Pambana – The legacy of resistance in Kenya: 1963 - 89 (1989)1

BY

SHIRAZ DURRANI

Revised version of a talk at a conference of the Review of African Political Economy. Liverpool, September 1986. Revised 1989.

Additional material from the unpublished paper, Voices of resistance: underground publishing in Kenya after independence, 1963-1990.

”The word "pambana" is a verb, and it has several meanings - the most common of 1

which is "to strive", "to struggle", "to confront". It is also used figuratively to mean "to come into contact with" (somebody or something). Therefore, when used in the political context, it means "to struggle" (against...).

The noun for this verb is usually used in the plural form, i.e. "mapambano" - even if it is about one struggle. (The singular form is "pambano", but rarely used).I think the reason is that the Waswahili rightly understood that a struggle does not consist of just one event or action, but a chain of actions - a process.” - Abdilatif Abdullah, personal communications. August 6, 2014.

PART 1: THE WHOLE NATION RESISTS

KANU rules by repression

In the early 1950’s Kenyan workers, peasants and other progressive forces led by Mau Mau and its armed wing, Kenya Land and Freedom Army (KLFA) took up arms against British colonialism and its internal agents. The armed struggle eventually forced British colonialism to retreat. Kenya became independent in 1963 under the Kenya African National Union (KANU) party with Jomo Kenyatta as its President. An independent government could be expected to glorify the role that Mau Mau played in the achievement of independence. But the opposite was in fact the case.

Since independence, there have been persistent attempts by successive KANU governments to suppress that part of Kenya’s history almost as if the memory of the armed struggle was an acute embarrassment to those who took over the state. Under Kenyatta it was almost treasonable to mention the anti-imperialist character and content of Mau Mau or to dwell on its commitment to land and social change. Under Daniel arap Moi, the Kanu regime went even further. In 1985, President Moi banned any public debate and discussions of the Mau Mau struggle. It is very telling that in his civil service ghost-authored book, A History of Kenya’s African Nationalism, Moi gives only two lines or so to the role of Mau Mau and its armed wing, KLFA. A number of journalists and historians who have questioned the state silence over Mau Mau or who have attempted to correct the distortions have found themselves in prison or detention camps on one pretext or other. The best known case is that of Maina wa Kinyatti jailed for 6 ½ years in 1982 mainly because of his research on the contribution of Mau Mau to the success of the anti-colonial struggle in Kenya and Africa. His research once led him to describe Mau Mau as the highest peak of Kenya’s anti-imperialist struggle.

Many of those who seek to silence democratic discourse on Mau Mau were collaborators with the colonial forces. They are fearful of the popular linkage between the struggle led

by the KLFA and the growing resistance against the present KANU neo-colonial regime today.

The fear of the memory of the KFLA is not new. At independence, the political wing of KFLA did not accede to power. Rather, the right wing of KANU usurped the achievements, legitimacy and reputation which the KFLA had won. Kanu’s rival at that time was the Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU) – led by Ronald Ngala and Daniel arap Moi - which had become a willing tool of the departing colonial power.

But KANU was not without its own internal struggles. The progressive forces led by Kīama Kīa Mūingi which formed one aspect of KANU and which represented the ideological line of KFLA were locked in fierce struggle with the conservative faction which sought to compromise and betray the popular aspirations of the Kenyan people. This

conservative faction was joined by the regressive KADU elements soon after independence in a much publicised show of unity of the right wing forces. Following the ascendency of right wing forces, various attempts to organise legal opposition were frustrated as was evidenced by the banning of the Kenya People’s Union (KPU) in 1969. Thereafter KANU’s pretensions to legitimacy quickly waned as the popular opposition went underground.

The KANU regime’s fear of the people and the underground opposition drove it into adopting ever-increasing repressive measures against the progressive forces. Thus, except for a few years after independence, and notwithstanding the pretence to democracy through elections, the KANU regime has never been popular. Further attempts by the democratic opposition to operate legally have been quickly suppressed. Thus, when there was talk of forming another party – the Kenya Socialist Party – in 1982, the regime pushed legislation through a controlled Parliament making it illegal to form another party. The regime maintains itself in power through institutionalised state violence and with the political, military and economic support of the United States of America and Britain.

Evidence of the regime’s unpopularity is demonstrated by the fact that it has arrogantly ruled the north of the country in colonial fashion with the use of the State of Emergency first introduced by the British colonial state. In these areas, the regime resorted to naked repression such as the massacres in Pokot in 1983 and Wajir in 1984.

While the regime depends on U.S. and British military and economic support, it protects the interests of these foreign powers by suppressing every avenue of popular expression of opposition to its corrupt rule. The prime target is any group in society that is patriotic and articulate in its demands, and is organised to oppose the regime. These include trade unions, peasant organisations, student associations, church leaders, university lecturers, teachers, journalists, historians, etc. The Secret Service and the Special Branch have invaded every walk of life. Genuine working class organisations and unions which had played a crucial part in the freeing of the country from colonialism are infiltrated by its agents and destroyed. Strikes have been declared illegal, although this has not prevented working class activities which have found new avenues. Democracy in all its forms is non-existent in Kenya today.

Peasants are still oppressed by colonial laws such as the Chief’s Act when they struggle against the regime's economic plunder of peasant wealth. Many peasants stop producing for the cash market which has been used as a means of extracting their wealth.

Against the background of repression, opposition has been driven underground. Mwakenya (Muungano wa Wazalendo wa Kukomboa Kenya - Union of Patriots for the liberation of Kenya) is one such opposition movement. As the underground opposition gains strength, the State has responded by sharpening its instruments of repression. The regime has been particularly nervous since the victory of the NRM (National Resistance Movement) in Uganda, sensing that this could spread resistance in Kenya.

Independence but “Not Yet Uhuru”

The fear of neo-colonialism expressed by Mau Mau in their Policy Document became a 2

reality after independence. Africa Events sets the scene:

In 1966, just three years after Kenya attained its independence, some of the prominent personalities in the Kenya's struggle against the British were of the opinion that the party they had founded to steer the country to true independence, the Kenya African National Party (KANU), had diverted from the previously agreed path and, in the words of one of its founders, 'had started to let in neo-colonialism through the back door.' Some tried to correct things from within the party and government, but were frustrated, and their criticism not tolerated.3

Prominent members of the government had openly condemned Mau Mau before independence. They were well aware of the power that the movement had when it controlled its communication systems. Its control over mass circulating open and underground newspapers and books, over oral medium and songs, over educational institutions had given it strength to overcome the superior firepower of the colonialists. This lesson was not lost on the new leaders of KANU. Among its first moves was to make

“The Struggle For Kenya's Future” circulated in December 1961. Quoted in Karigo, M. 2

(1975): 5-9.

Africa Events (1990): Roots of the Revolt: 26.3

it extremely difficult to publish newspapers and books. Various legal difficulties were imposed to ensure that only a few, controlled newspapers and publishing houses could function. Thus even under the harsh colonial rule, it was possible for Mau Mau to publish fifty newspapers, under the neo-colonial government after independence, all such avenues were blocked. High deposits needed to publish newspapers meant that few Kenyans could afford to be in business. Censorship laws and self-censorship ensured by the government meant there could be little freedom to express independent ideas.

In 1969, the Kenya People's Union, the only opposition party ever to be registered in Kenya was banned, its entire leadership arrested and detained. Thus ended the one chance of open politics in Kenya. All political activities now went underground as did the expression of any independent ideas and opinions. The murder of Pio Gama Pinto in the streets of Nairobi in 1965 had signalled this new period of repression in Kenya. The banning of KPU completed this phase of silencing any opposition by legal or illegal means. Henceforth the battlefield shifted to the underground level.

Throughout the 7Os there continued to be issued various underground pamphlets. These included Mwanguzi and Kenya Twendapi which questioned the direction followed by 4

Kenya after independence. Many former Mau Mau combatants began to recount their experiences and stated that they had not suffered during the anti-colonial struggles merely to see a few getting all the benefits of independence. Many such views could not be published within Kenya and had to be published overseas. Among the best known are Ngugi Kabiro’s The Man in the Middle, Mohammed Mathu’s The Urban Guerrilla, and Karigo Muchai’s The Hardcore, all published in Canad by Don Barnett.

The murder in 1975 of the popular politician, J. M. Kariuki brought out a national unanimity in anti-government feelings. It also saw the publication and distribution of a large number of underground leaflets in support of basic human and democratic rights.

The popularity of songs and plays performed by the Kamiriithu Community Culture Centre once again showed that the Kenyan people had rejected the culture encouraged by the government but were in support of progressive content in art and drama. Events were to show that such expression of free ideas could not be tolerated by the government. Ngugi

Abdalla, A. (1989). 4

wa Thiong'o, one of the authors of the play performed at Kamiriithu was detained and the open air theatre constructed by workers and peasants was razed to ground by government bulldozers. This was the largest open air theatre in Africa and had the added attraction that it was far from urban centres, in the middle of peasant settlement in the countryside. It now became clear to all that no public expression of any ideas or opinion was possible in Kenya. Such expression had of necessity to be underground. This lesson bore fruit in the 80s when a popular underground press could truly be said to have been established.

In general, the underground leaflets of 1970s reflected the contradictions of the times. Many were written by University or school or college students who played an important role in mobilising public opinion on important issues. The writers of these leaflets were also “conscious of the class dimensions of the post-colonial Kenya society and they often tried to show the connections between Kenya's problems - not in tribal or personality lines - but in terms of what they called ‘the neo-colonial path’ of development opted for by the government. The leaflets bearing Kiswahili names became part of a vigorous underground press that took a very different line on national and international affairs from I that of the established press.” 5

As is mentioned elsewhere in this article, resistance is everywhere in Kenya today. The extent and strength of this resistance is not immediately obvious to a casual observer, hidden as it is by the official media. We shall look at this resistance at three levels. In Part 1 we examine the resistance of workers, peasants, students and that of the ‘whole nation’. This is the general response of the working people of Kenya to their social oppression and economic exploitation under the neo-colonial policies of the government. Part Two examines the organised, underground resistance that has given an ideological and organisational direction to the resistance of the people. Finally, in Part 3 we take a brief look at the overseas reflection of the resistance of Kenyans at home and the significance of these two levels of resistance - local and foreign - coming together as a joint force to oppose the national reactionaries and world imperialism.

Africa Events (1990): 27.5

Worker Resistance

Workers throughout the country are in the forefront of direct action against oppressive laws and economic exploitation. Seen as an overall systematic resistance, these worker-led strikes and other struggles have helped to build a massive movement against the regime which has come down heavily against trade unions. It has banned strikes and imprisoned leadership of trade unions. And, in the end, it made COTU – the Central Organisation of Trade Unions – become affiliated into the ruling party, KANU. But this has not suppressed working class militancy. Year after year, thousands of workers have been breaking KANU laws and going on strikes for their rights.

