By Lukas Kimeu
The long-awaited visit by the king of England His majesty King Charles III finally has taken place but really what is going on. This was the first official visit since he became the king and this is after his mother Queen Elizabeth II passed away last year. The Kenyan president invited their majesties with a banquet at the statehouse on Tuesday night.
The king first visited the Tomb of the unknown warriors at Uhuru gardens. Do you really know the history behind the tomb? The Tomb of the unknown warriors is where the first Kenyan flag was hoisted after Kenya gained independence in 1963. This tomb is where the British soldiers were buried during the Mau Mau warfare it was heavily guarded by British soldiers each day from Africans. The British soldiers were highly respected.
During this visit he gave a public apology to the martyrs who suffered under the hands of the Britain government during the colonial rule. During the banquet he gave his apology by saying that ‘the wrongdoings of the past are a cause of greatest sorrow and deepest regret' he was stopped short of a full apology by Kenyans who suffered the atrocities of the British during the independence struggle of Kenya. The president praised him by say that his courage ‘to shed light on uncomfortable truths that reside in the darker regions of our shared experience’
According to the Kenya Human Rights Organisation 90,000 Kenyans were killed or maimed during the struggle and over 160,000 detained. In 2013 the British government gave $24 million (20 million pounds) to compensate the Kenyans who suffered during the struggle. This visit has renewed the healing scars of the Mau Mau fighters.
The King and the queen are expected to visit other places including the Mombasa port. Their majesties visit has been as a ‘spotlight to the strong and dynamic partnership in Kenya and UK’ It is also termed as a mission to ‘save the commonwealth’ as some countries like Jamaica and Belize have started claiming a republic. Although this visit has sparked different views from Kenyans, Kenya still needs to move on and work harder to save the sinking economy.
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