The Press THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 1955. Brighter Days in Kenya

Press, Volume XCII, Issue 27734, 11 August 1955, Page 12

The Press THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 1955. Brighter Days in Kenya

The march of the Kikuyu women against the Mau Mau dramatises the decline of terrorism in Kenya. Only a small minority of the Kikuyu are now infected by the strange passions that threatened the colony for so long. The surrender of nearly 1000 rebels in response to the recent amnesty offer, and the threat of the confiscation of land, has reduced the number of the Mau Mau still at large to about 3000, scattered in little bands frightened of the police forces but more frightened of punishment for their crimes. These gangs are still, on paper, organised in pseudomilitary formations (with “ commis- “ sioned ” ranks from field-marshal to lieutenant), but they are no longer capable of mounting such operations as the raid on the Naivashi police station, the Lari massacre, and the mass assault on the post at Othaya. They are no longer a menace threatening to corrupt every African in Kenya and : challenging the civilisation that most Africans elsewhere are anxious to enjoy. If the present progress in splitting up terrorist formations and in gaining the confidence of other Kenya tribespeople continues, the Government will soon find the Mau Mau no more than a nuisance. That will be bad enough, because it is one thing to fight actions against organised rebellion, when strong formations can be deployed, and quite another to hunt down a handful of men skulking in the jungle and emerging only to steal cattle and other food. However, if the Mau Mau can be confined to this its membership will waste away in time. The next step is to make Kenya a better place for the Kikuyu and all Africans to live in. The optimism now felt by the Government is shown in the decision to transfer Mr Michael Blundell, the strong man of the white settlers, from the War Council to the Ministry of Agriculture, where he will administer imjportant developments in African farming. Another sign is that Africans are now permitted to organise political parties again, a necessary development if a successful multi-racial society is to be established. Such measures as these were always recognised as necessary; but they have had to wait on the re-establishment of law and order. Perhaps the most important part of the campaign to suppress the Mau Mau secret society was in winning back the Kikuyu who had been forced to take the horrible Mau Mau oaths and whose superstitious adherence to forced pledges was hal'd to overcome. The 8000 women who joined in the recent drive showed that revulsion from the Mau Mau has come more speedily than once seemed possible.