Njaa not Nyayo

Since Moi came to power, he has enforced the blind chanting of the slogan Nyayo (meaning to follow in his footsteps without question or debate). A particularly significant development, indicating greater readiness to voice open opposition to the regime and to Moi personally, is the resolution passed by over 1,000 shop stewards meeting at solidarity Building in Nairobi to make arrangements for the Labour Day celebrations in April, 1989. They resolved that "they will answer njaa, njaa (‘hunger’, ‘hunger’) instead of nyayo, nyayo to the harambee call during the forthcoming Labour Day celebrations. " (Daily Nation, 17-4-89).

The significance of this lies in the fact that the workers had bypassed the government-controlled COTU in their resistance and instead created their own organisation to continue their struggle. In addition, over a thousand activists organising and coming together is no mean achievement in a country where a meeting of over five people is illegal if an official licence is not obtained. Moreover secret police monitor and suppress any such democratic activity. The workers overcame all these obstacles to bring to the forefront the most important failure of the government - the economic management that has brought vast fortunes to a select few (including Moi who is reputed to be the 5th richest man in the world) and untold misery to the vast majority of people.

But it is the daily struggles of the workers that gives the true significance to the growing worker movement in Kenya today. Not willing to accept a situation which means a daily eroding in their already very low standard of living, the workers have intensified their

struggles for a decent living wage and their economic, social and political rights. Kenya - Register of Resistance, 1986, a MWAKENYA publication, breaks down the workers’ demands into three categories:

Economic Demands: for higher wages; land; and employment.

Social Demands: safety at places of work; improved working conditions; adequate health facilities; adequate and relevant education.

Political Demands: right to organise; right to assembly; union rights; support other workers; liberation from the entire oppressive system.

Workers' resistance in recent years has taken various forms: strikes, demonstrations, boycotts, work-to-rule, refusal to accept unfair practices. The media have been forced by the regime either not to fully report on such militancy or to underplay their revolutionary significance. An examination of some worker resistance in the first few months of 1989 shows the extent of such resistance:

- 2000 Mombasa Municipal Council workers went on strike for more wages (January).

- 100 workers of the Gaturi Farmers Co-op Society, in Embu went on strike and demonstrated for their rightful wages (January).

- 150 workers of Nzoia County Council’s in Trans Nzoia went on strike for wages (Jan).

- 600 workers in the open-air workshops went on strike and demonstrated when the Thika police tried to evict them from their work area. They attacked the police many of whom were injured (January).

- 630 Kitale Municipality Workers went on strike for increased wages.- 300 workers of the Rolmil Kenya Ltd. in Kiambu went on a go-slow strike for

increased wages, house allowance, leave entitlement and travelling allowance (January).

- 700 workers of the Pan-African Paper Mills, Wabuye went on strike and fought police and the paramilitary GSU with stones, pieces of wood and acid (March).

- 200 workers of Lanar Road Construction Co., Bungoma. held a demonstration in support for their demands for higher wages and better working conditions (April).

- 100 workers of the Athi River Mining Ltd went on strike for higher wages (May).- 180 workers of Atta Ltd, Mombasa went on strike for higher wages in spite of

being faced by armed police (May).

- 200 workers of Cosmo Plastics Ltd, Nairobi went on strike for better working conditions and right to permanent work after being considered ‘casuals’ after 8 years’ of work (May).

- 250 workers of Afrolite Ltd, Nairobi went on strike for higher wages (June).- 350 workers of Woodmakers (K) Ltd, Nairobi on strike for higher wages (June).

UMOJA poster symbolising unity in resistance

from: Umoja Publication Moi’s Reign of Terror (1989)

These are just a few examples of strikes in the first six months of 1989. The actual number of workers taking strike action has been going up. Whereas 42,527 workers went on strike in 1986, the figure had jumped to 110,870 in 1988 indicating a higher level of militancy among workers. It should also be noted that as strikes are illegal in Kenya, workers going on strike risk losing their jobs. In addition, the Government's response to all strikes is to send in armed police and GSU (General Service Unit) , so striking workers, 6

especially their leaders, run the risk of being beaten up and held in remand or imprisoned where they get tortured as a matter of routine. Yet strikes continue.

Over the the ten year period since Moi came to power, the conditions of life facing the workers have been getting increasingly harsh. Not only is there more unemployment (often hidden in official figures), but even those in paid employment who get the official minimum wage (not all workers get this) cannot afford to maintain themselves and their families with the ever escalating price rises of basic material needs. As the IMF and world Bank increase pressure for anti-worker policies, as the transnationals increase their super-profits, as Moi and those around him corruptly drain away the country’s wealth, the burden of these policies fall on the shoulders of the working people. The increasing number and intensity of strike and similar actions remain the main weapons available to the working class in their struggle against a regime that seeks to satisfy not the interests of the majority of people, but those of foreign and local elite who drain national resources. These weapons are being used more and more.

“The General Service Unit (GSU) is a paramilitary wing of the Kenyan Military 6

and Kenyan Police, consisting of highly trained police officers and special forces soldiers, transported by seven dedicated Cessnas and three Bell helicopters. Having been in existence since the late 1940s, the GSU has fought in a number of conflicts in and around Kenya, including the 1963 – 1969 Shifta War and the 1982 Kenyan coup. The Kenyan police outlines the objectives of the GSU as follows, to deal with situations affecting internal security throughout the Republic, to be an operational force that is not intended for use on duties of a permanent static nature, and primarily, to be a reserve force to deal with special operations and civil disorders”. Wikipedia. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Service_Unit_(Kenya) [Accessed: 21-07-14].

Peasant Resistance

For hundreds of years, the Kenyan people’s resistance to foreign armies of occupation and plunder had, at its centre, peasant resistance to the take-over of land. It was the issue over land that initially gave impetus to the struggle against British colonialism. The resistance movement that finally brought independence in 1963 was significantly called Kenya Land Freedom Army (KLFA - Mau Mau). The KLFA had been forged as an alliance between the rural and urban proletariat on the one hand, and the peasants on the other. Thus land and control over natural resources have always been a key factor in Kenyan people's resistance.

Under the KANU regime, issues relating to land have not been resolved. They have in fact been further aggravated. Landlessness, the single most significant issue in Kenya today continues to increase. People are being forced to squat on their own lands and finally forced out of land altogether. Land shortage is particularly acute in Central Kenya, Western Kenya and at the Coast as well. The Coast has had years of land problems as whole townships and vast areas are being handed over to foreign multinationals and local speculators aligned with the powerful political elite for quick profit. The most fertile lands in the highlands are easily available to transnational agribusiness (for example, Brooke Bond and Del Monte) who ‘own’ millions of acres while peasants are crowded over marginal plots. There is also a small class of Kenyan landowners with an insatiable greed for more and more land.

An additional factor under Moi is his foreign policy which benefits imperialist powers. He wins Western support by handing over strategic areas for U.S defence and military use, particularly in Northern Kenya. This, together with recent finds of oil and other minerals has meant that peasants are being hounded out of their ancestral homes without any alternate means of survival. In fact, the Moi-KANU regime has declared war against the whole Kenyan Somali nationality who he has tried to suppress by massacres, mass arrests, detentions, jailings and torture. Ever faithful to the advice of IMF and World Bank, the neo-colonial regime has additionally put peasants under immense economic pressures.

All these factors have resulted in the Kenyan peasant and pastoralist reverting to their colonial practices of resistance. No week passes without reports of peasant resistance to the Moi government’s policies and attacks on their officials. The following is a selection of peasant resistance during the first half of 1989:

- 400 angry peasants of Igembe, Meru marched to offices of Kenya Tea Development Authority to protest at lack of transport for their tea (Jan.).

- Busia peasants boycotted deliveries of cotton in protest at not being paid their dues on time (Jan.).

- 1000 Gilgil peasants refused to follow orders of government officials in connection with land ownership (January).

- 21 peasants of Soi, Kakamega beat up a government official (Feb.).- Peasants without land refused to follow government orders to vacate government

land at Kerio East, Elgeo Marakwet. (Feb).- More than 1000 angry peasants demonstrated against delays in payment for last

year’s coffee crop, Gachuku, Nyeri. They had to face terror from riot police. (Feb).- 100 peasants at Three Rivers Farm at Trans-Nzoia defended their rights to their

600 acre farm being claimed by a local politician whose family member was killed during the confrontation (March)

- Peasants growing sugar joined hands with workers of Nzoia Sugar Co, Bungoma and set 700 hectare of land with sugar on fire (March).

- 1000 peasants fought angry battles with armed police in protest at the Leisure Lodge Hotel in Ukunda at the Coast which was claiming their 300 acre farm. The police shot one peasant dead and injured another, while 7 policemen were also injured (March).

- 2,500 peasants defied a government order to leave government land at Mt. Elgon, Bungoma (April).

- 1000 peasants refuse to obey government Chief to leave their 300 acre farm at Diani, Kwale (May).

- 3,000 peasants at Muhoroni, Kisumu refused to follow orders from government officials and KANU politicians to contribute 3/- shillings for every ton of sugar (May).

- 1000 peasants defy government orders to vacate their land within 21 days so that a private company can take it over, Diani, Kwale (May).

- 50 peasants marched from Narok to Nairobi in protest at the interference from a Minister and administrative officials in their farm’s elections (May).

- peasants at Olokurto, Narok refused to leave government law and defied police who had been sent is force them out.

- 5000 coffee-growing peasants at Murang’a refused to harvest coffee for two months in their struggle against Kagima Coffee Co-operative Society (May).

The above examples give an indication of the geographical breath of peasant resistance. It is present throughout the whole country. Peasants use varying methods in demanding their rights and often use violence against corrupt government officials and armed police and company officials. At the same time because of the shortage of land and hence the high cost it often becomes necessary for a large number of peasants to pull their resources to purchase one farm. This comes in useful when they face common problems: thousands of owners find strength in defying government directives, whereas individual plot owners may fear taking direct action. These examples show that peasants as a class have taken a lead in resisting the policies of the government and that conditions are objectively and subjectively right in the countryside for a more systematic and organised resistance from the peasantry. Underground resistance movements like MWAKENYA and allied forces do get much support from the peasants. Indeed the government's use of the army against peasants shows its fear of this resistance building up into a formidable force in the future.

Student Resistance

Together with workers and peasants, students have become the third force that is actively opposing the neo-colonial Government. Students in Kenya have always voiced the concerns and views of the struggling people. It is the youth who have assumed the role of articulating the political and economic consciousness and aspirations of the working people of the country. The youth make up over 50% of the population and derive their political consciousness from the material conditions of their own lives as well as from the experiences of their parents who in the main are workers and peasants.

The government has attempted to turn students into docile acceptors of whatever they are taught. School and college and University syllabi have been controlled to remove any progressive ideas. Their cultural and social activities have been vetted to ensure no mention of any local relevant events which can inspire independent thought takes place. In short, the whole educational process is geared to produce unthinking people who ape foreign bourgeois ways and agree to all nyayo ideas.

But students have never accepted this. They have consistently resisted not only the bad elements of the education system itself, but have also resisted the whole socio-economic system that produces corruption, blindly following Western capitalist ideas. They have instead sought a united student national movement which would ensure free circulation of ideas and links with fellow students from Africa, the Third World and other progressive students from around the world.

