Jomo Kenyatta's Rally for Independence

In an impassioned, assertive speech, Kenyatta, as the KAU president, outlines the principles upon which Kenya should be built.  When Kenyatta had delivered “We Want Self-Government” in 1952, he had already been released from his imprisonment following the Mau Mau rebellion and had become the leader of the KAU party.  In a somewhat predictable attempt to gain followers (and therefore diminish any skepticism and opposition against the KAU), Kenyatta proclaims that his party is vital to the success of Africans in Kenya.  He promises democracy at a small price: unification and support of the KAU.  This statement faintly reveals Kenyatta’s benign authoritarianism and suggests the presence of what Otto von Bismarck called Realpolitik, which emphasized power-based politics and practicality over supposed ethics. 

Kenyatta’s connection between the KAU and democracy prompt his explanation of the democratic reforms he promises, stating, “True democracy has no color distinction. It does not choose between black and white. We are here in this tremendous gathering under the K.A.U. flag to find which road leads us from darkness into democracy.”[1]  This line was probably intended to touch a sensitive nerve within the Kenyans who had been racially oppressed for years by Europeans before their independence.  He states that the first principle of democracy is the ability of Africans to elect their own representatives, and perhaps attempts to ignite a flame of anger and desire for redemption in his listeners by stating, “We are the only race in Kenya which does not elect its own representatives in the Legislature, and we are going to set about to rectify this situation. We feel we are dominated by a handful of others who refuse to be just. God said this is our land.”[2] 

Kenyatta emphasizes justice and equality by asserting that achieving equal pay for work is necessary for Kenya’s prosperity: “Whether it is a chief, headman or laborer he needs in these days increased salary. He needs a salary that compares with a salary of a European who does equal work. We will never get our freedom unless we succeed in this issue. We do not want equal pay for equal work tomorrow—we want it right now…It has never been known in history that a country prospers without equality.”[3]  Kenyatta’s juxtaposition of his goals and his anger at the British (which therefore is intended to incite his audience) is evident throughout the speech.  For example, after his lecture on equality, he calls the Europeans “fools” and says, “Those people are wrecking our chances of advancement. They will prevent us getting freedom,” yet he assures the audience that the KAU does not approve of violence and weapon use, comparable to Gandhi’s principles.[4]  The Kenyans had a word to summarize Kenyatta’s method of winning independence: Harambee, which means “coming together”[5].  Perhaps Kenyatta’s most significant statement is his mentioning of Harambee; it is his simple proposal of how he plans to win independence from Kenya’s colonizers: “If we work together as one, we must succeed.”[6]

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[1] Kenyatta, Jomo. "'We Want Self-Government'." Kenyatta, Jomo. "The Kenya African Union Is Not the Mau Mau." In Sessional Paper No. 5, The Origins and Growth of Mau Mau, 1959–1960, edited by F. D. Corfield. Nairobi: Government Printing Office, 1960. Modern World History Online. Facts On File, Inc. <http://www.fofweb.com>.  Accessed May 10, 2013.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Davis, R. Hunt, ed. "Kenya, post-independence." Encyclopedia of African History and Culture: Independent Africa (1960 to Present), vol. 5. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Modern World History Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com

[6] Kenyatta, Jomo. "'We Want Self-Government'."