A Brief History of Kenya
Pre-colonial history
Cushitic-speaking people from northern Africa arrived in the modern-day Kenyan region of East Africa circa 2000 BC.Â
Because Kenya is close to the Arabian Peninsula, Arab traders began visiting the coast of Kenya in the first century AD, and they eventually founded Arab and Persian colonies there.Â
During the first millennium AD, the Nilotic and Bantu people also migrated into the area and established themselves inland.
The Europeans
The Arabic and Bantu languages eventually blended to form the Swahili language, which served as a common language for trade between the various peoples.
The Arab hegemony along the coast was curtailed when the Portuguese arrived in 1498, as the Port of Mombasa developed into a crucial port of call for ships sailing toward the Far East.
In the 1600s, the Portuguese were gradually replaced by Islamic rule under the Imam of Oman.
However, in the 19th century, another European influence emerged, this time from the United Kingdom.
Colonial History
The colonial history of Kenya started at the Berlin Conference in 1885 where East Africa was divided by Eurepean powers into territories
The lush highlands were first made available to white settlers in 1895 when the British government established the East African Protectorate.
These settlers were given a say in politics even before the area was formally recognized as a British colony in 1920, while Africans and Asians were not permitted to participate in politics directly until 1944.
Thousands of Indians were brought to Kenya during this time to work on the Kenya-Uganda Railway Line.
After they arrived, they made their home there and invited many of their relatives, who were mostly Indian traders, to join them.
Resistance to Colonialism — the Mau Mau
To battle for independence from British domination, the Kikuyu, Embu, Meru, and Kamba tribes made an oath of unity and secrecy in 1942.
With that oath, the Mau Mau Movement was born, and Kenya started down the arduous but long road to national sovereignty.
Jomo Kenyatta was given a seven-year prison sentence in 1953 after being accused of leading the Mau Mau.
Dedan Kimathi, another freedom warrior, was hanged by the colonialists after being detained in 1956 for his leadership role in the Mau Mau revolt and the independence campaign.
Due to the Mau Mau uprising against British colonial control, Kenya was placed under a state of emergency from October 1952 until December 1959, during which time thousands of Kenyans were imprisoned in detention centers.
African involvement in the political process grew quickly during this time, and in 1954 the Kenya Legislative Council allowed representatives of the European, Asian, and African races.
Kenya achieves independence
Jomo Kenyatta was freed in 1962 to become Kenya’s first Prime Minister after the country finally gained independence on December 12, 1963.
The following year, Kenya became a Republic with Kenyatta as its first President and joined the British Commonwealth.
In 1957, the first direct elections for Africans to the Legislative Council were held, and the elected officials heightened the people’s agitation for Kenyatta’s release from detention.
The Road to Kenyatta’s one-party state
Former vice president and Luo elder Jaramogi Oginga Odinga founded the Kenya People’s Union (KPU), a tiny but influential socialist opposition group, in 1966.
Soon after, KPU was outlawed, its head was detained in 1969, and Kenya turned into a “de facto” one-party state.
Kenyatta became the country’s second president after his passing in August 1978, and Vice President Daniel Arap Moi succeeded him.
The Moi era
The National Assembly formally proclaimed Kenya a one-party state in June 1982, and the constitution was changed to reflect this change.
The first parliamentary elections under a single party were conducted in September 1983, and the one-party system was furthered by the elections of 1988.
Nevertheless, Parliament revoked the constitution’s one-party clause in December 1991.
Early in 1992, a variety of new parties emerged, and in December of the same year, multiparty democracy was reinstated and multiple parties participated in elections.
Moi’s KANU party maintained its majority in the legislature and he was reelected for a fifth term due to disagreements within the opposition.
Political rights were increased as a result of parliamentary reforms in November 1997, which caused the number of political groups to soar.
In the December 1997 elections, Moi prevailed once more as President due to a split opposition.
Despite winning 113 of the 222 parliamentary seats, KANU was forced to rely on the backing of smaller parties to form a functioning majority due to defections.
President Mwai Kibaki
The National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) was established in October 2002 as a result of the union of opposition parties and the split of a KANU group.
In December 2002, Mwai Kibaki, the NARC candidate, was chosen to serve as the nation’s third president.
With 62 percent of the vote, President Kibaki was elected, and the NARC won 130 of the 222 parliamentary seats or 59 percent of the total.
Coalition politics gained traction and democratic space was further expanded throughout Kibaki’s first term in government.
The Grand Coalition
On December 27, 2007, Kenya held its tenth general election. Unfortunately, a dispute that erupted after the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) announced the results turned into an unprecedented seven-week spree of violence in some parts of the nation, resulting in fatalities, citizen displacement, property destruction, and general disruption of social and economic life.
The past United Nations Secretary-General With the help of notable figures from throughout Africa, such as President Jakaya Kikwete, President of Tanzania and Chairman of the African Union, Mrs. Graca Machel, Mr. Benjamin Mkapa, and Mr. Joachim Chisano, His Excellency Mr. Koffi Annan mediated a reconciliation between President Mwai Kibaki and his main rival, Hon. Raila Odinga.
This resulted in the signing of the National Accord and Reconciliation Agreement, which cleared the way for the restoration of peace and security in the nation and a return to normalcy in the affected regions.
The Agreement called for the establishment of a Grand Coalition between the President’s National Unity Party and Hon. Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement Party, as well as a significant overhaul of the government structure to include the position of Prime Minister and two Deputy Premiers.
A National Accord Implementation Committee was constituted by H.E. the President and the Prime Minister Designate in the wake of the agreement to draft a plan of action for the Grand Coalition Government (GCG), harmonize the party manifestos, and determine short-, medium-, and long-term policies that the GCG would implement.
With activities cascading down to all districts and constituencies, the Committee established a nationwide program of reconciliation and building that involved the Private Sector, Civil Society, Media and Community-Based Organizations.
Three significant bodies were established concurrently: the Independent Review Committee on the 2007 Elections, the Commission of Enquiry on Post-Election Violence, and the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission. Truth, rapprochement, and healing will be brought to Kenya and its people through these bodies.
A thorough constitutional reform process and roadmap that will fortify governance institutions and tackle the enduring disagreements that fueled the violence were also agreed upon by the parties.
The Grand Coalition Government started the process of rebuilding the economy and resettling the impacted population by putting the National Accord and Reconciliation Agreement into effect. Restoring the economy to its previous growth trajectory and resettling crisis-affected populations were at the top of the Grand Coalition Government’s priority list at the time.
Before Hon. Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta was elected the fourth President of the Republic of Kenya in March 2013, during which Hon. William Samoei Ruto served as his deputy, President Mwai Kibaki completed his second term in office as head of the Grand Coalition Government, alongside Hon. Raila Odinga as prime minister. On October 26, 2017, H.E. President Uhuru Kenyatta and H.E. Deputy President William Samoei Ruto were re-elected to a second term in office.
A Brief History of Kenya