The strength of student resistance was indicated late last year (1988) when thousands of students throughout the country went on strike. Just as an example, the students from the following schools were on strike in just two months – September and October:

Murang'a College of Science and Technology; Kenyatta University (5,000 students); Kenya Science Teachers College (800 students); Kisii Teachers Training College; Moi Teacher Training College, Eldoret (650 students); Nyabola Girls High School, Kasipul, South Nyanza; Nginda Girls High School, Murang’a; thousands of first year students on National Youth Service at Gilgil from Universities of Nairobi, Kenyatta, Egerton and Moi fought running battles with riot police and NYS after many women students had been raped by the servicemen some students were said to have been shot down. Nyanchwa Teacher

Training College, Kisii; Murang’a Teachers College (500 students); Nkuene High School, Imenti, Meru; Itatani Secondary School, Machakos; Mutungulu Girls High School, Kangundo; Ngere High School, Kisumu; Ruaraka High School, Nairobi; Chulaimbo High School, Kisumu, Ringa High School, Kasipul, Nyanza; Malava Girls High School, Kakamega; Agoro Sare High School, South Nyanza; Maragoli High School, Vihiga, Kakamega; Gendia Secondary School, Kendu Bay. South Nyanza; Kenyoro High School Kisii; Ongaro High School, Kisii; Matare High School, Kisii, Manyatta High School, Kisii; Sori High School, Nyakite, Kisii; Agenga High School, Kisii; Mwer High School, Siaya; Sengani Hugh School Machakos; Kirimara High School, Nyeri; Isebania School; Kisumu Technical School; Onjiko High School, Kisumu; Sigomere High School, Siaya; Kambere High School, Gem, Siaya; Miwani High School, Kisumu; Nyabondo High School, Kisumu; Sameta High School; Jomo Kenyatta High School, Nakura …

… the list seems almost endless. This is an indication of the serious opposition faced by the government in the education field. It was different issues that sparked strikes in different schools but overall the message from students to the government is clear: they are no longer willing to accept mismanagement, corruption, poor educational standards with lack of teachers and books. They are not satisfied with silent protests, but will take action to change the situation. Indeed the government managed to overcome the serious crisis in education only by closing the school year early.

But the crisis is not by any means over. Already this year there are more school strikes taking place. It is interesting to note that in many cases teachers and parents join hands with students. Again in most cases the presence of armed police has not deterred student activities. Seen in conjunction with worker and peasant resistance, these student activities give an entirely different quality to national resistance to the Moi Government.

Students have also been in the forefront of writing and distributing their own underground pamphlets setting out their demands. This is especially true of universities. University of Nairobi, for example, has produced a vast amount of such literature, reflecting the militancy of the students there. Indeed a tradition of at least one closure per year on average is the norm here. New repressive regulations are introduced after every closure, but this has not deterred further student militancy. Indeed most Student Union leaders end up by being thrown out of the University and being jailed or detained. Mwandawiro Mghanga ended up with 5 year jail terms and Oginga Ogego with 10 years.

Sauti ya Kamukunji. (A publication of the Student Organisation of the Universityof Nairobi-SONU) January 1984.

The significance of all these student activities in not only for the present. They represent a new generation which is refusing to accept a corrupt, ‘man-eat-man’ society. The future of Kenya in reality lies in their hands. And they have already indicated their rejection of the present regime’s policies. The legacy of the resistance indeed lies with the new generation.

The whole nation resists…

Workers, peasants, students… all have their own forms of struggle against the unpopular government policies. But as MWAKENYA points out in Register of Resistance, the lower petty bourgeois have also joined the ranks of those resisting and struggling against the government. The significant point about this is the vast numbers involved in this protest. For example when the teachers protested against the government‘s sudden policy of reducing their housing allowance in September 1988, almost 160,000 members of the Kenya National Union of Teachers planned to go on strike. So serious was this action that the government was forced to withdraw their planned reduction of housing allowance. Similarly over 80,000 drivers, ‘manaambas’, matutu owners and other transport workers

The imperialists today still think they can stop mankind struggling for national liberation and social progress… Amidst all hypocrisy and crocodile tears about human rights no one who is capable of

true judgment can deny that imperialism, above all USA imperialism, is responsible for the suffering of our brothers in

South Africa. But even here imperialism is doomed … History is always on the side of the oppressed. That is why the side

supported by the USA has always lost … USA and other imperialist states always take side with unpopular oppressor

regimes.

brought national transport to stand-still when they boycotted work in March 1988. It forced the personally to withdraw the government’s new policies affecting the industry.

The unpopular 1988 ‘queuing’ elections which Moi used to ‘win’ a false mandate gave rise to massive election boycott and mass demonstrations against the fraudulent elections. Moi had hoped to prove his popularity to his international backers – U.S.A. Britain, IMF, World Bank, and to give a democratic cover to his dictatorial rule. In the event, the resistance of the voters robbed him of his ‘victory’. UMOJA, in its publication Struggle For Democracy in Kenya; Special Report on the 1988 General Elections in Kenya (June, 1988) has documented well the resistance of the Kenya people to the elections. Thousands of people marched in protest at the ‘cooked’ elections results. For example, over 4000 people including women and young children in Taveta marched over four miles from Daranjani to Taveta in protest against the falsification of election results. They stoned local government officials and forced the closure of all offices and shops. All communications links with the rest of the country were cut. Fierce battles raged between the people and the armed police who had to be reinforced by the para-military GSU (General Service Unit). Over 100 people, including women and children were arrested; 10 people were seriously injured and had to be hospitalised; and at least one man, aged 66, was killed by the police action.

Similar mass protests were organised throughout the country. They indicate a qualitative difference in the resistance. Mass protests are fast becoming a way of life in Kenya. Such protests bring together people from all the classes opposed to the Government and bring together the various grievances of the people as a whole.

Similar mass tactics were used by Students of the University of Nairobi between November 13-15, 1988 when the Government arrested the entire student leadership. More than 3,000 students ‘regrouped and a running battle between them and the (armed) police in the streets of Nairobi started. 7

But the largest and more significant mass demonstration took place in Mombasa where people‘s grievances to do with landlessness, unemployment, poor wages, U.S military

UMOJA (Umoja wa Kupigania Demokrasia Kenya): Mombasa People Champion Resistance 7

Against Kanu’s Undemocratic rule. London. Nov.25.1987.

presence etc. are always just below the surface. The Mombasa mass protest arose as a result of the government suddenly cancelling a rally organised by Muslim youth on October 30, 1987. UMOJA sets the scene:

More than 4000 people formed an orderly procession to seek an audience with the Provincial Commissioner (PC). But instead of the PC holding a dialogue with the people he unleashed armed police at them.

In self-defence the people faced the police. With strong involvement of Muslim women and the youth, they boldly attacked the provincial head-quarters. They later marched to the Central Police Station and attacked it too. The youth adopted guerrilla hit and run tactics in the narrow streets of the Old Town area. The subsequent hide and seek continued till about 2 o’clock in the morning.

The people’s anger at what happened to them on October 30 erupted once again on 4 November during the massive procession to mark the birth of Prophet Muhammed. The youth used the religious procession to once again air their defiance and express their demands for the right to organise and assemble.8

There was obviously a strong organisation behind the mass protests. They even issued a record of their side of the struggle in an underground pamphlet entitled Yaliotokea Hapa Mombasa Mnamo Tarehe 30-1-87. (What actually took place in Mombasa on 30 January, 1987).

Kenyan people have turned to other forms of resistance as well. Many parts of Nairobi, for example are closed areas to policemen. Any who venture there end up being murdered. Increasing cases of death of policemen and government officials at the hands of people are in evidence. For example:

- Police constable killed at Mathare in Nairobi (Sunday Times, 12-2-89)- A policeman was shot in the leg at Nakuru after a policeman shot dead a women

(Sunday Times,12-02-89)

Umojs (Umoja wa Kupagania Demokrasia Kenya): Mombasa people 8

champion resistance against Kanu’s undemocratic rule. London. 25-11-1987. Press Release.

- Senior superintendent of police was hacked to death by people of Lukoye, Mumias (Sunday Times, 12-02-89)

- A sub-locational KANU Vice-Chairman in Kakamega District, Gilbert Okello, was slashed to death by people (03-03-89). This is the second incident this year when a Kanu official in Kakamega was hacked to death.

- A Kanu youthwinger, Samuel Maba, was admitted to hospital with deep cuts on head and neck – same incident as above.

- Lawrence Mbare, the acting chief for Shamakhokho location in Hamisi was assaulted with a panga by local people. He was admitted to hospital (03-03-89).

- Constable Salim Limo murdered at Huruma Estate, Nairobi on August 20 1988 (Daily Nation, 02-03-89).

The spirit of resistance was captured by a Kisumu woman who was being evicted by the Kisumu Municipal Council from her home where she had lived for over 15 years. In October 1988, Council askaris went to evict her. But the brave woman was ready for them. She first threw boiling water on them and then fought them off with a panga (machete), injuring them. The people are all fast reaching the stage where they say ‘no’ to exploitation and oppression. As Upande Mwingine have said:

Wakati wo woteMahali po poteWatu wakigandamizwaKisasi watalipizwaMapambano yatazuka

(Rough English translation)

Every timeEvery placeWhen people are oppressedRevenge and resistance will ariseStruggle will be everywhere

That is precisely what is happening in Kenya today. Resistance and struggle are indeed everywhere.

“The best literature about Kenya …” From: Umoja (1987): Moi’s Reign of Terror: a decade of Nyayo crimes against the people of Kenya. Umoja: London.

Independent Kenya (1982). Sponsored by the Journal of African Marxists in solidarity with the authors. London: Zed Press. “Authors: the Kenyan authors of this book have to

remain anonymous because they are still living in their country”.

2: UNDERGROUND RESISTANCE

The tradition of underground organisation and publications in Kenya goes back almost to the beginning of this century and continued throughout the colonial period as a form of resistance . But the tradition did not end with the achievement of independence. It 9

continued throughout the period of Kenyatta‘s regime and intensified under Moi, as the US imperialism consolidated its neo-colonial grip over the country.

One of the most important underground publications was issued in 1981. Published by Cheche Kenya, In Dependent Kenya documented from the perspective of the Kenyan working people, the history of Kenyans’ struggle for independence, the struggle of militants and conservatives within the Kenya African National Union, the corruption that became a way of life within the regime, and the cultural dependency under the shadow of imperialism. In Dependent Kenya represented an important ideological step in understanding the realities of neo-colonialism.

Some examples of the pre-independence resistance publications is available 9

in Durrani, Shiraz (2006): Never be Silent: publishing and imperialism in Kenya, 1884-1963. London: Vita Books.

Pambana is born

Pambana: Organ oft the December Twelve MovementNo. 2. July 1983

It was, however, Pambana, the Organ of the December Twelve Movement which had the widest circulation and the greatest impact in post-independent Kenya. The first issue was published in May, 1982. To begin with, it used the language of the Kenyan working people, Kiswahili. It took a strong principled anti-imperialist position and made a concrete analysis of neo-colonialism:

The KANU Government … has looted unspeakable sums of money and national wealth. They have finally given our entire country over to the US imperialism to use as a political and military base… This is NOT independence.

