Mau Mau Reparations, Memorialization and Kenya’s Future

The Mau Mau uprising took place between 1952 and 1960 in Kenya. It was a revolt against the British colonial government by the Kenyan local communities. During the uprising, many Africans were tortured and others killed by the colonial government. In 2002, the victims of torture filed a civil case in the United Kingdom. It was opposed by the Foreign Affairs ministry of the United Kingdom on the grounds of lapse of time. The court overruled this objection in 2012 and allowed the case to proceed to full hearing. In June 2013 and before the main hearing of the case could start, the United Kingdom government offered an out of court settlement to the victims of torture to compensate them at the sum of £20 million and the victims agreed to the offer. The United Kingdom in addition to the compensation offered to build a memorial for the Mau Mau war veterans in Nairobi. Being a case that has had numerous developments in the recent past, little has been written on the effectiveness of the compensation in addressing the victims’ concerns. This study takes a deeper look at the effectiveness of the reparations, apology and memorial, in addressing the plight of the victims of torture, for those who died, their families and to the nation as a whole. The study further argues that in order to rectify the wrongs that were done during the colonial period and to mend relations with the victims that suffered the various atrocities, their families and the nation at large, there is need for Britain to continue to support the healing and reconciliation process with the victims in addition to the reparations, apology and memorial.