Kenya’s Colonial Camp

This chapter examines the impact of Kenya’s colonial camp. It explores the intersection of three histographies: the British colonial period from 1895 to 1962; the post-independence period from 1963 to 1990, considered a ‘golden age’ for refugees as many of Africa’s refugees were products of decolonisation wars; and the encampment period from 1991 to the present which witnessed the collapse of the institution of asylum in Kenya. The chapter adds to the undeservedly small number of literatures on the history of refugees in Africa during the colonial period. Central to this chapter is the examination of the history of Kenya’s colonial camp which remains entirely hidden from public view as the British destroyed almost all official records of its colonial administration which Caroline Elkins calls ‘British Gulag in Kenya’, due to similarities with the Nazi camp. It is through this historical precedent that this chapter creates the context for a critical examination of refugee colonial continuity in Kenya and Africa by extension. A review of the Kenya’s situation is important as it provides an important information for seeking global effort in the fight to abolish the camp.