Kenyans, therefore, have no alternative but to begin anew in order to continue the revolution that was diverted. We are once again called upon to marshal our forces and prepare for a protracted counter-attack in order to salvage and reconstruct our nation. This is war. We must have no illusions.

The emergence of the December Twelve Movement was perhaps the most significant political event in Kenya since independence. First, it marked the end of the attempts by democratic forces to form legal opposition parties. Earlier attempts to regroup within KANU and to make it more democratic and responsive to national needs have also failed,

reflecting the total surrender of the comprador class to imperialist interests. It became the historical role of the December Twelve Movement and other resistance movements to articulate the new phase in Kenyan politics where it was possible to struggle for national democratic rights only at an underground level.

Changing the system of exploitation. From : Pambana, Organ of the December Twelve Movement No. 2 July1983

What distinguished the December Twelve Movement from earlier underground movements was the fact that, for the first time, a programme which became an alternative to that of KANU’s essentially capitalist one was presented. The December Twelve Movement stood for a national democratic revolution which would unite all national forces opposed to imperialism and the neo-colonial comprador regime. As Pambana made clear, the December Twelve Movement supported all genuine Kenyan organisations and individuals, “fighting any aspect of local or imperialist reaction.” It set out the tactics of achieving a broad unity of all democratic forces and, in the process, it clearly isolated the local comprador elements.Pambana emphasised that it supported:

all genuine Kenyan organisations and individuals fighting any aspect of local or imperialist reaction and in particular:

a. Small farmers and producers against government and co-operative theft and mis-management;

b. Workers against IMF-enforced low wages and anti-strike controls;c. The millions of unemployed in their right to employment;d. Small businessmen against foreign monopolies;e. Indigenous professions against fake expatriate “skills”;f. Teaches, students and pupils against irrelevant, authoritarian colonial

education;g. Committed intellectuals and journalists against official muzzling;h. The poor and the landless in their demand for land reform;i. All poor people against ever-increasing rents, prices and declining real

incomes;

j. The entire dispossessed population against a corrupt puppet government and its ever-repressive police rule”.

The December Twelve Movement provided an ideological framework within which all democratic, progressive forces began to operate. It additionally provided an organisational framework which strengthened national forces and posed a serious challenge to the dictatorial and foreign-leaning KANU structures. But the achievements of the December Twelve Movement went beyond this. It put the struggle for democracy and freedom from neo-colonialism in Kenya in its international context and saw close links between the struggles in Kenya and those in other countries of the South. It was in this spirit of solidarity with other struggling people that Pambana carried a section on ‘International Struggles’ and examined the struggles in Central America (El Salvador in particular).

The Editorial in the first issue of Pambana was entitled Cheche: A Spark Can Light a Prairie Fire and included an analysis of the role of the underground press. It examined the two-line struggles in the Kenyan press as reflecting the two aspects of the contradiction in the society. It rejected the bourgeois pretences of media “neutrality” and openly committed itself to articulating the people’s need for “revolutionary change”, saying:

Pambana is neither free nor neutral. It will accept no apologies for oppression or thievery and will forcefully represent the truth as seen from the viewpoint of the majority poor, disposed Kenyans who have hitherto been so fully ignored.

Pambana placed on the scene in Kenya a set of political demands and vision which has already influenced the thinking and action of many democratic Kenyans struggling against an unjust, oppressive regime.

The short-lived coup of August 1982 was, at one level, a reflection of the developing democratic forces. This was shown by the fact that there was a tremendous popular support for the short-lived new Government. The coup’s message reflected the desire of millions:

Over the past few years, this country has been heading from an open to a closed, inhuman and dictatorial society. The fundamental principles for which many of our

people sacrificed their lives during the heroic struggle for independence have been compromised in the interest of a few greedy and irresponsible bandits.

Over the past six months, we have witnessed with disgust the imposition of a de jure one-party system without the people’s consent, arbitrary arrest and the detention of innocent citizens, censorship of the press, intimidation of individuals and general violation of fundamental human rights.

This ruthless oppression and repression is reminiscent of the past colonial days which Kenyans thought were buried at independence. A gang of local tyrants has emerged whose only function is to terrorise and intimidate with senseless warnings. Rampant corruption, tribalism, nepotism have made life almost intolerable in our society. The economy of this country is in shambles due to corruption and mismanagement. The cost of living in Kenya today is among the highest in the world. Wananchi can no 10

longer afford to meet the basic requirements of life, due to exorbitant prices of basic necessities such as food, housing, rent, transport. Kenyans are among the highest taxed people in the world today.

…our armed forces have heeded the people’s call to liberate our country once again from the forces of oppression and exploitation in order to restore liberty, dignity and social justice to the people.

The aftermath of the coup altered the whole political scene in Kenya. Realising how little public support it had, the KANU Government increased repression to new heights: it relied even more on the military. Many patriots and democrats who had been active before the coup were brutally murdered or illegally detained. All pretences to democracy were removed. Economically, the Moi regime aligned itself even more firmly to US imperialism which now acquired military facilities in the country in return for supporting the unpopular regime.

But the December Twelve Movement (DTM) survived the brutal attempts of authorities to seek out its cadres and jail, detain or eliminate them. It remained underground with the

Wananchi: (in East Africa) the ordinary people; the public. Origin: Kiswahili, 10

plural of mwananchi ‘inhabitant, citizen’.

support of the people themselves. DTM continued the production of Pambana and the second issue came out in July 1983. It summed up the experiences following the coup and exposed the attempts of “the ruling clique and their army to instil fear amongst the people.” It identified the root of the problems facing the people and resolutely called for unity to defeat the enemy:

We cannot remain silent when our right to good housing, adequate food, decent clothing and education have been denied us by this oppressive regime. Twenty years after independence we have been reduced to the position of beggars… Even the Parliament has not been able to change anything. It will not be able to change anything. We are still hungry and we know that our children will suffer even greater hunger if we do not now make the necessary effort and sacrifice to change the present conditions.

Compatriots, let us unite and defeat the comprador ruling class. As long as imperialism reigns over us, it is our right and responsibility to liberate our country… Our hope for our future lies in the history of struggle, in our patriotism and in the unity of all the exploited and the oppressed. The fire has been lit, the oppressed will burn the enemy to ashes and we shall march in unity signing PAMBANA, PAMBANA, PAMBANA.

Pambana drew strength from the revolutionary traditions of the Kenya Land Freedom Army’s use of struggle songs to mobilise people. In its issue of July 1983, for example, it ran the following revolutionary song entitled Kenya Our Country:

Kenya our countyOur land, our sweat, our blood.

Listen to the voices of our children,The voices of workers,The voices of peasants,the exploitedthe oppressedthose who are tortured for nothing.

Our beloved motherlandIn chains of servitude.Break the chainsOf parasitesOf capitalistsOf neo-colonialism.

For how long shall they continue stealing your wealth?For how long shall they continue exploiting your children?

It is a matter for tears. It is a matter for sorrowfor us your children.What can we do to restore you dignity?

We are the ones who work the industriesWe are the ones who work the landWe are the ones who build this country.

LookHow our hands are blisteredHow our backs are bentHow we now stoopFor shouldering the burden of production.Mother, look at us nowLook at our livesIt is sad.But for how long are we going to cry?For how long are we going to live in pain?

No!We must unite and struggle For our rights.

We refuse to live in poverty

We refuse to be treated like foreignersIn our own land.

We refuse to die of hungerWe refuseTo be torturedTo be exploited To be oppressed.

Here comes the dawn Let us struggle on to victory.

In its analysis of the current situation, Pambana adopted a historical prospective as a means of mobilising the masses. It carried “Six Lessons From the Life of a Patriot” showing examples from the life of the Kimathi and the lessons to be learnt from his revolutionary lifestyle. The six lessons are:

1. The live of a revolutionary must be an inspiration to others. A revolutionary must be prepared to educate the people politically and also learn from them.

2. Fighting against oppression is the duty and responsibility of every patriotic Kenyan.

3. Patriotism demands sacrifice even if it means giving up one’s job and comfortable family life. Revolutionary struggle is a life-time commitment.

4. A patriot must be imbued with hatred of all forms of oppression.

5. For a revolutionary, no task is too menial or too big. A revolutionary must be prepared to work hard day and night. The revolution is not a tea party.

6. If you cannot struggle against oppression wherever you are, you will not gain the necessary experience for participating in and explaining our national revolutionary struggle. A revolution starts with you wherever you are.

The concrete analysis of society consisted of an article entitled “Workers’ Struggles: The Current Situation: Workers Reject Government-Sponsored Trade Unions.” Here it examined cases of worker and peasant struggles against neo-colonial economic exploitation since May, 1982. It also examined the continued role of women in the struggles and gave examples of international solidarity with the Kenyan peoples struggles. All this showed that the regime had not succeeded in suppressing the revolutionary tide in the large scale military-style suppression following the August 1982 coup.

Besides reproducing the Ten Point Programme from the first issue of Pambana, the second issue, which was also in Kiswahili, continued to bring the experience of other Third World struggles to Kenyans. This time it looked at the examples of the struggles in China, Cuba, Nicaragua and North Korea in one specific aspect: the provisions of food, the basic material need of the people. Entitled The Politics of Food, the article showed how these countries had been able to solve the problem of the provision of cheap, adequate and nutritious food for the people. In all cases, it had been essential first of all to rid their land of foreign imperialist presence. “These countries have dared” it wrote “to throw out imperialists and have afterwards adopted a system of agricultural production that puts people’s basic food requirements first.” It draws lessons from the struggles of these countries:

These examples teach us that in order to make agricultural production meet and satisfy the people’s needs, we must first snatch back our economic and political independence from the imperialist foreigners. Only after getting rid of imperialist backed oppression, shall we be able to take new directions in food production. A relentless struggle against the alliance of the comprador mbwa-kali ruling class 11

and Euro-American imperialism is the only way we Kenyans can use the wealth of our country to satisfy our own needs and banish hunger, The defeat of imperialism in its neo-colonial stage is necessary first-step for our development as a Kenyan people.

The December Twelve Movement and Pambana have made a lasting contribution to the struggle in Kenya. Its concrete application of theories of struggle and its practical worke have become part of the theoretical and practical experiences that the people of Kenya

Kiswahili for “fierce dog”, a term commonly used for the compradors in Kenya.11

have in their struggle against neo-colonialism. In the short term, its impact can be seen in the subsequent revolutionary movement, particularly MWAKENYA.

MWAKENYA

The history of Kenya shows a strong continuity of resistance against colonialism and imperialism. As the concrete conditions change and as new contradictions develop the resistance movements also undergo changes to resolve the new contradictions. These changes in resistance take place at the level of theory as well as at the level of practice. The stand of progressive, nationally-orientated development that was so strong in Mau Mau and the Kenya Land Freedom Army has never died. It has continued in the post-independence period and has had to undergo various qualitative changes in response to the changing contradictions.

The December Twelve Movement continued this tradition in an earlier period. After the coup of 1982, this tradition of resistance continued in when DTM forces regrouped and emerged as MWAKENYA – Muungano wa Wazalendo wa Kukomboa Kenya (Union of Patriots for the Liberation of Kenya).

