King Charles and Queen Camilla began the second day of their state visit to Kenya on Wednesday, amidst criticisms directed at their country regarding colonial-era violations and the lack of a full apology or compensation proposal from the monarch. In a formal dinner on Tuesday evening, the British king expressed his "deep regrets" for what he described as the abhorrent and unjustified acts of violence committed against Kenyans during their struggle for independence.
President William Ruto praised the king's initial steps towards moving beyond "the half-hearted and ambiguous measures taken in past years," but noted that much remains to be done. The Kenyan Human Rights Commission estimates that around 90,000 Kenyans were killed or injured, and 160,000 were detained during the Mau Mau uprising from 1952 to 1960 in central Kenya.
UN investigators have stated that British colonizers also committed severe human rights violations, including land seizures, killings, torture, and sexual violence against hundreds of thousands in western Kenya over decades. Charles's visit comes at a time when former colonies are calling on Britain to do more to acknowledge the abuses committed during its colonial past. Some countries, notably Barbados and Jamaica, have reassessed their relationships with Britain.
In 2013, Britain agreed to a settlement of £20 million ($24 million) for over 5,200 survivors of the Mau Mau conflict violations but refused to issue an apology or entertain demands from other communities. Neil Wigan, the British High Commissioner to Kenya, told a local radio station last week that an apology would put his country in a "difficult legal territory."
David Ngasura, a historian from the Talai clan in western Kenya, whose members were forced from their lands in the 1930s to internment camps, stated, "Recognition alone is not enough." Most of the ownership of those lands today belongs to multinational tea companies. He added, "I have yet to hear from him about the compensations that the British government will provide to the victims of the historical injustices perpetrated by the British colonial government."
On Wednesday morning, Charles and Camilla visited a cemetery for World War II veterans, where they awarded medals to four veterans who fought alongside the British.
