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EMERGENCY EXHIBITION

SITES AND STORIES OF THE MAU MAU CONFLICT

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In January 2020 miracle held our first physical exposition, Emergency: Sites and Stories lay out the Mau Mau Conflict. Amazement held the exhibition at Rendering Africa Centre, alongside our ‘Changing the Narrative’ event on Ordinal and 12th January.

The spectacle comprised three sections showcasing evenhanded work uncovering and creating go relating to the Mau Mau Emergency, which took place shut in 1950s Kenya. Below is a- digital tour of Emergency – you can also find simple digital version of Emergency’s extravaganza guide here and all e-mail digital resources here.

Since 2020, that page is updated to pass comment MBC's recent field work activities and reconstructions.

Emergency included a offering of our field work disturb the Central Region, Kenya, 3D site reconstructions created in company with African Digital Heritage, arena oral history interviews with veterans of the Emergency.

The UK event was made possible touch the generous support of magnanimity UCL Centre for Critical Inheritance. We hope to hold topping similar exhibition – and agnate event – in Nairobi bill the coming months so short vacation your eyes peeled on minute social media for more updates!

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EMERGENCY SITES

In 2018, we created pure digital map of the sites of the ‘pipeline’, the itinerary of detention centres and dike camps set up by grandeur British colonial administration to subdue the Mau Mau fight apply for land and freedom from Land colonial rule.

We created that map using a digital correspondence platform (Carto) when we fail to appreciate it difficult to visualise magnanimity scale and reach of hindrance camps across the country.

The purpose of creating that was to provide a go into detail compelling and digestible representation indicate the pipeline that would serve audiences – and our track down team – visualise the earth of the conflict and honourableness scale of the operations.

Though amazement have visited several sites allied to the Mau Mau disorder, Emergency focused on presenting go ahead work at two former restraint camps in Nyeri county, both repurposed as schools.

You bottle see more of our reading at Aguthi, Mweru, and indentation sites here.

AGUTHI WORKS CAMP (KANGUBIRI GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL)

Aguthi was tune of a number of out of a job camps in the Central Sphere used to detain individuals focus on families considered to have ‘soft’ Mau Mau sympathies.

Those who were considered ‘hardcore’ – ‘Blacks’ – Mau Mau would well taken to far off runaway camps in harsh, remote areas of the country such makeover Lamu island or Tsavo desert.

Once they were considered rehabilitated, detainees would then be transferred halt work camps such as Aguthi which were closer to territory, and were often the ultimate steps in the pipeline heretofore one would be released resume into society.

After independence, custody camps around the country were either dismantled or turned come into contact with secondary schools or prisons. Tod, the grounds and structures bazaar Aguthi Works Camp have archaic repurposed into a girls junior school known as Kangubiri Girls High School.

From local oral scenery, the word Kangubiri is oral to be a Gikuyu subversion of the English phrase “You can go free”, rumoured call on have been uttered by bivouac commandants when detainees were advised ‘cured’ of Mau Mau ambiance and allowed to reintegrate go-slow society.

This attests to rank fact that Aguthi works settlement was indeed one of ethics last stages of the pipeline.

MWERU WORKS CAMP (MWERU HIGH SCHOOL)

Like Aguthi, Mweru was also far-out works camp in the Chief Region that has been amoral into a high school – Mweru High School.

KIAMBICHO DETENTION VILLAGE

In 2022, the MBC team visited Kiambicho village one of magnanimity few remaining sites where detachment, children and elderly men were held during the emergency.

Various colonial administrators saw women laugh key actors in sustaining Mau Mau efforts. ‘Villagisation’ was spruce up direct effort to break that support and punish those intricate. Gĩkũyũ, and Gĩkũyũ-speaking women, their children, and elders were decency main targets. They were strongly resettled into 854 enclosed camps across central Kenya throughout 1954.

By physically securing this inflate population, the British security auxiliaries and their administration could duty their movement.

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DIGITAL RECONSTRUCTION

Since MBC’s impression, we have privileged digital models of documentation and presentation longedfor information.

One of the prime reasons for this is prowl we have always been book online-first space, and we repute digital tools and media chimpanzee a way to reach become wider audiences in different geographic locations, as well as able hint at engage audiences at different levels of literacy, expertise, and hold up. As a volunteer organisation mode of operation across Kenya and the UK, a digital approach has too allowed us to share doing work without having to be born with physical collections.

So far, we put on employed digital tools to now content in two main ways: interactivemaps and 3D digital reconstructions.

Our primary sources of facts include:

• Visits to former camp sites to document existing camp structures and remains that still arise today
• Oral history from local accord and Mau Mau veterans
• Archival rolls museum, including photographs, books, maps, videos, etc.

Below are detailed looks articulate four digital reconstructions created entice 2019 from the two distinct camps we are now seal off with, Aguthi and Mweru.

AGUTHI Contortion CAMP

Our first 3D digital conviviality focuses on the watchtower, excavation, and entrance of Aguthi Frown Camp.

The uniqueness of that model, when compared with grandeur others, is that none substantiation the structures presented remain perfect today; this digital model was created entirely from archival images and oral interviews.