Mwakenya had spread among almost all the nationalities of Kenya and had reached the stage of armed combat when the Government became aware of its existence. The threat that MWAKENYA posted to the ruling class was obviously taken very seriously. The repression that the KANU regime launched against Mwakenya was once again to reach new heights in independent Kenya. It used the real and imaginary acts of Mwakenya to suppress all opposition to its rule.

Mpatanishi, the organ of Mwakenya, explains the emergence of the Movement in issue no. 14 (August, 1985). It says that Mwakenya was formed as a result of merger of "local and foreign based liberation organisations fighting to overthrow the present neo-colonial regime in Kenya.” The same issue of Mpatanishi sets out the strategy of armed struggle as the only way of resolving the major contradiction in Kenya:

Soon after (independence), the imperialists entrenched themselves again to establish a neo-colonial rule under a “flag independence” of firstly Kenyatta and

now Moi. The regime has imposed a one-Party KANU dictatorship on the Kenyan people, continues to deny Kenyans basic human and democratic rights and freedoms, increased its repression, silenced Parliament and all forms of opposition, leaving resistance no alternative but to go underground.

The current situation in Kenya parallels that of the early 1950s when peasants and workers took up arms and bravely fought the imperialist British forces of colonialism, oppression and exploitation. The Mau Mau Forces (Kenya Land Freedom Army), after exhausting all other forms of struggle, chose the armed struggle. Similarly, patriotic, progressive and democratic forces of Kenya today have exhausted all other forms of the struggle. They have no alternative now but to launch a guerrilla warfare to carry out total liberation and acquire true independence.

Mpatanishi was an internal document of the Movement but another publication was for mass distribution. This was Mzalendo Mwakenya which was widely distributed in all parts of Kenya. It continued even in the midst of Government repression. For example, the issue dated 3 April, 1986 - months after a large number of what the Government labelled Mwakenya members were arrested - ended with the call:

… we have no alternative but to start a guerrilla warfare to counter state violence with revolutionary violence. We call upon all patriotic, progressive and democratic Kenyans who love this country to join and support Mwakenya guerrillas in a struggle to rid our motherland of all imperialist and neo-colonial forces of oppression and exploitation.

Although the KANU government unleashed ferocious repression on Mwakenya cadres and other democratic-minded people beginning March, 1986, Mwakenya recorded one of its highest level of activity in 1987. These activities were on both revolutionary fronts: theoretical and organisational, and also included active involvement in the current political scene. Let us look at some of these activities which are having major effects on the Kenya society,

To begin with, Mwakenya Mzalendo continued to be issued and widely distributed throughout the country. In addition, Mwakenya began issuing press releases to expose

secret anti-Kenyan activities of the regime. The most important one was issued in Nairobi on September 21, 1987 and revealed for the first time to the Kenyan people and to the international community the underhand way in which the regime operated. Entitled Moi-USA New ‘Drugs Agreements’ Threaten Kenyan Lives, the statement revealed that the Kenya Government had signed yet more agreements with the USA, reminiscent of the 1980 agreements when the USA got military facilities at Mombasa (naval facilities), Kilifi (marine), Nanyuki (airforce), Isiolo (army), and Wajir (underground hangers and nuclear storage facilities). The statement revealed the content of these new agreements:

… samples of this unknown/dangerous drugs from the United States of America are already being tested on unsuspecting Kenyans in many parts of our country. Our people have been reduced to guinea-pigs by MOI and the REGAN Administration.

The first agreement was signed in April 1987… Under this agreement, a ‘New Anti-Malaria Drug’, an unknown medicine manufactured in Fort Derick (USA), is to be tested on local Kenyans for twenty months in Kisumu … This experiment is being conducted in preparations for a massive deployment of American troops to American bases in Kenya.

Within days of the signing of the first agreement, the puppet government signed the second agreement, this time with “A Special Military branch of Biological laboratory of Fort Derick, U.S.A”. This branch specialises in manufacture and testing of biological weapons. Under the terms of the agreement the branch is conducting research on biological weapons at lower Kabete area (in Nairobi) under the cover of veterinary laboratory … The biological research findings are already being tested on local Kenyan people and not on animals as is the case in the United States.

This, Moi has exposed the people of Kenya to American troops, nuclear weapons and bases, biological weapons and dangerous drugs.

Given the Kenya government’s total control over mass media and on information flow in general, it was left to the underground movement to bring to public attention the secret activities of the government.

The earlier secret treaties with the U.S.A. on military facilities were never acknowledged by the regime. Now, with this statement by Mwakenya, the regime was exposed in public.

Another press release of Mwakenya was dated December 16, 1987 and exposed the Moi-KANU regime’s attempts to divert the attention of the people from their basic material problems by launching war against the NRA [National Resistance Army] government in Uganda. Entitled Moi Declares Unwarranted War Against Uganda, the statement stated:

… the current acts of regression by President Moi against the NRA government and the orchestrated hostile propaganda against ant-imperialist Libya are manoeuvres calculated to divert attention from the pressing issues facing the Kenyan people and to play down the mounting internal opposition now led my MWAKENYA.

The statement also revealed the real policy maker behind the puppet activities of the regime:

The imperialist states led by U.S.A are encouraging Moi to continue waging a war against Uganda as part of their wider plot to destabilise and overthrow committed anti-imperialist governments in Africa, Asia and Latin America which are struggling for national sovereignty, economic independence and social progress of their people.

The statement also revealed to the Kenyan people the regime’s secret plans to call “stage managed early general elections in mid-February, 1988 in a desperate attempt to diffuse the mounting internal opposition.” Events were to prove this correct as elections were held in March.

Following this statement, the regime could not continue long its aggression against Uganda as it became obvious that the war was indeed “Moi’s personal war against Uganda.” Perhaps the most important event in the 1987 MWAKENYA calendar was the publication of two documents for use by the underground cadres.

Mwakenya’s Draft Minimum Programme (1987)

The first document was Mwakenya’s Draft Minimum Programme, one of the most important progressive document to emerge in independent Kenya. This well-produced document sets out the history of neo-colonialism in Kenya and also traces the history of resistance in Kenya. It also gives the background to the formation of Mwakenya itself and records its publications and Congresses. The most significant part is “the Fundamental Goals and Objectives of MWAKENYA”. These are listed as:

• The recovery of national sovereignty and integrity• The building of an independent and integrated national economy• The establishment of genuine democracy• Social justice for all classes and nationalities• The promotion of a patriotic and democratic national culture• The building of strong People‘s Defence Force• The Pursuit of an independent foreign policy

Further details of these Goals and Objectives are given in the Programme which also sets out the Immediate Political Demands of MWAKENYA, summarised as:

• The immediate democratic demands• The demands of all the workers• The demands of the peasants and the rural poor• The demands of women• The demands of youth and students• All the other popular demands

The publication of the Draft Minimum Programme marks a new stage in the struggle of the people in Kenya. Once again an underground opposition Party challenged the monopoly of KANU as the true spokesperson for the masses of Kenyans. No longer could KANU claim its exclusive right to speak for all the classes in Kenya. It now became obvious that KANU spoke for the comprador class in Kenya while Mwakenya and allied progressive movements represented the interests of the rest of the people. The challenge to KANU was on an ideological and organisational front as well, as Mwakenya set out the demand of the “oppressed and exploited classes of Kenyan people” and called upon the people to overthrow the entire neo-colonial system, seize political power and establish a peaceful state of democracy and social progress.” The silent class struggle since independence was formally brought into broad daylight. Proclaiming its stand “In struggle lies the Way Ahead”, the documents quotes from its resistance poem “ni haki yetu kupigania haki zetu” (Our right to fight for our rights).

Ni Haki Kupigania Haki

Ni haki yetu kupigania haki zetu

Ni jukumu letu kupigania haki zetu

Kutopigania haki ni hatia

Hatutahifadhi haki bila kupambana

Ni haki ya wote, ya kila mmoja

Apate chakula cha kutosha

Awe na nguo na nyumba

Hii ni haki, ni msingi wa maisha

Ni haki ya watu kupata mahitaji haya

Kwa njia ya kazi, ya kutoa jasho

Sio kwa njia ya ukarimu au unyonyaji

Ni haki ya wote kuwa na kazi

Wakinyimwa haki hiyo ya kazi

Watu wana jukumu kubadalisha

Mfumo unaokataza haki hiyo

Ni haki yetu kupigania haki zetu

Aprili 1985

English translation

Our Right to Fight for Our Rights

It's our right to fight for our rights it’s our duty to fight for our rights. Not to fight for our rights is a crime

We cannot preserve our rights without struggle

It's the right of each and everyone

To have food

Clothing and shelter

This is a right, the very foundation of life.

It's the right of people to get these necessities By way of work, by sweating for them

Not through charity or exploitation.

Work is the right of all.

If denied the right to work People have the duty to change

the system that denies them this right .it’s our right to fight for our rights

Mwakenya advanced the struggle in Kenya to a new stage. Not only did its organisation reach many different parts of the country: it set in motion the machinery for launching a guerrilla, armed struggle in the country. For the first time, members of its guerrilla unit were brought to court and charged with sabotage and with damaging a railway line. Tirop Arap Kitur, one of the combatants, explained in court that it was the present socio-economic conditions that made guerrilla activity inevitable:

A vulture, a bird of prey, is not to blame for landing on a carcass. It is the state of affairs that brings about the presence of the carcass that is to blame. A state of affair is created and maintained by a group of people acting consciously or unconsciously.

Kitur’s statements in court revealed that there were two laws in operation in Kenya, one that of the KANU regime and another that of Mwakenya. It was the latter which gave legitimacy to the guerrilla activities of the combatants who did not recognise the laws of KANU which result in the oppression of the very people they are supposed to protect. Kitur stated in Court, “Having been recruited into Mwakenya, I was under duty to carry out instructions without failure.” Kangethe Mungai, another combatant, stood strong in court with companions Karimi Nduthu and Kitur. The Daily Nation (Nairobi) recorded the scene in Court:

All three stood defiantly in the dock and declared that they were acting on orders from their commanders. “We did not commit any criminal offences. Those targets were selected by our guerrilla commanders as our declared warfare.”

In

In1996, Karimi Nduthu was “brutally assassinated by agents of the Moi dictatorship on 23 March, 1986” for continued resistance to the brutal KANU-Moi regime.12

This indeed is a new stage of resistance in post independent Kenya. This phase looks back to the period of the struggle of the Kenya Land Freedom Army, as well as is founded on the struggles of an earlier period, particularly the December Twelve Movement.

