Just found this documentary on Lari Massarce. It actually checkouts with all the oral history I've over the years heard on this matter. There are additional tid bits that I probably missed. Chief luka wa Kahangara had stolen land that was g8ven to kikuyus displace in Tigoni so that mzungus could settle there. My buddy from limuru area has been telling me that most of the people that settled in villages like Ngecha were displaced from Tigoni area and they refused to move to lari. So kahangara went and took most of the land and also became super rich by aligning himself with the British. I was told he was allowed to sell timber that was being farmed in that area. He had married several wives to enjoy his wealth. MAU MAU had debated on how they were going to send a national statement that they meant business. They had chosen two areas of operations for their offensive. NAIROBI Embakasi where the fuel depots were. They wanted to set them on fire and incapacitate colonial govt..2nd choice was Lari. After debate they abandoned nairobi choice as nairobi was still the main mau mau supply line. So they went with lari. Luka was a brute and they wanted to teach him and his loyalists a lesson.
My uncle was a Mau Mau coordinator in Lari. He and others locals were to identify homes to be attacked. MAU MAU war council feared that they local mau mau may chicken out from carrying the massacre. So they ordered murang'a, nyandarua, nyeri and nairobi mau mau cells to join the operation on the fateful day. My dad who was probably around 15 years tells me that the night of the attack every family was instructed to say indoors after 9 pm.. at 9 pm the mau mau started to moving in groups. These were outsiders with probably one local. By midnight there screams everywhere. When he woke up he tells me the sky was light up from the huts set on fire. What was to follow was weeks of torture and massacre. Anyone who had not taken the oath went the day after to get oathed. My uncle was arrested taken to Githunguri charged with murder. The British gave him a pre bargain to denounce mau mau and be set free. He refused ro take the pleasure. My grand mother made trips weekly to plead with him to take the plea he refused. He was hanged and burried with others in kiambu town where Nova park hotel is built
After independence a kikuyu business man bought nova Park. On his may to inspect the renovations he had a fatal accident that wiped his whole family.
I am working on getting the trial records so that I can memorize my Galant uncle that died on his feet than live on his knees
Topic: Oral history is the really potent (Read 431 times)