Respecting the Forgotten World of Kenya’s Ancestry

One day, about 85 years ago, Mutuku Ing’ati left his home in southern Kenya and was never seen again.

The 30-something Mr Ing’ati has gone missing without explanation – for years his family has sought to try him, lead after lead.

As the decades passed, Mringi’s memories faded. He had no children and many of those close to him had died. But then, almost eight decades later, his name reappeared in British military records.

The Commonwealth War Commission (CWGC), which works to commemorate those who died in the two world wars, contacted the nephew of Mr Ingjamin Mutuku, after mining old documents.

He knew that on the day his uncle left his village, Syamatani, he traveled almost 180km (110 miles) west of Nairobi – the seat of the British Colonial Government then in control of the country.

There, he signed up as a private in the East African Scouts, a British Army regiment that fought in World War I. The UK recruited millions of men from its empire to fight in 20th century conflicts in theaters around the world.

G.ati responded to the call for recruits – when exactly it is not clear – and after 13 June 1943, he was killed in action, according to records that do not exist in the CWGC. Where and how he died is unknown.

Like thousands of Kenyans who fought with the British Army, he died without informing his family and was buried in a location that has not been identified until now.

Decades on, since the UK published a Sunday honoring those who contributed to the war effort, the sacrifices of many Kenyan soldiers, like Mringi, remain unrecognized.

The world knows little of their service and it is not formally celebrated in the manner of their white counterparts.

After all these years, Mr Mutuku was happy to know where his uncle had disappeared to and that he had died. Even though Gr Ing’ati was born in the village, Mr. Mutuku felt a strong connection with his uncle, from whom he took his name.

“I used to ask my father, where is the person I was talking about?” Mr Mutuku, now 67, told the BBC.

Although he welcomed the new information, Mr. Mutuku felt that his uncle’s body was out of this world, and not buried in Syamatani.

His family is from the Akamba ethnic group, which believes that being laid to rest near the family home is very important.

“I never had the chance to see a grave where my uncle was buried,” Mr. Mutuku said. “I would have liked to see that.”

The CWGC is trying to find out where Gr Iy’ati died and where his body is, along with details of other forgotten Kenyan soldiers.

A search is also made for details about East Africans who fought and died during the World War.

With help from the Kenyan defense forces, the CWGC recently restored a treasure trove of rare colonial Kenyan military records from that conflict. As a result the researchers were able to obtain the names and stories of more than 3,000 soldiers who served during that time.

The records, thought to have been destroyed decades ago, concern the king’s African rifles. Consisting of East African soldiers, the regiment fought against German troops in the region, and today’s World War II troops.

“These are not just dusty files – they are personal stories. For many African families, this is the first time they know about Wartime Service,” George Hay, a CWGC historian, told the BBC.

For example, there was George Williams, a decorated Sergeant Major in the Kings of Africa Rifles. Described as 58in (170cm) with a scar on the right side of his mouth, Mr Williams received several medals and was recognized as a first class shot. He died, aged 44, in Mozambique only four months before the end of the war.

There are also records for Abdulla Fadlumulla, a Ugandan soldier who enlisted in the African rifles in 1913 only.

The records show how the wars “touched every fabric of Kenya”, Patrick Abungu, a historian at the CWGC’s Kenya Office, said.

“Because the narrative is, they went and never came back. And now we answer the questions: where did they go and where [their bodies] can,” he added.

The historian wants to answer these questions for thousands of families in Kenya – including his own.

his Great Uncle, Ogoyi Ogunde, was conscripted into the British Army during World War One and has yet to return home.

“It’s very upsetting to lose a loved one and not know where they are,” he told the BBC.

“It doesn’t matter how many years have passed, people will always look at the gate and hope that he will walk one day.”

Mr. Abungu and the CWGC hope to build memorials to eventually celebrate the thousands of soldiers identified from the newly discovered documents.

The organization also wants the records to help inform Kenya’s school curriculum, so that new generations understand the downtrodden, yet ignored world wars.

“The only way around these things is that it doesn’t come from people like me saying, ‘This is your history’,” Mr Hay said.

“It’s about people saying, ‘This is our history’ – and using the materials we work with.”

The CWGC will continue to recover the details of Kenyan individuals who served in the British forces until every fallen soldier is commemorated.

“There is no end date… I mean it could go on for 1,000 years,” Mr Abungu said.

“The process that is taking place is to ensure that the thousands of people who left and never came back … we continue their memories so that we are not forgotten.”