Karimi Nduthu, a life in the struggle. London: Vita Books. 1998.12

Mwakenya recalls the progressive agenda of Mau Mau

The second important document published by MWAKENYA in 1987 was Kenya, Register of Resistance, 1986. This is a detailed record and analysis of the resistance against the government by the working people of Kenya, subdivided into actions by workers (industrial proletariat and agricultural proletariat); peasants; lower petty bourgeoisie; and progressive intelligentsia. The Introduction is itself an important analysis of the intensifying class struggle in Kenya, with KANU exposed as the party of comprador bourgeoisie and Mwakenya is shown as the party of the working people. It is worth looking in detail at the Introduction for it is the

clearest class analysis of the current situation in Kenya, explaining the role played by both KANU and Mwakenya :

At independence in 1963, the KANU regime opted for capitalism. But it was not an independent capitalism. It was, and still is, an extension of Western imperialism. That means that our economy is foreign owned. The main banking and other financial institutions are owned by Western monopolies. So are our industry and commerce. The symbol of this domination is IMF and the World Bank. These two dictate Kenya’s economic and social politics. Today the KANU regime merely supervises the domination of our economy; politics and culture [are controlled] by U.S-led imperialism. Every year more wealth flows out of the country than comes in. This wealth goes into the pockets of these foreign companies and their owners. The little that remains in the country goes to the minority wealthy classes that act as mbwa kalis of foreign Western interests. But it is not the foreign companies and their owners and local supervisors who make that wealth. The wealth is made by the workers and peasants of Kenya. Kenya is a class divided society. There is a class struggle in Kenya and it is intensifying day by day.

Mwakenya (1986): Kenya, Register of Resistance, 1986.

KANU IS THE PARTY OF COMPRADOR BOURGEOISIEThe class that makes the stealing of our wealth possible is the comprador bourgeoisie. This is the class which protects Western imperialist interests. This class does not come from any one nationality. Its members come from nearly all the nationalists in our country. It is very wealthy. It owns big farms. It owns big distribution agencies of foreign owned enterprises. Its wealth comes from its partnership with imperialism. But it is a junior partner. This class barks more anti-Kenyanism than its masters in Washington. It hates all manifestations of national life in the economics, politics and culture of our country.

KANU is the party of this class. The KANU regime is therefore a government of wealthy mbwa-kali ruling class. It is a neo-colonial regime. It uses the police, the GSU, the Army, the law courts and the prisons to suppress the real producers of wealth: the workers and peasants of all the nationalities in Kenya.

…

One of their lies is that the workers and peasants are docile. The regime claims that the masses are happy with the present conditions. But when problems create social unrest, the regime tells an even bigger lie : that the problems are caused by this or that tribe, this or that region. When that does not work, it tells yet another lie that workers and peasants are being misled by those who hold marxist/socialist ideas. Today, it is blaming its increasing national and international isolation on MWAKENYA. It claims that MWAKENYA is inventing the grievances and demands of workers and peasants.

MWAKENYA IS THE PARTY OF THE WORKING PEOPLE

It is true that MWAKENYA is the party of the workers, peasants, progressive intelligentsia and all the patriotic Kenyans fighting for the interest of the oppressed and exploited majority. It is true that MWAKENYA is opposed to the neo-colonial regime and it is determined to overthrow it. We are proud of that.

But we do not INVENT issues or grievances about those issues. We have not invented hunger, lack of adequate medicinal care, landlessness, low wages, repression, massacres, granting of military facilities to U.S.A. We have not invented Moi’s corruption which makes him one of the richest single individual in the world.

We only articulate and support the demands of the workers, peasants, small traders, progressive students, and teachers, the unemployed, and of all the other oppressed strata in our society. We are also clear that imperialism and all the social forces that support it [are] the main enemy. But the major clamour and movement for change comes from the people themselves. They have the material base-production to make their clamour for social change felt and heard. It is their labour

that makes industry, agriculture, commerce [and] trade possible. Their Labour builds the roads; houses, moves transport; clears the land; raises the panga, the hoe and the hammer. Their unified action in all these fields frighten the regime and its imperialist masters. That’s why it controls the newspapers, radio, T.V. to prevent Kenyans from knowing what’s happening in industry and in agriculture. That’s why the regime tries to divide the workers and peasants by telling them that they belong to this or that ‘tribe’. The regime wants to promote ‘tribal’ consciousness, ‘tribal’ nationalism in short nationality chauvinism. But just as Capital knows no tribes, race or regions, so Labour is not a unique property of this or that ‘tribe’, nationality or race. When a Company exploits labour it exploits labour of all the working people irrespective of race, tribe or nationality. The regime is mortally scared of the UNITED LABOUR of all the workers and peasants of all the nationalities in Kenya. Hence its Divide-and-Rule tactics it learned so well from colonialism.

Having established its political line in documents like the ones mentioned above, Mwakenya has continued to consolidate its organisational network.

Mzalendo Mwakenya Special Issue, 1 May, 1994.

It has continued to publish Mzalendo Mwakenya as well as statements which are widely distributed throughout the country. For example, there was a heavy distribution of Mwakenya material in June, 1989 particularly in the Nyanza province. As the UMOKA statement of August 22, 1989, entitled “Moi Fails in his bid to Cover up Nyayo Crimes” pointed out, of the over 27,000 people arrested in that month, over 10,000 were from Nyanza Province. Thus over the years Mwakenya has continued to politicise Kenyan people about the daily politics in the country. This ideological and political work is considered important in building support for movement.

Some publications issued by Mwakenya are listed below:

• Moi-KANU Regime has no Legitimacy to Rule Kenya. Press release, Nairobi, 29 March, 1988. “MWAKENYA declares null and void the results of the recent stage managed general elections.”

• The Moi-KANU Clique Continue to Crush Democracy in Kenya. Mwakenya Mzalendo March, 1988. “The Moi-Kanu clique of corrupt, dictatorial, repressive and traitorous minority sheltering under the Kanu flag has again subjected Kenyans to its shameless naked machinations and trickeries. Moi is clearly scared of the mounting opposition to his dictatorial policies and the neo-colonial system. He has become isolated and paranoid, trusts no one and hits at anyone daring to make a principled stand against his selfish whims, demanding sheepish loyalty to him personally.”

The last example of Mwakenya publication we shall consider is an imported example of the Movement’s move to more direct intervention in the events in the country. It is a call to action, to ‘participate in our own liberation’ and to ‘organise resistance wherever you are.’ It is a significant document in light of the increasing waves of resistance recorded in Part 1 of this paper. Below is reproduced the document, Mzalendo Mwakenya (Special Issue, July, 1988):

Mzalendo Mwakenya. Special Issue. July 1980 DEPT. OF MASS INFORMATION AND PROPAGANDA

KENYA IN POLITICAL CRISIS!

MWAKENYA CALLS THE WORKING PEOPLE TO INTERVENE

o organise resistance wherever you are! o urgently overthrow the KANU-Moi regime!o oppose any reactionary takeover!o fight for Peoples Power!

The illegitimate MOI-KANU government is in deep political crisis and on the verge of collapse. Moi is seriously sick, and the ruling clique is sharply divided, infighting within the ruling reactionary KANU party continues and various factions are busy, each secretly organising to take over state power.

Fellow Kenyan patriots, we cannot watch this situation passively. We have to, we must intervene and participate in our own liberation to avoid being dragged further into political uncertainty, economic chaos and social insecurity.

A C T NOW

ORGANISE armed MZALENDO MWAKENYA resistance groups to combat all agents of KANU and the Moi anti-Wananchi government.

ATTACK using anything at your disposal, all brutal policemen, informers, spies, municipal askaris, cruel chiefs, KANU youth wingers, oppressive foremen and employers.

DISOBEY oppressive orders or directives from government officials.

STAGE go slows, boycotts, sit-ins, protests, strikes and demonstrations without seeking any authority from the government/employers.

BOYCOTT all functions and elections stage-managed by KANU or any other reactionary government that may come to power in the future.

CONFRONT THE NECESSARY AUTHORITY/EMPLOYERS to effect higher wages, reduction and control of house rents, transport fares, school fees, and prices of essential commodities.

o better price of peasants produce, and prompt payment of cash crops.

DEMAND immediate distribution of our food in government stores to all hungry Kenyans especially in the N.E. Province and West Pokot and also an end to the mass killings in this region.

o an end to the on-going aggression against the Museveni government and the Ugandan people.

o release of all political prisoners in Kenya o withdrawal of American and British troops and military bases from Kenya.

ADVANCE the working people’s immediate demands which are outlined in the MINIMUM PROGRAMME of MWAKENYA.

SUPPORT MWAKENYA, UMOJA, and other patriotic, democratic and progressive pro-people organisations.

MWAKENYA salutes out fallen comrade- MUNGAI WARUIRU (Kirūkū) who was brutally murdered recently in Kamiti prison by the notorious trigger happy murderous agents of Moi.

We salute the many workers, peasants, students, professionals, civil servants and other patriotic Kenyans who continued to heed MWAKENYA’s call to mount resistance wherever they are. In particular, we salute the matatu/bus operators and touts, Yuken and other textile workers in Thika, and the 200 inpatients of Eldoret hospital who left their beds to demonstrate against the government’s poor health facilities.

JOIN MWAKENYA BY ORGANISING AND RESISTING WHEREVER YOU ARE!!!

MWAKENYA is playing an increasingly important part in the politics of Kenya. This explains the reason why the government has set out to suppress it violently.

Symbols of Resistance

When it is not possible to enjoy basic freedom of expression, people's resistance finds alternative ways of expressing their ideas, opinions, and preferences. There are many examples of such resistance in Kenya. Perhaps the most important is to display a picture of Kimaathi with a message from Mau Mau’s struggle. As the government restricts even the mention of Mau Mau, let alone praising its achievements, people turn to Kimaathi's picture as a silent tribute to the hero and the anti-imperialist struggle he has come to symbolise.

As the government uses more violent ways of suppressing debate on multiparty democracy, the use of two fingers as symbols of 'two parties' has become common. Even this has been attacked by the government when senior officials have demanded that fingers of people giving this symbol should be cut off. This has created yet further symbols: the mention of the word 'two' in ordinary conversation has come to be seen as indicating one’s commitment to basic democratic struggle. Thus the mentioning of two spoons of sugar in tea, having two children etc. has come to have highly political meanings.

Resistance through orature

The use of oral medium is yet another way in which the government’s ban on expression has been broken. The use of progressive songs, plays, poems, records is a well established tradition. Poems of resistance have been in circulation underground from 13

Upande Mwingine who have also done some pioneering underground work in documenting resistance in Kenya. The poems reflect the lives of working people and register people's rejection of oppression.

Another method of resistance is through songs. Many singers, producers and even sellers of tapes have ended up in jails for resisting through these means. Africa Events (ibid) again reports on this:

...what is unique about the new songs was that their message had nothing to do with the pet theme of love; rather, they came laden with brazen, hard-core politics...the heavy hand of state security brought the songs' reign to a swift end...During the crackdown, music stores were ransacked by security officers, and about 100 shopkeepers and matatu (mini bus) drivers (who took a special pleasure in playing the songs full blast to passengers) were arrested and charged with purveying or publishing seditious material. Some of them raised the KSh 2,000 fine the magistrate asked them to pay. Those who could not raise the money are in jail.

To be published as Tunakataa! by Vita Books (London) in 2014.13

(One of the songs) was in Kikuyu language. Its subject matter can be loosely translated as "The trials and tribulations of the People of Muoroto" and the song strongly indicts the government for the forced eviction of the people and levelling of Muoroto, a Nairobi shanty, in May this year. A local cleric claimed that eight people died in the brutal operation, although the government has denied it.

