Koigi wamwere biography of martin

Biography

Koigi wa Wamwere is one of Kenya’s best-known political prisoners. Author of several books, plays, and poetry, wa Wamwere was born to a poor family in a forest community, did well in school, and was awarded a scholarship to study at Cornell University, where he graduated in 1973. He returned to Kenya to work for democratic reforms, running for parliament in 1974, until his criticism of the Kenyan president and his government led to wa Wamwere’s arrest in 1975. He was held with no charges, no judge, and no jury for three years. Released in December 1978, in 1979 he again ran for parliament and won. He served a poor rural district for the next three years. From August 1982 until December 1984, wa Wamwere was again held in prison without charges. In June 1986, he sought exile in Norway. On a visit to Uganda in 1990, Kenya’s security forces crossed the international border, kidnapped wa Wamwere and detained him until 1993. Again he fled into exile. And again he returned to Kenya, where this time he was arrested on trumped-up charges that carried the death penalty. He was released on December 13, 1996, after domestic and international pressure on the government, to seek a treatment abroad for a heart condition. Wa Wamwere received a show trial and was sentenced in 1995 to four years in prison and six lashes with a cane. His lifetime of unrelenting activism for democracy and nonviolence has meant detention, torture, and imprisonment for much of his adult life. He has emerged from those experiences with a wisdom and a sense of peace almost beyond imagination. He later served as a member of the Kenyan Parliament from 2002 to 2007.

Interview

Human rights work is actually a struggle to preserve life, one I have been involved in for a long time. Consciously, I got involved in the struggle for human rights as a struggle for democratic rights, since initially I saw human rights as the cornerstone of democratic freedoms.

As a student at Cornell University in

PERSONAL: Born 1949, in Rugongo, Nakuru Province, Kenya; son of Wamwere Kuria (a forest officer) and Monica Wangu. Education: Attended Cornell University (hotel administration), 1971.

ADDRESSES: Agent—c/o Author Mail, Seven Stories Press, 140 Watts St., New York, NY 10013.

CAREER: Writer and human rights activist. Barclays Bank, Nakuru, Kenya, bank clerk, 1970-71; Jogoo Commercial College, teacher, 1973-74; elected to Kenyan parliament, 1979-82. Africonsult ACT: The African Consulting Team on the Use of African Culture in the Fight against Aids, East African regional coordinator; National Democratic and Human Rights Organization, Ndehurio, Kenya, executive director.

WRITINGS:

A Woman Reborn, Spear Books (Nairobi, Kenya), 1980.

The People's Representative and the Tyrants, or Kenya, Independence without Freedom, New Concept Typesetters (Nairobi, Kenya), 1992.

Dream of Freedom (novel), Views Media (Nairobi, Kenya), 1997.

Justice on Trial: The Koigi Case, Views Media (Nairobi, Kenya), 1997.

I Refuse to Die: My Journey for Freedom, foreword by Kerry Kennedy Cuomo and Nan Richardson, Seven Stories Press (New York, NY), 2002.

SIDELIGHTS: When Kenyan human rights activist Koigi wa Wamwere was born in 1949, his country was still a British colony. While attending Cornell University, Wamwere was inspired by American civil rights activists, including Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and John F. Kennedy. He carried their fire for freedom back to his country, where he dedicated himself to the causes of political reform, democracy, freedom from oppression, and open elections. For his efforts, Wamwere spent more than thirteen years in prison, suffering torture and other abuses over several decades, under both President Jomo Kenyatta and dictator Daniel arap Moi. He is often compared to Nelson Mandela of South Africa because of his relentless struggles on behalf of the Kenyan people.

His first arrest occurred whe

Koigi wa Wamwere (født 18. desember1949) er en kenyansk politiker, journalist og forfatter. Han er født i Bahati i Nakuru-distriktet, og ble kjent for sin opposisjon mot både Jomo Kenyatta og Daniel arap Moi sine regimer. Begge disse sendte ham i arrest. Siden 1972 har Wamwere vært i arrest av regjeringen fire ganger, siste gang i 1993, og har sittet til sammen 13 år i fengsel.

Oppvekst

Da Wamwere ble født var Kenya fortsatt en britiskkoloni. Han har dermed selv opplevd frigjøringen fra Storbritannia. Etter endt skolegang jobbet han som lærer, og senere bankfunksjonær. Han hadde fattige foreldre som ikke eide egen jord.

Politisk karriere

Wamwere studerte ved Cornell University i USA på begynnelsen av 1970-tallet, og der ble han interessert i politikk, blant annet ved å lese bøker og høre taler av andre frigjøringsforkjempere som Martin Luther King jr., Malcolm X og John Kennedy.

Allerede da han kom tilbake til Kenya i 1972 for å kjempe for ønkonomiske reformer der, kritiserte han offentlig Kenyas dårlige historikk på menneskerettigheter, og kjempet for de mange eiendomsløse kenyanerne. På midten av 70-tallet var han satt i arrest av Kenyatta. I desember 1978, etter Kenyattas død, satte den nye presidenten Moi Wamwere fri, sammen med Ngugi wa Thiong'o og Martin Shikuku. Han ble valgt inn i parlamentet i 1979 ved å vinne Nakuru North valgkrets der han representerte KANU, det eneste lovlige partiet den gang. Han gikk da sammen med andre radikale og sosialistiske politikere som nedsettende ble kalt "Seven Sisters Bearded" av Charles Njonjo. Andre medlemmer var Abuya Abuya, James Orengo, Chelagat Mutai, Chibule wa Tsuma, Mwashengu wa Mwachofi og Lawrence Sifuna. Han satt etter dette i parlamentet i tre år.

Wamwere var en av flere opposisjonelle som ble satt i arrest av president Moi etter det kenyanske kuppforsøket i 1

Charles Kuria wa Wamwere, the brother of detained writer, human rights activist and former Member of Parliament Koigi wa Wamwere, has been admitted to the Nairobi Hospital after falling ill at the Kamiti Maximum Security Prison, their mother said on 26 October 1996. Their mother, Monica Wangu Wamwere, also said that Koigi wa Wamwere’s health […]

Charles Kuria wa Wamwere, the brother of detained writer, human
rights activist and former Member of Parliament Koigi wa Wamwere,
has been admitted to the Nairobi Hospital after falling ill at the
Kamiti Maximum Security Prison, their mother said on 26 October
1996. Their mother, Monica Wangu Wamwere, also said that Koigi wa
Wamwere’s health has deteriorated for lack of proper treatment in
prison.

**Updates IFEX alerts dated 14, 9, 8 October, 5 September,
26 July, 14 February 1996 and others**

She was unsure about Charles Kuria wa Wamwere’s date of admission.
She said he had contracted typhoid at Kamiti last year and that
she had been buying drugs for him.

Monica Wangu Wamwere said that she went to Kamiti Prison on 9 and
10 October to see her sons after learning that they were ailing,
but was denied access to them by the prison authorities.

Background Information