The Death of Queen Elizabeth II Rekindles Debate Over Africa’s Colonial Past.

Queen Elizabeth’s death prompted an outpouring of official condolences, sadness, and memories of her several visits to Africa during her seven decades on the throne, from Kenya and Nigeria to South Africa and Uganda.
However, the death of the British king reignited a contentious discussion about Africa’s colonial past.

Her murder occurred when European countries were under pressure to confront their colonial histories, atone for past wrongs, and return stolen African artifacts housed in museums in London and Paris for years.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta were among those who expressed sorrow over the death of an “icon.”

However, many Africans focused on the traumas of colonial times, particularly atrocities that occurred during her first decade in power.

Kenya obtained independence from Britain in 1963, following an eight-year insurgency that claimed the lives of at least 10,000 people.

In a contract worth approximately 20 million pounds ($23 million), Britain agreed in 2013 to compensate over 5,000 Kenyans who had suffered maltreatment during the Mau Mau insurrection.

“The Queen leaves a mixed legacy of brutal persecution of Kenyans in their nation and mutually beneficial relationships,” Kenya’s largest newspaper, The Daily Nation, stated in a weekend editorial.

When her father died in 1952, Elizabeth was visiting Kenya, and she became queen.

“A horrific chapter in Kenyan history followed, with atrocities perpetrated against a people whose only sin was to seek freedom.”

“While ties with Britain have been beneficial, past horrors are difficult to ignore.”