The Standard (12-09-2004) records the battle of Muoroto:

At exactly 7 am, the combined demolition force, led by the then Deputy Director of the City Inspectorate, Mr Johnson Wahome, a bulldozer in tow, ordered that the residents salvage whatever they could because he was about pull down their structures.

The residents of Muoroto, who regrouped and mobilised a motley resistance fighting force, flatly told Wahome they would not move an inch.

Determined to force the people out, Wahome, beckoned his bulldozer driver to mount it and drive it down through the valley structures.

At first reluctant, the driver did not follow the instructions at once. Wahome mounted the bulldozer, revved it several times then dismounted.

He again commanded his driver to drive the mover right into the slum dwellings.

The driver took his seat and as he geared up to roll down, all hell broke loose. From nowhere, he was shot with an arrow through his chest.

The council askaris and the police officers, who all this time were watching the scene from atop the Muoroto building, raced down to commence what was to be known as the Battle of Muoroto. It lasted seven hours.

Upande Mwingine have also documented the Muoroto resistance in their poem simply entitled 'Muoroto' which is reproduced on p.25. It is significant to note that the year 1990 has been a significant year of resistance with mass protests when the foreign minister Robert Ouko was murdered in February; the Muoroto resistance in May (in this event the government which wanted the land for some 'high' official's personal use had to give in and

let the people stay on their land); the Saba Saba Rally (Saba Saba - seven-seven representing the date of the mass rally 7th of July- 7th month) when thousands of people defied government orders and the armed police and military and held a mass meeting demanding political rights; and the general defiance on the part of people generally following the death of the outspoken Bishop Alexander Muge in an 'accident”.

Muoroto

On a cold May morning they came with their rungus and tear gas followed by bulldozers on a mission of terror and destruction to raze to ground what little the poor own to make room for the supermarket owned by those with plenty

Kiosks and houses of mabati and cardboard they certainly did flatten.Property of petty traders and slum dwellers they certainly reduced to dust.But the 2000 of Muoroto men, women, children and wazee they failed to terrorise

The cowardly brutality of the terrorists was met with fearless resistance.The battle raged for seven long hours Stones and sticks held at bay rungus and guns

In the end the organised oppression was subduedthe improvised opposition silenced.But is that really the end?

Will today's winner always win? What about tomorrow when today's spontaneous opposition gives way to well-prepared resistance?

PART 3: OVERSEAS RESISTANCE

Umoja wetu no nguvu yetu! – the birth of UMOJA14

It is a well known fact that historically, the Kenyan people’s struggle within the country has the support of external forces which play a crucial role in alerting international public opinion, and foreign governments and international bodies about the real situation in Kenya. Such external forces have consisted of solidarity movements as well as organisations of politically active Kenyans who have had to flee Kenya for their political activities. Such Kenyans then form organisations that have traditionally supported the struggle for liberation at home.

An example of a solidarity movement in colonial times was the Kenya Committee which was active in 1950s. Kenyatta, Ochieng Oneko, and Mbiu Koinange were active in London during colonial period, with Kenyatta being well known in the Pan African Movement.

Such activities have continued in the independence period after 1963 as well. There are solidarity organisations in Britain, Sweden, and Japan, among other places. The London based Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners in Kenya was formed in 1982 and is active up to now, publishing Kenya News and other documents bringing human rights violations to the notice of the international community. It organised a ‘Focus on Kenya’ seminar 1983 and issued a statement on the occasion of the seventh anniversary of its foundation. Some of its publications are listed in the Bibliography at the end of this paper.

London has traditionally been centre of Kenyan exile community ever since independence.

Our strength lies in our unity!14

On the occasion of thirtieth anniversary of Kimaathi’s death on 18 February, 1987, a new Kenyan organisation was launched. This was Umoja wa Kupigania Demokrasia Kenya – Movement for Unity and Democracy in Kenya, UKENYA. It also released its Manifesto 15

and an important document, “from Kimathi to Mwakenya; Resistance in Kenya Today” which was delivered by it Spokesperson, Yusuf Hassan at a meeting in London.

UKENYA is also Kiswahili for ‘Kenyan-ness’15

But the international situation, as far as Kenyans were concerned, was changing fast. With increasing resistance in Kenya, more and more Kenyans were forced to flee into exile. Many of them had been active at different levels of political life and in resistance movements in Kenya. These Kenyans settled in different parts of the world, in Europe,

U.S.A, and in other parts of Africa. UKENYA lived up to its name and played a leading part

in bringing these different organizations together to form UMOJA – Umoja wa kupigania

Demokrasia Kenya (United Movement for Democracy in Kenya).

UMOJA was formed following the Unity Conference of Patriotic, Democratic and Progressive Kenya Organizations Abroad, held in in London on October 16-19, 1987. The

organisation was formally launched on October 20, 1987 during the celebrations organised by UKENYA to mark Mau Mau Freedom Fighters’ Day. In a special “Message of Solidarity to UKENYA, Other Kenyan Organizations, Solidarity Groups and Individual-Comrades”,MWAKENYA recognised the important part played by these overseas organizations, and urged them to unite - an advise well taken by these groups by forming UMOJA. The message pointed out:

MWAKENYA is aware that since 1982, many Kenyan organizations and solidarity groups supporting the Kenyan people‘s struggles have emerged abroad. Among other political activities, they have consistently campaigned for the release of political prisoners and continue to do so to date.

These campaigns have exposed the nature of the Moi-Kanu regime and thereby shattered the well-tailored false image of peace, democracy and stability in Kenya. MWAKENYA recognizes the significance of these activities to our struggle and commends the organizations and individual comrades who have been participating in these patriotic activities.

MWAKENYA being committed to working for unity in our resistance urges all patriotic, democratic and progressive organizations and individuals comrades abroad to unite into a single force to support the on-going struggle at home. There is no force that can defeat a determined people.

Thus MWAKENYA which itself came into being as a result of various progressive forces coming together, now played a key role in bringing about a similar unity among Kenyan forces abroad. At the Unity Conference, UMOJA saw its role as a support movement rather than a new party:

UMOJA which now brings together the resistance abroad under one umbrella is an anti-imperialist organization wholly committed to the restoration of our national sovereignty, the building of a truly democratic Kenya and the restructuring of the economy for the social progress of the Kenyan people. UMOJA is not a new party but a support movement for the struggle at home. Towards this end UMOJA is pledged to the unwavering support of the democratic and social struggle in Kenya. …

UMOJA notes with satisfaction the resistance being waged inside the country by the underground people’s party, MWAKENYA. Inspired by its acts of patriotic courage and struggle, UMOJA, as a support movement, hereby declares its total support for MWAKENYA and its political demands as set out in its Draft Minimum Programme.16

Since its formation, UMOJA, with a central Secretariat based in London and Branches in various countries, has been active at many different levels. Its publications reflect its role in bringing together overseas Kenyans, and in keeping the world informed about true situation in Kenya. Some of its statements, press releases, and documents are listed in the Bibliography. Umoja published a printed current awareness service for its members, entitled Mbiu ya Kenya, Monthly Summary of News on Kenya. 17

Quoted from the Unity Conference Resolution and Final Statement.16

Mbiu: a buffalo’s horn, used as a musical instrument; blown to call public 17

attention: “when the buffalo-horn sounds, there is something of importance”. A Standard Swahili-English Dictionary. Nairobi: OUP.

The UMOJA Secretariat also published two important Background Documents. These are:

Struggle for Democracy in Kenya: Special Report on the 1988 General Elections in Kenya. (June 1988). “This Special report is the first in a series of background material that UMOJA will be issuing to explain and document the on-going democratic struggle in a country where the people’s assertion of their right to organise, their right to assemble, their right to express their opinions and interests, is often met with police boots and bullets.”

The second Background paper was entitled Moi’s Reign of Terror: A Decade of Nyayo Crimes Against the People of Kenya (January, 1989, reprinted June 1989). “Dictator Moi has been responsible for over 6,000 deaths in the ten-year period". The Document records ‘Ten Years of Economic Misery’, ‘Ten Years of Murder and the Rule of Fear’, and ‘Ten Years of Resistance'. The Appendices list the names of those killed by Government agents, and also those arrested, jailed and detained without trial.

Within a short period UMOJA has established itself as the external voice of Kenyan resistance, led by MWAKENYA and allied progressive movements.

The combination of an internal underground party in Kenya and a support movement overseas is perhaps the most important development in recent Kenyan history.

As with any political activity, the overseas Kenyan scene is not without its contradictions. As the contradictions between resistance forces and the regime sharpen, more and more groups and individuals join the resistance. Upper and middle levels of petty bourgeois elements are also forced to flee into exile, reflecting the fact that the regime is alienating a class which could potentially support it. But while adding to the quantity of resistance, this

class introduces opportunistic lines among the resistance forces. These take various forms, emerging in different places and at different times as new ‘parties’ which are either factions of the ruling comprador class, or ultra left groupings which are not rooted in any popular support nor have any guiding principles of strong organisation to give coherence to their resistance.

In the short run such opportunistic individuals and groups are likely to do some damage to resistance, attracting inexperienced youth with their fiery promises of a new Kenya tomorrow. It may also confuse for a time, friends of Kenyan resistance among the international circles who sympathies with their overall aims and policies.

In the long run, such deviations will help to clarify various lines opposed to the regime and a correct, revolutionary line will emerge.

The various opportunistic tendencies will either merge with the correct line or join the comprador forces. Thus in the process, the revolutionary forces will emerge stronger, with more clarity of theories and practice.

Thus over the years many ‘parties' have emerged, claiming to have support internally and externally. They soon disintegrate in disarray although some manage to limp along supported by one or two individuals.

This stage in resistance is historically inevitable. All resistance movements have this two-line struggle and the Kenyan resistance is not unique.

An examination of the activities of the democratic movements abroad reveals an important fact about Kenyan resistance movement: they have all been inspired by the aims and objectives of the underground movement in Kenya. They are an external reflection of internal conditions in Kenya. It is this that has given an added significance to the activities of the Kenyan democratic movements abroad.

Habari za Umoja. No. 1 (1989)

The Impact of Underground

There is no doubt that underground movements have had a major impact on the Kenyan society. In a society where no open debates, exchange of ideas, or discussion of alternative models is possible, people turn naturally to underground for alternative ideas, policies and action. Underground publications are instrumental not only in passing on

important information, but also carry important new ideas on how a more just society might be organised. Examples from around the world where such ideas have been turned into reality give the people hope that they too can benefit from a similar experience. Once such ideas have been disseminated, they become widely accepted and strengthened largely because they answer their needs for material necessities. Such ideas in fact originate among the people themselves. The positive work of the underground organisations involves collecting such ideas, organising them into an overall programme, and explore methods of implementing them. Such programmes inspire confidence because they are no longer individual hopes and aspirations but represent the collective will of the people.

