The monarch arrived in Nairobi on Monday, accompanied by Queen Camilla
The Kenya Human Rights Commission demanded from King Charles “an unequivocal public apology” for the abuses committed during colonialism. Charles arrived in Nairobi on Monday, accompanied by Queen Camilla, in your first visit to a Commonwealth country since his coronation, coinciding with the 60th anniversary of Kenya’s independence.
The monarch was received on Tuesday with 21 guns, accompanied by President William Ruto, and contributed to the planting of many trees in the gardens of the Presidential Palace. The royal couple then visited the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Uhuru Gardens, the site of I Declare La Independencia del Pas Africano in 1963.
During the four-day visit, the monarch is expected to acknowledge “painful aspects of the history shared between United Kingdom and Kenya.” According to a statement from Buckingham Palace, “His Majesty will spend time examining the wrongs suffered by the people of Kenya during that time.”
The “period” referred to in the statement is known as the “emergency”, between 1952 and 1962 (at the height of the struggle for independence), when it is estimated that British soldiers forced the confinement of one and a half million Kenyans in concentration camps, where they were subjected to torture, rape, and abuse.
The treatment of thousands of Kenyans during the “Eternal Rebellion” It was described in 1957 as “reminiscent of conditions in Nazi Germany or Communist Russia” in a letter addressed to the British authorities by the colony’s former attorney, Eric Griffith-Jones.
Over 5,000 Kenyans have joined a collective legal action for abuses committed in times of “emergency.” The court battle dragged on for more than a decade until an out-of-court settlement was reached in 2013 with an estimated payment of 20 million pounds (23 million euros) in victim compensation and a statement of “remorse and regret.” British Government.
At the Commonwealth of Nations summit held last year, Charles shocked everyone and everything with a reference to the role of slavery. In Kenya, Nandi leaders hope that the monarch will continue and directly apologize for the abuse, killing, and land grabbing.
The specter of the wounds of colonialism has haunted Charles since his accession to the throne. Some of the 56 countries that make up the Commonwealth of Nations—most of them former British colonies—want to open a debate on reparations for slavery. Others, such as Jamaica, sought to follow the path of Barbados and break ties with the British monarchy by declaring themselves a republic.
