deepened among the Kikuyu, resulting in a violent society known as the Mau Mau. Several factors to the rebellion included low wages, being forced from their own land, female circumcision. The primary matter was the void of political representation for the people of Kenya, under colonial rule by the British. In October 1952, the war officially began with British soldiers deployed to Kenya. The British empire declared Kenya a state of emergency and swiftly attempted to squash the resistance. Alleged Mau Mau were tortured, castrated, and raped. The guerrilla warfare continued for an additional 8 years. After much bloodshed on both sides, the British overwhelmed the rebels, forcing the Kikuyu into submission. In 1960, the war was declared over. The British government acknowledged the need for change and granted Kenya’s Independence in 1963. A Mau Mau leader, Jomo Kenyatta became the first president in the newly formed nation. Although independence was granted, the
The Cherokee Indians were a tribe that accepted non-Indian and Indian people with warmth. The dedication they had with one another was astonishing; they saw each other as brothers and sisters. This mentality brought in a strong bond within the tribe. The men would help clear fields, help plant and even help their wife’s harvest when it was time. Also the women were in charge of raising the children. Everyone had their own tasks which allowed for harmony and peace to reign among them. There was a population of about 25,000 Cherokee Indians which made them the largest Native Indian tribe in North America. From this, an attribute which allowed for them to expand through a large amount of land was that they were one of the most civilized tribes.
European colonization in Kenya had a large impact on Africa’s religion and culture. Africa had over 100 ethnic groups in which were effected from the colonization. (Doc.2). The Europeans believed that Africans did not have a developed religion and believed in bizarre thing such as witchcraft (Doc.6). But, in the Abaluyia Story of Creation, it told how the world and man was created, which was really like the European religion of Christianity in which Adam and Eve was made in a similar way. This proved that they indeed did have an organized religion (Doc.7). In 1962, 80% of Kenyans believed in the indigenous beliefs, but after in 2002, only 26% of the population believed in the indigenous beliefs. Because Europeans believed in Christianity, Protestant beliefs went from 7% in 1962 to 38% in 2002, and Catholic beliefs went from 3.5% to 28% (Doc. 8). Europeans felt they gave Africans the Christian religion, a “superior” form of government, and a more developed civilization (Background Essay). The colonization in Kenya changed their culture also. Kenyans changed their clothing. Leaders of Kenya including the first president Jomo Kenyatta wore clothing very similar to the clothing of the Europeans (Doc.5). This made people feel that their clothing was not in fashion and they had to follow the way of the Europeans. This decreased the amount of people wearing their regular clothing and the amount of people following their own culture. Kenya’s religion and culture truly converted, because of European colonization.
Politically, prior to 1961 the British ruled over Tanganyika. Many of the Maasai people were not completely aware of British government because they maintained rule over themselves. Tepilit depicts a political scene where his father had no idea that the British ruled over Tanganyika. The Maasai were unaware because of the subtle way that the British used the chiefs to create and carry out the policies that the British wanted. This method of government, constructed in such a way led Tepilit’s father to be ignorant of the leadership until it ended in 1961. Tepilit’s father, however, was correct on a smaller scale because Maasailand was not under direct influence of the British rule. Tepilit even states that one Maasai rule infers that if direct interference occurs then “Rebellion would be inevitable” (Saitoti 41).
The Kwaito Generation : Inside Out :: A production of 90.9 WBUR Boston, MA. (n.d.). Inside Out Documentaries: A Production of WBUR. Retrieved February 19, 2011, from http://www.insideout.org/documentaries/kwaito/apartheid.asp
On the eastern coast of Africa lies a land full of sunny blue skies and large plains in which zebras and elephants roam. This land is the country of Kenya. Outside of Kenya’s cities and towns lies many samples of natures beauty. Unfortunately, the people living in this land are troubled by their struggle with the government and trying to form a democracy. Matthew Carotenuto stated, “Much of the world had historically viewed Kenya as an island of peace and economic potential in a roiling sea of stateless chaos.” What he means is that people have long seen Kenya as a peaceful place that is surrounded by countries suffering from all sorts of violence and unfortunate circumstances. What many people do not know is that Kenya has a long history for political violence going way back to when the country was colonized. Understanding that Kenya’s past violence was due to their struggle for social and political authority helps us understand some of their violence issues today. According to Maina Kiai, violence broke out after Kenya’s 2007 election. Many people had thought that Kenya was a more peaceful country compared to others in Africa because they were working towards a democracy. Currently Kenya is a republic (“Kenya” The World...). Another thing Kiai mentioned is that one of Kenya’s major political problems is that Kenya's constitution gives the president full power to elect anyone he wants into a political position for any salary he chooses. Scott Baldauf and Robert Crilly also explain how Kenya is trying to become a democracy but its political system is weak and allows the president too much power, making the nation a dictatorship in disguise. This leads to many ethical issues within the governments systems. We should care about Ken...
Kenya’s population is divided by language and culture into more than 40 different ethnic groups. The largest group is the Kikuyu which makes up 12 per cent of the population and is Bantu speaking. Swahili became the offical language of Kenya in 1974. It is grammatically a Bantu language even though it is heavily influenced of the population and is Bantu speaking. Swahili became the offical language of Kenya in 1974. It is grammatically a Bantu language even though it is heavily influenced by Arabic and is written with the Roman alphabet. English is also an official language and is still widely used.
Historians have held radically different views about the politics of ethnic identity and the attendant complexities in the emerging postcolonial nation, Kenya. Many historians who focus on ethnicity issues have tended to see the colonial period as an important turning point, while others maintain that the impact of the colonial masters on their colonies was superficial. Macharia Munene, the author of “The Colonial Policies of Segregating the Kikuyu, 1920-1964”, contends that the division among Africans came about as a European strategy to keep Africans divided once Africans started showing resentment toward the colonial states and demanded fair treatment economically, socially, and of course, politically. On the other hand, Bethwell A. Ogot, the author of “Building on the Indigenous, Selected Essays, 1981-1998”, answers the question of ethnicity in Kenya by looking at the relationship between the state and society. He looks at the process of state building in relation to the civil society in Kenya. To him, there is an uneven distribution of power, and an uneven access to resources, leading to many conflicts. Then again, Lesa B. Morrison, the author of “The nature of decline: distinguishing myth from reality in the case of the Luo of Kenya”, contends that narrative is an important means of structuring and giving meaning to experience as it often persists and influences behavior. In accordance with his narrative, the nature of the elite status and the means by which group members have responded to particular indicators at the expense of others has helped shape Kenya into ethnic rather than policy nation.
Kenya is a very important country in the world basically due to its strategic location in the East African region. It is a country that has had an interesting political walk that despite the challenges it has faced, it has managed to pull through though with an interesting history to tell. There have been different regimes in the country since it acquired its independence. Worth noting is that these regimes have come into power through different ideologies and they have guided the country in different directions. The country was colonized by the British and acquired its independence in the year 1963. Notably, Kenya is considered to have been a colonial invention which had to contend with the colonialists.
Kumar, V. "Oral Tradition Africa Oral Tradition of Africa History of Africa History." . www.lifepaths360.com, 7 July 2008. Web. . .