As Kenya celebrates its 58th anniversary as a republic this Jamhuri Day, we look back at its strides as a country despite the effect of its colonial past. This year saw the death of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, did her reign have an impact on Kenya, the world and the way Kenya has been governed?
Queen Elizabeth's legacy, of course, is varied based on what the United Kingdom, and at large, how the world changed during her reign. An important aspect of her legacy is the Commonwealth and its insurgence after the decolonisation of nations.
Although ambiguous and controversial regarding the merits of British colonialisation of former colonies, the current state of the global world order has been drawn through an imperialist lens. In what way can the world be viewed without the necessary considerations made by colonialism, after all, the colonial rule that took place around the world can be said to be part of our zeitgeist.
That is why the diversity of thought in relation to colonisation, specifically British colonisation, is one looked at critically, as the geographical, historical, socioeconomic and legal implications are rooted in the fabric that governs the world. Hence why it cannot be said that colonisation has not made a gross impact on the world. For example, the impact of English and its emergence as a lingua franca. In Kenya, for instance, it is an official language.
Nevertheless, the global paradigm, as it exists today, is a result of Western powers’ hold over their former colonies or through aspects of neocolonialism that hold developing nations through neo-liberalist policies.
World War II and the Bretton Wood Conference instituted a dynamic shift in how countries placed themselves within their own ranks. Notwithstanding, the impact of colonisation and globalisation, as a whole, as integral parts of how the world is governed today, colonialism and to an extent, British colonialism, can be said to be the nexus that has instrumented the development of contemporary society, from the USA, China, and India to Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.
However, British colonialism has its roots in what amounts to gross human rights violations. The incriminating documents that the British government remained with, after decolonisation, in order to avoid their disclosure, known as the Hanslope Files, depict an authentic picture of the events that led to the independence movements of the various regimes that we now celebrate.
The Mau Mau Uprising, which Kenya as a nation recognises as the cry of our people for freedom and independence, set a precedent for our nation’s values and commitment to human rights. That is why, the Hanslope Files, alternatively known as the Migrated Archives, documents incidents of torture, castration and murder taking place in Kenya, during the colonial period, and demonstrate the significance of Jamhuri Day to our republic.
Considering that the documents contained and kept in the United Kingdom, numbering approximately 20,000 files and volumes, the question is … why are they still in the hands of the British government?
Although previous attempts to ask for the return of the files were rejected or their existence outrightly denied, Kenya having done so in 1967, 1974 and the early 1980s, it was Kenyan veterans, in the landmark case of Mutua v Foreign and Commonwealth Office [2012], that brought the Hanslope Files to light.
Needless to say, over the last 59 years, Kenya has grown as a nation instrumenting an authentic sway in the geopolitical structures that exist in the region, continent and global stage.
Consequently, as President William Ruto commemorates his first Jamhuri Day celebrations as Head of State, may this day set a new plight on Kenya’s part in the repatriation of the Hanslope Files, a deeply wounding appropriation for all former colonies, in the hope that their return may serve as a remedy for the acts committed against Kenya by its colonial administration.
Law student, Riara University
