If you are interested in a bit more background about the current chaos in
Kenya than what you hear on the mainstream media, here is a useful
perspective:


Kenya's Violence: Britain's Legacy
David Zarembka | January 7, 2008
Editor: Emily Schwartz Greco

from: Foreign Policy In Focus
www.fpif.org

It's hard to fathom how a rigged election could produce such violence as
burning women and children alive in a church. But that's what happened in
the Kenya Assemblies of God Church in Kiambaa, just outside the town of
Eldoret in western Kenya. Unfortunately, it didn't come as a surprise to
me or others living in the region.

Some brief historical background may help explain why Kenya has seemed to
suddenly erupt into ethnic violence after President Mwai Kibaki was sworn
into office following disputed elections. So far, the Kenyan government
has estimated that about 300 people have died. But it's likely that this
number is underreported and will keep climbing. The post-election violence
has pitted the Kikuyu ethnic group, whose members support the incumbent
Kibaki, against the Luo, who are in the tribe of opposition presidential
candidate Raila Odinga, Luhya, Kalenjin and other ethnic groups.
British Rule, Kikuyu Functionaries

The genesis of the current situation has its origin in British colonialism
during the early 20th early. The nature of their colonial model was total
control from a strong center. While proportionally few British people
actually settled in Kenya, they controlled large estates. To run these
estates and enjoy the comfortable life the British desired, they needed
lots of labor, the cheaper the better. Therefore, the colonial government
levied a tax on each adult male that forced him to work six months per
year just to pay the tax, which was then used for the benefit of the
settlers. The settlers were harsh and cruel to their African laborers.

The "tribe" that was most affected by the British rule were the Kikuyus,
mainly because they lived on the fertile soil of a small area on Mount
Kenya. They were quickly forced off of their minimal amount of land by the
colonialists and consequently many of them were forced onto the settlers'
estates to work for them. The Kikuyu are known for being very industrious,
hard-working people who early on saw the benefits of education. Many of
them became the low-level functionaries that any government needs,
including the British colonial authorities.
Mau Mau Rebellion

During World War II, many young Kenyan men were drafted into the British
army and served across the globe. Their eyes were opened by what they saw
and when they returned to Kenya after the war, they found that they were
given the same menial, low-paying dead-end work. By the early 1950s, this
dissatisfaction gave rise to a protest movement called the "Mau Mau
rebellion."

The Mau Mau movement was mostly among the Kikuyus and they forced people
to take an oath to oppose the British rule. Perhaps 90 percent of the
Kikuyu in Central Province on Mount Kenya took the oath, willingly and
unwillingly. The remaining 10 percent were the loyalists who worked for
the British colonial government. Although Jomo Kenyatta, who later became
president, was originally jailed as a Mau Mau leader, they soon realized
that he was really a loyalist. Additionally, his son, Peter Kenyatta, with
Jomo Kenyatta's blessing, was one of the leaders of the loyalists.
Kenyatta was soon separated from the other Mau Mau leaders.

The suppression of Mau Mau was extremely brutal. A larger percentage of
the Kikuyu population in Central Province died during the suppression of
Mau Mau in the 1950s than Rwandans perished during the 1994 Rwandan
genocide. Torture was prevalent. Women and children were put into
concentration camps with little food and medical care, and as a result a
large number of them died. No one should be under the illusion that the
British were "better" colonialists than the Germans or Belgians. The
technique the British used here was to deny everything with massive
cover-ups and much of this history is only now being uncovered.

During this same time, the British implemented land consolidation in
Central Province. The result was that the loyalists received nice, large
land holdings at the expense of the Mau Mau people who were in jail. When
the Mau Mau rebels returned, they found that their land had been reduced
to only small fragments unable to support their families. They were forced
either to work for the Kikuyu loyalists or to emigrate to other parts of
Kenya which were not so heavily populated--in particular, many Kikuyus
went to the Rift Valley province.
Matatu Conductors

Some of the most successful loyalists went into business, using the
dispossessed Kikuyu to do the labor that they now needed. In particular,
the Kikuyu often replaced Indian shopkeepers in small towns and villages.
Many more became the conductors and drivers of the matatus (mini-buses)
that dominate Kenya land travel. By now some of these individuals have
built their businesses substantially and have become tycoons.

