Hi Cyprian et al, Can someone share an image of the cover, or point me to where I may look at it?
Thank you, Venantius J Pinto On Tue, Oct 16, 2018 at 5:50 AM Cyprian Fernandes <[email protected]> wrote: > Pinto: Blood on the British governor’s and Kenyan hands > Pio Gama Pinto, Kenya’s Unsung Martyr 1927-1965 > Edited by Shiraz Durrani > The long-awaited book on Pio Gama Pinto is finally here. It was launched > in Nairobi on > October 16. It is simply just a word or two short of being colossal. > Perhaps, one flaw is that there is too much repetition. > However, I found myself thinking about a gigantic banquet. Your tour guide > is the book’s Editor and he takes you on an almost never-ending safari to > the events, the people, milestones, and most of all the history … with > Pinto in the starring role and the reader will get to know virtually > everything there is to know about him. Sometimes the book is taxing to > read, other times it races along. All time Pinto is never too far from the > reader’s gaze (if only in the mind). The entre is about one of the key > figures of the Kenyan struggle for freedom: Senior Chief Koinange. > Appointed by the colonial government, he surprised them by choosing to > fight for freedom. He was also a man Pinto looked up to. > The other two big influences in Pio’s life were India and Goa. He spent > five years in the latter agitating against the Portuguese. His association > India was far longer because India chose to support the Kenyans’ fight for > freedom and played an important role throughout the emancipation period. > But Goa was never too far from Pinto’s mind, as Fitz De Souza recalls his > talks on his early days in Goa: > “One day during our discussions, Pio suggested that we should do something > in East Africa to assist the liberation of Goa. I was a little surprised > and told him that while I was very sympathetic to the liberation of Goa, > and indeed the rest of the world, I thought as we were East Africans we > should confine our activities to East Africa. We might dissipate our > slender resources and there was also the risk of being misunderstood, even > by our friends. He explained that as a student and a young man in India he > had taken part in the struggle for the liberation of Goa. He had actively > assisted in the formation of the Goa National Congress and escaped from Goa > only when police were searching for him with a warrant to arrest and deport > him to an island of West Africa. It was our duty, he suggested, as > socialists to assist all liberation fronts. Even if we did not consider > ourselves Goans we had names such as De Souza, Pinto, etc. Portuguese > colonialism was as bad as any other.” > The main course, naturally, is Pio Gama Pinto. Durrani does not solve the > mystery of Pio’s assassination but through the words of the various > players, he takes the reader on a guided tour to the assassination and > underlines what we have known for a long time: It was a conspiracy of the > British Government, especially the last Governor of Kenya, Malcolm > MacDonald, and Jomo Kenyatta and his KANU moderates in power. We will never > know exactly who ordered the assassination or who pulled the trigger. That > is the other tragedy that will claw at the heart of anyone who can remember > the assassinations in Kenya, because without closure, no one can rest in > peace either or earth or in the afterlife. Perhaps, there are one or two > people who could offer Kenya the sacrament of closure or will they too take > it to their graves? Just as Njoroge Mungai, James Gichuru, Mbiyu Koinange > and others may have done? > “…the engineers of the neo-colonial Kenya feared him even more than the > colonial authorities did and they had him assassinated.” > There are many voices in this book but few are the so-called KANU > moderates, except of course, the late Joseph Murumbi and the former Deputy > Speaker of the House, Fitz De Souza. But then, they were Pinto’s personal > friends. > Pinto was driven by a single ideal: > Kenya’s Uhuru must not be transformed into freedom to exploit, or freedom > to be hungry, and live in ignorance. Uhuru must be Uhuru for the masses – > Uhuru from exploitation, from ignorance, disease and poverty. The > sacrifices of the hundreds of thousands of Kenya’s freedom fighters must be > honoured by the effective implementation of KANU’s policy – a democratic, > African, socialist state in which the people have the rights, in the words > of the KANU manifesto: “to be free from economic exploitation and social > inequality”. > So there we have it: Moderates on one side and Oginga Odinga and his > socialist supporters on the other. Pio chose the socialists and in doing > that probably signed his death warrant because the moderates feared his > organisational and strategic skills would lead to revolutionary changes in > Kenya unless he was stopped. > Malcolm MacDonald: “I thought if the moderates … came to power in > independent Kenya they would not only be moderate in their national > policies, in economic and social and political affairs, but on the side of > moderation in international affairs, and for example not go Communist and > not come under the influence of any other communist anti-British, > anti-Western power.” > The imperialist manipulation of Kenya’s politics provided the momentum > that ultimately led to the assassination of Pio Gama Pinto, according to > the book. > It was in the corridors of Parliament where Pinto’s fate was sealed. “It > was around Sessional Paper No.10 of 1965: African Socialism and its > implications for Planning in Kenya that the polarisation between Pio and > KANU erupted exacerbated by revelations of misappropriation of funds by the > Kenyatta regime. > “The paper, written by an American Edgar O. Edwards, despite its claims of > socialism was a perfect articulation of how subservient capitalism would be > developed in the post-independence period. It was in opposition to this > text that Pio wrote a counter proposal which, had he not been assassinated, > could very well led, some believe, to the removal of Kenyatta as president > through a vote of confidence and the emergence of Odinga as the new > president.” > Fitz De Souza: “He had falling out with the Powers that Be and he got into > a shouting match with Kenyatta over what was perceived as land grabbing by > those in power. He refused to participate in such things as he was all for > equality.” > There was also the issue about missing money which was given to Government. > Pheroze Nowrojee: “This money was not distributed to these ex-freedom > fighters and ex-detainees for whom it was intended. Instead a few powerful > persons pocketed it. Pio vehemently opposed this. He spoke out against this > betrayal of the freedom struggle. He said he would raise the matter in > Parliament to ensure the sums be paid over to the ex-freedom fighters and > ex-detainees. The powerful persons saw such an exposure as a threat to > their wealth and their positions. They decided to get rid of Pio.” > The money in question was “grants and loans for development, land > settlement, compensation for overseas officers and administration > (12,400,000 pounds) from Britain. > In the final analysis, according to Durrani, “the imperialist manipulation > of Kenya’s politics provided the momentum that ultimately led to the > assassination of Pio Gama Pinto. Thus, the responsibility for this death > lies not only with the Government of Kenya but also with the British > Government whose policy and actions supported the Western-oriented > Government. > “The assassination was part of the overall imperialist plot to ensure > Kenya remained in the capitalist camp managed by the key imperialist powers > USA and Britain.” > As I said this is a huge banquet of Kenya’s emergent history. I hope every > man, woman and child gets to read this some time in their lives. There are > some important lessons to ponder, celebrate some of the men and women who > lived and died in the cause of freedom and to look anew at life as we know > it. > There is an interview with Emma Gama Pinto by Frederick Noronha, and > another by Benegal Pereira. Pio’s late brother Rosario’s memoir is also > featured as are the memories of Angelo Faria. There are also several > contributions by members of the family. > Naturally, this book is a monument to Pio Gama Pinto and his once > socialist ideals for a Kenya without capitalism. Shiraz Durrani, the book > editor, makes no apology for that. > Cyprian Fernandes is a former Chief Reporter of the Nation and knew Pio > Gama Pinto and most of the people mentioned in this book. He is also the > author of Yesterday in Paradise, and Stars Next Door. You can read more of > his stories at www.headlinesofmylife.today > > > >
