Fatshimetry —
In the remote regions of Kenya, the small town of Archer’s Post has been the scene of poignant destinies and profound tragedies that continue to mark the inhabitants, such as that of Marian Pannalossy, a seventeen-year-old girl with a singular destiny. .
Marian, with a light complexion, stands out in an environment where mixed-race people are rare and often rejected. Nicknamed “mzungu maskini”, translated as “poor white girl”, she lives alone in a modest room, regularly feeling the weight of the hurtful words of villagers who urge her to go in search of her supposed British origins.
She believes her father was a British soldier, but she never had the chance to meet him and doesn’t even know his identity. Her story echoes that of many mixed-race children conceived following the rape of their mothers, Kenyan women who denounced the abuses of British soldiers training in the region.
One of the tragedies of these women is that of Lydia Juma, mother of Marian, who recounted in a poignant documentary entitled ‘The Rape of Samburu Women’, her suffering after being raped by a British soldier. Her life changed forever, her partner leaving her following the birth of Marian, rejecting the mixed-race child whose supposed paternity he would not assume.
The moving story of Marian and her mother highlights the divisions and prejudices that persist in these communities where mixed-race children continue to be born. The British army training unit in Kenya is currently under fire, following a series of accusations of abuse, exploitation and even sexual assault from surrounding local populations.
The tragic case of Agnes Wanjiru, a young Kenyan woman found dead in a septic tank after being seen in the company of British soldiers, illustrates the unresolved tensions and conflicts between local communities and foreign armed forces. Despite a Kenyan investigation concluding murder, the British soldier allegedly involved has not been charged, sparking outrage from the victim’s family and the local population.
Recent revelations from the hearings of the Kenyan Defense, Intelligence and External Relations Committee highlight the responsibilities of the British army in these matters and recall the many decades of tensions and accusations of violence and crimes perpetrated by the foreign soldiers in the region.
These harrowing and terrible stories raise profound questions about the protection of vulnerable populations and the accountability of foreign armed forces in the countries where they conduct operations. The need to guarantee justice and prevent all forms of abuse must be at the heart of actions taken at all levels, so that such tragedies do not happen again.