The British, at the time of independence in 1963, handed the control of
government to their loyalist supporters. The Kikuyu business tycoons and
the Kikuyu political establishment formed a strong bond during Jomo
Kenyatta's presidency. When Daniel arap Moi, a Kalenjin, took over the
presidency on Kenyatta's death, he quickly made a deal with the Kikuyu
establishment that he would not bother their businesses and they agreed to
let him on the Kenyan gravy train, which included pervasive corruption and
looting of government funds. (Kibaki, the most recent president of Kenya
was at one time part of both the Kenyatta and Moi Governments).
No Moi Joy

When the Kenyan people, including the Kikuyu elite, tired of Moi, they
tried to replace him. In 1992 and 1997, Moi divided and conquered the
opposition. One of the techniques Moi used was to promote violence in his
homeland of Rift Valley. In 1992, perhaps 1,000 Luo, Luhya, and Kikuyu
were killed by the Kalenjins and more than 100,000 became homeless. As
happened under British rule, Moi's regime closed the Rift Valley province
to everyone and little is known of the details. When it was over, there
was a huge cover-up, but the situation remained very tense.

In 2002, Moi was now too old for another term and he selected Kenyatta's
son, Uhuru Kenyatta, to run for the presidency. The opposition, this time
united under Kibaki, soundly defeated Uhuru Kenyatta. At this point Kibaki
had the opportunity to bring all Kenyans together as a real nation, but he
soon dropped all the non-Kikuyu who had helped him into office. A group of
Kikuyu politicians and businessmen became a controlling clique.
Orange Democratic Movement

In 2007, the others (members of the Luo, Luhya, and Kalenjin tribes) who
felt betrayed by Kibaki, joined together in the Orange Democratic Movement
(ODM) to oppose Kibaki. Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka, a former foreign minister
and a member of the Kamba tribe, stayed out of the coalition and formed
his own party called ODM-Kenya.

To summarize, since independence the Kikuyu have directly or indirectly
controlled the Government and dominated the Kenyan business community.
They have kept and promoted the centralized system of government handed to
them when British rule ended in December 1963. Under this governing model,
the president was all-powerful, as he controlled the executive,
legislative and judicial branches of Government through a hybrid
presidential and parliamentary system.

The 2007 election campaign revolved around "devolvement" meaning
decentralizing. Naturally, Kibaki and the Kikuyu people opposed this since
it would mean giving up their power.
Payback Time

There are 80,000 matatu mini-buses on Kenyan roads, most of which are
owned and operated by Kikuyus. I spend a lot in matatus and have ample
time to analyze the business. The conductor rents the vehicle with a
driver for the day and keeps whatever is left over. So the conductor has
to push and push to make sure that he does not actually lose money. The
conductor therefore often tries to increase the price of the ride, stuff
more people into the vehicle, and drive faster. This leads to amazing
antagonism between the conductor and the passengers. There is no customer
service, just customer disservice. The riders continually believe that
they are being taken advantage of and abused. This happens almost every
time one gets into a matatu.

So, unfortunately, the current wave of violence is seen by many Kenyans as
payback time. It's amazing how only Kikuyu shops and homes are being
burned, leaving everyone else's intact. Those at the bottom are taking it
out on those whom they feel are on top. They have no contact with the
Kikuyu tycoons and politicians and so they are taking the pent-up rage of
44 years of independence out on the average Kikuyu in their community. The
Kikuyu are then retaliating by killing the other ethnic groups that happen
to live in their communities. This also explains why Kibaki (read the
Kikuyu elite) wished to stay in power by rigging the election. Otherwise,
they would be the losers.

At stake here is whether the status quo, with the Kikuyu on top, will
prevail or if the essential nature of the Kenyan government will change so
that everyone gets a fair share. (But if the latter scenario takes root,
it would remain to be seen whether the Kikuyu would be allowed their fair
share or be punished.)
Plenty of Tinder

Changing demographics can also help explain Kenya's predicament. With the
large population increase in recent decades, there are many youth. Many of
them have been educated to the secondary level or even above, yet are left
with few jobs and nothing to do, and therefore alienated from Kenyan
society. These are the shock troops of the rioters and looters. They see
no future so they can easily be turned to violence.
Clearly there was plenty of tinder. The spark was the announcement that
Kibaki "won" what everyone in western Kenya, and the European Union,
considers a rigged election. The youth waited until the result was
announced on the radio and then immediately attacked matatus (I saw the
plumes of eight burning matatus), Kikuyu shops and homes, and then the
Kikuyu themselves.

David Zarembka, a Foreign Policy In Focus contributor, is the Coordinator
of the African Great Lakes Initiative in Kenya.