The symbolism of field marshal Muthoni waKirima

In Kenya on 2 April, 91-year-old Muthoni waKirima summoned to her home former first lady Ngina Kenyatta, wife to late Kenyan president Jomo Kenyatta and mother of current president Uhuru Kenyatta, to cut her more than five-foot dreadlocks she had kept for 70 years. Knowing that our children know more about Queen Elizabeth’s grandchildren than African heroes, it is prudent that I pause, as a mother and teacher, to provide context.The 1 July 1895 proclamation of Kenya as a British protectorate subsequently led to a large-scale dispossession and violence as the British converted the territory into a settler colony. Although there were several resistances against this settler colony, such as the Nandi Resistance (1895-1905) and the Giriama Uprising (1913-1914), none were as widespread and pronounced as one waged by the Kenya Land and Freedom Army, well-known as the Mau Mau, particularly during the period between 1952 to 1956. The Mau Mau were a highly conscious, tactful and organised guerilla movement that fought against the British colonial forces and their collaborators.On 20 October 1952, Evelyn Baring, colonial governor, declared a state of emergency as a mechanism to quell the Mau Mau uprising. This led to the arrest of several nationalists, including Jomo Kenyatta. The Mau Mau responded with more violence - including the hacking into pieces of collaborating traditional leaders. Following the state of emergency, most Mau Mau fighters fled into the forest from where they continued fighting until Kenya gained independence in 1963. Although this uprising was subsequently suppressed, it was a monumental challenge to the British. It is said to have cost them more than N$1 billion. The British forces in Kenya were so overwhelmed that they had to seek assistance from MI5 – the British counter-intelligence and security agency. They also brought in troops from Uganda, Tanganyika [present-day Tanzania], Mauritius and Egypt to support their war efforts.SymbolismWaKirima was one of the Mau Mau fighters who fled to the forest. She is the only woman to have climbed the Mau Mau ranks, attaining the rank of field marshal. Two days after independence, she and other leaders were welcomed from the forest by Jomo Kenyatta at the Ruring’u Stadium, where she placed her skinned cloth from the forest near the Kenyan flag. This symbolism has not been adequately explored, even in Kenya.Few years after their return from the forest, particularly in the mid-60s, the relationship between the movement and the Kenyatta government soured. The Mau Mau demanded that government ensure that the masses get the land and freedom they fought for. On 26 January 1965, Mau Mau general Baimungi M’Marete was killed by Kenya security forces.The Mau Mau bemoaned their mistreatment, the general state of politics and governance in postcolonial Kenya. In the forest and during the struggle for freedom and independence, dreadlocks were seen as an identity of the Mau Mau. Dreadlocks were seen as a sacred symbol of defiance against the British colonisers. Because of the relationship with the postcolonial regimes, particularly under Jomo Kenyatta and his successor Arap Moi, the Mau Mau kept their dreadlocks as a form of defiance against the regimes’ failure to keep the promise of freedom, amongst other things.The event of 2 April is to be understood in the above context. WaKirima kept her dreadlocks for 70 years in defiance of both colonial and postcolonial regimes. Does this mean that things are now better in Kenya? What are we to make of the fact that it was Kenyetta’s wife, Ngina, who was called to cut the dreadlocks that will be kept in a museum?Does this have to do with the Kenyatta-Odinga handshake that has created the Azimio La Umoja alliance seeking to install Raila Odinga as Kenya’s president after the 9 August elections?InferencesWhile seeking answers, there are inferences we can make from WaKirima’s symbolism. During my primary school days in Kongola, my favourite teacher taught me the importance of understanding time – there is a beginning and an end. WaKirima teaches us exactly that. The time to fight and time to hand over. The time to keep the dreadlocks and time to cut them off. Her loud, albeit subtle, message is that at 91, her time is nearing the end. It is time for others to emerge. This is one of the reasons that I will henceforth be with you every Tuesday. My weapon will be ideas while my battlefield will be this column. Welcome to Thoughts on Our Society.*Muthoni waKongola is a native of Kongola in the Zambezi Region primarily concerned with analysing society and offering ideas for a better Namibia. She is reachable at wakongola@gmail.com or @wakongola on Twitter.

The symbolism of field marshal Muthoni waKirima

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-27

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The symbolism of field marshal Muthoni waKirima

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Namibian Sun 2025-10-27

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