Africa Event (1990) looks at the question of the impact that the underground movement has had in Kenya:

The organisation and its leadership (of Mwakenya) have largely been underground. But its above ground manifestations seem to have had direct and indirect effects on the intellectual, cultural and political life in Kenya. From its very beginnings it brought new politics and forms of organisation, different from the old nationalist variety9 in terms of discipline and ideological leanings...The leaflets bearing Kiswahili names like Mwanguzi in the 1970s, Pambana ("Struggle") and Mzalendo Mwakenya (The Patriot Mwakenya) in the 1980s became part of a vigorous underground press that took a very different line on national and international affairs from that of the established press... It looks like the ideas from such underground press did have strong influence on the populace and often affected the perception of politics and life in Kenya. It is interesting to note, for example, that the population that greeted the initial announcement of the aborted overthrow of the Moi government in the 1982 coup attempt were shouting the word "Pambana" , "Pambana.” - the title of the underground publication of the December Twelve Movement. And some of the demands voiced now by those who are campaigning for multiparty democracy can be found in the earlier underground publications.

Underground publications in Kenya have become a major source of information and an important means of communication of ideas which then influence people's action. It is an aspect of mass communications that has deliberately ignored or its impact minimised by

the government which has much to lose by accepting its true significance. But the reality of underground publications and the impact they are having on the politics of Kenya today can no longer be ignored. It is a reality that is forcing itself on the society as a whole, whether one agrees with the message it upholds or not. It is perhaps time that information workers took this reality seriously. The voices of resistance are loud and clear. They will not go away merely because some ears are closed.

CONCLUSION: Resistance has become a way of life

There has been a qualitative change in resistance in Kenya in the ten years that Moi has been in power. Resistance is much more widespread now than ten years ago. Except for a small clique surrounding Moi, both in the political sphere as well as in the armed forces, almost every class has joined the ranks of those resisting the regime. Even the wavering upper and middle petty bourgeoisie have opposed the regime, joining hands with the workers, peasants, students and progressive intelligentsia in the struggle. Criticism has come from progressive church leaders as well as from the ranks of national bourgeoisie. There are contradictions among the comprador themselves, as Moi takes on and then discards individuals to suit his strategy of the moment. There is dissatisfaction among the armed forces, police, judiciary and bureaucracy. The situation has rapidly changed so that criticism and acts of resistance have become common place. The whole fabric of Moi’s rule is collapsing in this environment of resistance. There have also appeared armed groups in different parts of the country, openly challenging the armed forces of the government. This is particularly true in Northern Kenya which the regime has tried to rule with a state of emergency. In fact, parts of the country are out of bounds for officials of the government, and even the armed forces. Officially the government, dismisses such resistance as acts of ‘bandits’.

Another significant development in Kenya is the consolidation of organised resistance. As UMOJA says in Moi’s Reign of Terror, “What the regime has feared most in all the years is the emergence and growth of organized political opposition that can turn the mass unrest into a mighty force for creative social change … Opposition from organized resistance is

like a closed fist capable of delivering death blows. An oppressive regime lives in mortal fear of this closed fist raised in demand for change.”

MWAKENYA represents this organised resistance feared most by the regime. Whatever the size, organisational strength, and the membership of the various underground forces, it is clear that since about 1979, the main opposition to the regime in Kenya has come from underground movements.

It is haunted by the legacy of resistance, a legacy that has a history of over 500 years in struggles against colonialism and neocolonialism. Resistance to oppression and exploitation has become a way of life in Kenya. This is the reality of Kenya today.

______________________

Bibliography

The following is a selected list of material used in preparing this article. It is becoming necessary, in order to understand the current political situation in Kenya, to have access to the vast amount of underground literature circulating in Kenya. This ‘alternative literature’ has become the true reflection of the on-going struggle in Kenya.

Abdilatif Abdalla (1989). Personal communication, London. Kenya Twendapi? (Where are we heading in Kenya?) was a series of pamphlets (about 9 were issued) in 1989. The author, Adbilatif Abdalla was jailed for writing and distributing it. He was held in solitary confinement for 3 years at Kamiti Maximum Security Prison.

Africa Events (London) Countdown to Freedom (Cover story). Vol. 6 (8-9) August-September, 1990.

Amnesty International has published numerous appeals for action on the question of lack of basic human rights in Kenya. It has also published the following major document: Kenya: Torture, Political Detention and Unfair Trials. July, 1987 London. (Update issued in 1988).

Cheche Kenya: Independent Kenya. Published as an underground document in 1981. Reissued by Zed Press, London. 1982 (Reprinted, 1989).

Coup Broadcast. Voice of Kenya, Nairobi. August 1, 1982. Reproduced in Race and Class Vol. 24 (3) 1983 pp. 325—326.

Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners in Kenya.The Committee was formed in 1982 and has played a leading role in alerting international community about the time situation in Kenya. Besides publishing Kenya News, an irregular newsletter (see contents below), it has published many important documents, including:

o Law as a tool of Political Repression in Kenya. August, 1982. (in English and Kiswahili). Reproduces the underground Pambana; Organ of the December Twelve Movement No.1 (1982). 15pp.

o Repression Intensifies in Kenya Since the August 1st Coup Attempt. Jan. 1983. 20pp. An excellent summary of events since the coup, especially the repression against the Kenyan people by the regime.

o Release the Political Prisoners in Kenya. July 1982; Reprinted March, 1983. 12pp.

o University Destroyed; Moi Crowns Ten Years of Government Terror in Kenya. May, 1983. 16pp.

The Committee also organised a one-day Conference entitled "Focus on Human Rights in Kenya" on July 2, 1988. It has also issued numerous statements on the abuse of human rights in Kenya. See also various issues of Kenya News (below) for more details on the Committee’s publications.

Durrani, Shiraz : Kimaathi, Mau Mau’s First Prime Minister of Kenya. London. Vita Books. 1986. 52pp.

Kaggia, Bildad (1975) Roots of Freedom 1921–1963: the autobiography of Bildad Kaggia, Nairobi: East African Publishing House.

Kariga, Mzalendo: Kenya Ripe for Revolution. New Africa News (Melbourne, Australia) No. 71 Nov. 1983 – Jan. 1989, 4-7.

Kauli Raiya (The People’s Voice): Tunakataa! (We Say No) Underground Resistance Poetry from Kenya.

Kenya News.An irregular publication of the Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners in Kenya. Each issue focuses on an important topic, and also carries a well

researched and up-to-date list of political prisoners in Kenya. The following list gives the main article carried by Kenya News:

• No. 1 (July 1983): One Year Later; Political Prisoners Still Jailed in Kenya.

• No. 2 (Nov. 1983): Democratic Image – Repressive Reality.

• No. 3 (April 1984): Stop This Massacre (“the barbaric attack by the Kenyan security forces on defenceless citizens in the North East Province killed more than 1,000 people”).

• No. 4 (Oct. 1984): Drought is a Big Business.

• No. 5 (May 1985): Sunday Bloody Sunday (The massacre of students at the University of Nairobi, Sunday Feb. 10, 1985).

• No. 6 (June 1985): The Kenyan Woman: A Decade of Oppression.

• No. 7 (August 1986): State of Emergency. Help Close Moi’s Torture Chamber.

• No. 8 (March 1987): Torture in Kenya Intensifies. There is no Giving Up, Diaries from a Torture Chamber Torture, Routine Methods of Extorting Information.

• No. 9 (Feb. 1989): Moi’s Police: Licence to Kill, Ten Years of Terror.:

Kenya Support Group, Leeds (a branch of the Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners in Kenya): Free the Political Prisoners in Kenya. (Publicity material). Leeds.

Kinyatti, Maina wa: Kimathi Letters. Nairobi. London. Heinemann: Zed Books. 1986 (1987).

Kinyatti, Maina wa: Mau Mau, The Peak of African Nationalism in Kenya. Special issue of Kenya Historical Review 5(2) 1977 287-311: Some Perspectives on the Mau Mau Movement.

Kinyatti, Maina wa: Thunder from the Mountains: Mau Mau Patriotic Songs. London. Zed Books. 1980

Mkhatshwa, Jabulani: Kenya, From the Wananchi Declaration to MWAKENYA. The African Communist No. 116 (1989) 65-72.

Mpatanishi. “The official central journal of MWAKENYA to co-ordinate only the disciplined cadres”. Issue no. 14 (Aug. 1985) was a Special Issue with the lead article, “Liberation Organizations Merge and formalize MWAKENYA.”

MWAKENYA (Muungano wa Wazalendo wa Kukomboa Kenya; Union of Patriots For the Liberation of Kenya). Besides Mpatanishi and Mzalendo MWAKENYA. MWAKENYA has published various other documents, press statements, and leaflets which are widely distributed in the whole country. Some of these are listed below:

• Draft Minimum Programme. Sept, 1987. Nairobi Contains the following sections:Introduction: The Way Ahead is Through Struggle;

I. The Part For Democracy and Social ProgressII. We Must Dismantle the Present Neocolonial OrderIII. Our History is One of Heroic ResistanceIV. MWAKENYA – Towards a National Democratic RevolutionV. The Immediate Political Tasks of MWAKENYAVI. The Fundamental Goals and Objectives of MWAKENYAVII.The Immediate Political Demands of MWAKENYAVIII.MWAKENYA’

• Kenya; Register of Resistance

• Various statements have been issued, such as;• Moi-USA New ‘Drugs Agreements’ Threaten Kenyan Lives (21-9-1987). • Moi Declares Unwarranted War Against Uganda (16-12-1987).• Moi-Kanu Regime Has No Legitimacy to Rule Kenya (29-3-1988).

Mzalendo MWAKENYA. “The mass newspaper of MWAKENYA”. Many issues published, eg.

• It is now Guerrilla Warfare in Kenya (3-4-86).• The Moi-Kanu Clique Continue to Crush Democracy in Kenya (March, 1988).

Ngugi wa Thiong’o: Detained: A Writer's Prison Diary, 1981Barrel of a Pen: Resistance to Repression in Neo-Colonial Kenya, 1983.

Pambana, Organ of the December Twelve Movement. Two issues published.

UMOJA:(Umoja wa Kupigania Demokrasia Kenya: united Movement for Democracy in Kenya). Among UMOJA publications are :

• Struggle For Democracy in Kenya; Special Report on the 1988 General Elections in Kenya. (1 June, 1988) Background Paper No. 1)

• Moi’s Reign of Terror; A Decade of Nyayo Crimes Against the People of Kenya (Jan. 1989; Reprinted June, 1989) Background Document No. 2.

• Press Statements :• Mombasa People Champion Resistance Against the Kanu’s Undemocratic

Rule (24-11-87).• The Truth Behind the Moi-Kanu Regime’s Aggression on Uganda

(22-12-87).• Statement Concerning Margaret Thatcher’s Endorsement of the

Repressive and Corrupt Moi-Kanu Regime in Kenya (7-1-88).• UMOJA Rejects the Fraudulent General Elections of March 21, 1988 in

Kenya (10-4-88).• UMOJA Condemns the Constitutional Amendment of August 1988 (2-8-39).• Moi fails in his Bid to Cover Up Nyayo Crisis (22-8-39).

• Mbiu ya Kenya; Monthly Summary of News on Kenya