Kenyans to sue for uprising 'abuse'

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Veterans of the Mau Mau revolt, which led to a series of bloody battles between Kenyan nationalists and British forces throughout the 1950s, have travelled to the UK to make their claim in person.

A delegation of 16 Kenyans, accompanied by their lawyers and representatives of the Kenyan Human Right Commission, will issue their claim at the Royal Courts of Justice.

The group's UK lawyers, Leigh Day & Co, say that thousands of Kenyans allege that they were assaulted, tortured and illegally detained for years during the brutal repression of the independence movement.

They say that the claims are test cases and if they are successful, they could open the way for the Government to make wider reparations to those who claim they were mistreated.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: "We understand the strong feelings that the Mau Mau issue still creates in Kenya and elsewhere. It remains a deeply divisive issue within Kenya and which historians continue to debate.

"The emergency period caused a great deal of pain for many on all sides, and marred progress towards independence. It was regrettable this was not achieved without violence.

"We have been aware for some time of the intention of some members of the Mau Mau, supported by UK solicitors and the Kenya Human Rights Commission to bring legal action against the UK Government for alleged abuses during the emergency period.

"It is, of course, right that those who feel they have a case are free to take it to the courts. But as we have previously indicated to the solicitors, we expect to contest the cases on questions around liability and limitations.

"Because of the prospect of legal action, and without seeing the detail of this, it would not be right to comment further on the particular aspects of this case."