The Nubis of Kibera : a Social History of the Nubians and Kibera Slums Smedt, J.V.A
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The Nubis of Kibera : a social history of the Nubians and Kibera slums Smedt, J.V.A. de Citation Smedt, J. V. A. de. (2011, May 12). The Nubis of Kibera : a social history of the Nubians and Kibera slums. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/17638 Version: Corrected Publisher’s Version Licence agreement concerning inclusion of doctoral License: thesis in the Institutional Repository of the University of Leiden Downloaded from: https://hdl.handle.net/1887/17638 Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). The Nubis of Kibera: a social history of the Nubians and Kibera slums. Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden, op gezag van Rector Magnificus prof.mr. P.F. van der Heijden, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op donderdag 12 mei 2011 klokke 16:15 uur door Johan Victor Adriaan de Smedt geboren te Utrecht in 1959 Promotiecommissie Promotor: Prof.dr. R.J. Ross Co-promotor: Dr. J.K. van Donge (Afrika-Studiecentrum, Leiden) Overige leden: Prof.dr. J. Willis (University of Durham) Prof.dr. M. de Bruijn Prof.dr. M.P.G.M. Mous Dr. F. Huijzendveld (Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam) Table of contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... 6 Glossary ..................................................................................................................... 7 Introduction .............................................................................................................10 1 On the origin of the Nubis of Kibera.....................................................................27 2 From shamba to slum – a history of Kibera .........................................................61 3 The ‘making’ of the Nubis – on ethnic identity ..................................................118 4 “Kill me quick” – a history of Nubian gin in Kibera .............................................144 5 “No Raila, no peace!” – post-election violence in Kibera ...................................188 6 Conclusion – future perspectives of Kibera and the Nubis ................................226 Appendix A ............................................................................................................246 Appendix B ............................................................................................................256 Appendix C ............................................................................................................264 Bibliography ...........................................................................................................265 Curriculum Vitae ....................................................................................................284 Acknowledgements First of all I would like to thank the people in Kibera that gave me their, sometimes precious, time to answer my many questions. Though many people contributed to this thesis, some deserve special mention (in random order): the late Mzee Yunis Ali (former MP), the late Mzee Hussein Juma Liba, the late habooba Ajiba Juma, the late habooba Maze Gabail, Mzee Makhado (Ali Yusuf), Mzee Ali Bala, Mzee Musa Ahmed, Ibrahim Amber, Abdelaziz Hussein, Yusuf Ibrahim Diab (Mengo), Husna Khamis, Halima Hussein (Mama Arus), Nila Titus Manene, Zainab and Saliha Osman, and James Robert Nderi. This thesis could not have been written without the support, feedback and friendship of Abubakr Sebit (Jack Ruby), the late Abubakr Yusuf (Kachui), Jamaldin Yahya (Duke), the late Mohamed Ramadhan Faraj (Munduku) and Simon Njuguna Mungai, who have been extremely helpful in reconstructing the history of Kibera in all its aspects. A number of people have assisted me with interviews and translations, some of them walking many kilometres with me through the dust or mud of Kibera: Zaid Ibrahim (from Lindi), Francis Ochieng aka „Ochi‟ (Kianda), Halima Abubakr (Makina), Abdulhaneen Abubakr (Makina), Yusuf Osman Ahmed Koor (Kianda), Siama Yusuf (Ayany) and Sofia Abdi (Kambi). I benefited much from the helpful comments on drafts of chapters and articles: David Clark (chapter 2 „From shamba to slum‟), Justin Willis (chapter 4 „Kill me quick‟), Rita Abrahamsen (chapter 5 „No Raila, no peace‟), and several anonymous reviewers of my articles in African Affairs, the International Journal of African Historical Studies and of the BIEA grant commission. Thanks also to the members of the PhD committee for their constructive comments on the manuscript of the thesis. Lastly I thank Mila for supporting me during the research and the writing up, and for feeding me.... 6 Glossary Askari Soldier, policeman, watchman (Swahili) Bazinqir A trader‟s „army‟ of armed Arab servants and soldiers (Arabic) Boma Compound, military camp (Swahili) Busaa locally produced maize beer Chang‟aa Locally distilled alcohol DC District Commissioner Debe Large tin of 17-20 litres. DO District Officer Dholuka Traditional Nubi dance. FGC Female Genital Cutting Gurbaba Traditional colourful skirt-like garment of Nubi womeHn Habooba Grandmother (Kinubi) Haraam Forbidden (by Islam) Halaal Allowed (by Islam) Jellaba Petty, itinerant trader (Arabic) Jenga yangu, jenga yako “build mine, build yours” (Swahili) 7 Jihadiya Egyptian army of black slaves (Arabic) Kangara Locally produced beer Kanzu Long Muslim dress (for men) KAR King‟s African Rifles, the British colonial army in East Africa KENSUP Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme Kibra Forest, bushy area (Kinubi) Kinubi Native language of the Nubis KLC Kibera Land Committee Ksh. Kenyan Shilling (national currency of Kenya). Labi Original meaning: “slave” (Juba Arabic). Refers (in Kinubi) to every „non-Nubi‟ (derogatory). Mzee Elder. Respectful term of address / reference for “old man” (Swahili). Plural: wazee. Mzee wa Kijiji Village elder (Swahili) MP Member of Parliament Muna Fermented (fermenting) brew, to be used for distillation NCC Nairobi City Council NGO Non-Governmental Organisation 8 Pipa Oil drum of 200 litres (used for fermentation) PC Provincial Commissioner PoW Prisoner of war Shamba Farm, field for agriculture (Swahili) Shayba Elder (Kinubi) Uhuru Independence, lit. freedom (Swahili) Waragi Nubian gin (Kinubi, Arabic) Zariba Camp / village fortified with palisade or thorn fence, southern Sudan (Arabic) 9 Introduction In the early twentieth century the East Africa Protectorate‟s army administration allowed its “Nubian” ex-soldiers and their families to settle on a military exercise ground near Nairobi. Today that military area is a sprawling slum called Kibera, with hundreds of thousands of people packed in an area of 550 acres, where the descendants of these ex-soldiers form only a small minority. They distinguish themselves from the other people by religion, language, food and dress code. And they still claim to be the only and rightful “owners” of Kibera, given to them as their pension after retirement from the British colonial army. This thesis is about this particular group of „Nubians‟, and their „homeland‟, Kibera. It will follow the Nubians from their creation in the late nineteenth century in southern Sudan, through their „migration‟ into East Africa, settling in Nairobi, and through the transformation of Kibera from rural area to slum, up to today, the beginning of the third millennium. The name “Nubian” is confusing, though: these “East African Nubians” have little to do with the ancient Nubian civilisation of northern Sudan1; their origin lies mainly in the („primitive‟) tribes of southern Sudan, northern Uganda and eastern Congo. To avoid confusion with the northern Sudanese Nubians, it makes sense to use the term that the “East African Nubians” use to refer to themselves, which is “Nubi”.2 All over East Africa one can find these Nubi communities; they are essentially „recent immigrants‟, descendants of (slave) soldiers of the Egyptian army in southern Sudan, that were cut off from the rest of the army after the fall of Khartoum in 1885; they were then recruited into the British and German East African colonial armies and moved out of Sudan into East Africa. In those days, retired and demobilised soldiers were allowed to settle around the military barracks or garrison towns – they were allocated land to build a house and to cultivate. In this way „Nubian‟ villages were established in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. Most of these villages still exist, but the Nubi communities have developed differently in these three 1 Many (East African) Nubians seem to believe this, though; see for example the booklet „The Nubian culture‟ (no date) by Ibrahim Kirsonaka, a Nubian from Uganda, or the website of the Nubian Cultural Information Center in Kampala: http://www.nubiancenter.org/ourhistory.html (16/05/2010). 2 The term “Nubi” was also used in many official colonial documents. See also Hansen: 564. 10 East African countries. In Tanzania the Nubis have more or less disappeared, assimilated into the Muslim culture of their new homeland. In Uganda they have gone through an episode of turmoil during Idi Amin‟s stint in power – due to the Nubis‟ close link to the centre of power, many people changed their identity: “becoming Nubi” was almost as easy as putting on another hat. After Amin went into exile, many Nubis fled the country. In Kenya the Nubi identity appears to be under pressure as well, due to increased contact and intermarriage with people of other ethnic groups; many Nubis in Kibera fear that the Nubi identity could disappear in a few generations, as Kibera