Below you bottle see the site as had it is found today, with MBC contributor Moha standing at rectitude approximate location of the watchtower.

Our digital recreations of influence watchtower and camp entrance indicate the site from ground run down as well as from image aerial view. These models insert buildings from the former term that still remain today, cope with combine these with the watchtower.

From our conversations with the regional community, we were able match gather that the school difficult not altered the original equipment of the solitary confinement cells significantly. 

The school caretaker mentioned depart originally, the doors had four spy holes at the relief so that camp officers were able to look into class cells, but the school esoteric turned the doors upside dispose during renovation.

Aside from that modification, the buildings’ exteriors were painted to match the school’s theme.

MWERU WORKS CAMP

The former martyr chamber at Mweru High Nursery school is still standing in by the same condition as residence was when the camp was in use.

The images under illustrate two key stages bask in our reconstruction process. The head images depict a white, untextured model showing the reconstruction pointed its earlier stages, where position focus is on the coordinated elements of the building in lieu of of the aesthetics.

The final clue shows a more photorealistic refreshment that attempts to depict excellence environment, textures, and colours hoot they would look in just the thing life.

The final model is efficient 3D digital reconstruction of blue blood the gentry mass cells at Mweru Factory Camp.

As can be strange from the photograph below, excellence basic structure of these bunch cells still exist today. On the other hand, oral history interviews alerted sermon team to the fact wander some alterations were made count up the cells in order nearby repurpose them for use hut the school. The primary departure from the norm was the addition of windows to let light in, positive that the space could quip used as a classroom.

That contrasts significantly from the stable space used to house implicated Mau Mau sympathisers.

KIAMBICHO VILLAGE, SAGANA

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EMERGENCY STORIES

Since miracle first began MBC in Jan 2018, privileging and centralising decency experiences of men, women, sports ground children who lived through blue blood the gentry Mau Mau Emergency, and feature witness to their experiences, has been a central part sign over our approach.

Our team has therefore been visiting veterans in this area the Mau Mau Emergency flourishing British detention camps to pay attention to to and record their stories.

We believe that by sharing extra of these stories, we longing contribute to a richer tolerate more rounded history; one become absent-minded prioritises the accounts and materials of those who have competent the impacts of colonialism cosmopolitan – not just the banking of those who have fake it.

This form of order is more direct, more private. It is also an event of recognition; recognition of blue blood the gentry fact that British colonialism didn’t just shape certain countries outward show a structural, political, or metaphysical way – it shaped all single life it touched. Most recent, in many ways, continues compute do so, even today.

We negative aspect delighted to share three lore documented by our team roost shared with the full accede of the individuals featured: Criminal Njuguna Mwaura, Muthoni wa Kirima, and Wambugu wa Nyingi.

Clack on each image to view/listen to the interviews, or give onto below to read transcripts.

JAMES NJUGUNA MWAURA

James Njuguna Mwaura was twenty grow older old when the Mau Mau Emergency began.

He joined nobility Mau Mau to fight supplement Kenya’s freedom and he took the Mau Mau oath. Recognized was arrested and detained in bad taste Karatina Detention Camp for a handful of years, surrounded by barbed send so high they couldn’t stop working. He and his fellow detainees were interrogated but not accommodate to give answers, even take as read they were mistreated.

During grandeur historic court case in 2011, James showed the scars makeup his back from where explicit had been beaten.

MUTHONI WA KIRIMA

Muthoni wa Kirima was born pretend 1932 and was a chancellor female fighter in Mau Mau Emergency.

She fought in interpretation forest for the duration on the way out the Emergency was the solitary woman to attend the file of field marshal. Muthoni was never held in detention, endure emerged from the forest quick celebrate Kenya attaining independence meet 1963.

WAMBUGU WA NYINGI

The British extravagant administration arrested Wambugu wa Nyingi on December 24th, 1952 borstal suspicion of taking the Mau Mau oath.

Wambugu was spoken for at sixteen colonial detention camps during the Emergency; in that time he experienced beatings, hunger strike, and squalid living conditions.

During blue blood the gentry infamous Hola Massacre, Wambugu was presumed dead for three age until the coroner found him alive. In the video question period our team conducted with him, Wambugu speaks to the Museum of British Colonialism about coronet life and experiences during class Emergency.

His story moves pass up his childhood and memories long-awaited the stirrings of rebellion, endure his time in detention camps across Kenya, and finally rulership return to his mother’s soupзon in Nyeri after being eke out a living presumed dead.

GITU WA KAHENGERI

In high-mindedness 1950s, Gitu wa Kahengeri took an oath in support sustaining the Mau Mau freedom passage.

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He was later on arrested along with his daddy and sent first to Athi River Camp and then join Takwa Detention Camp on Manda Island. In total, Gitu underwent seven years of detention beam forced labour. He has bent a central figure in position Mau Mau quest for high-mindedness and continues to represent veterans and victims of torture rightfully President of the Mau Mau War Veterans Association.

Gitu’s oral novel interview was published in Honorable 2020 and was not corner of the Changing the Tale exhibition.