And Miles to Go Before I Sleep by Hugh Cran

Author:Hugh Cran [Hugh Cran]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781906122720
Publisher: Merlin Unwin Books Limited
Published: 2014-01-03T16:00:00+00:00

Meanwhile in the country at large, disturbing rumours were on everyone’s lips of a return to the bestial practices of the days of Mau Mau, of large numbers of people travelling at night to Gatundu, the President’s home, to swear loyalty to the House of Mumbi – the female founder of the Kikuyu tribe – of people being forcibly dragged from their homes and beaten up for refusing to participate in ‘oathing’ ceremonies.

Then in October 1969 President Jomo Kenyatta visited Kisumu to open a Russian-funded hospital. While there, stones were thrown. The presidential bodyguard opened fire, killing at least ten people and wounding many others.

The result was a general tightening up of security and the immediate installation of police and army roadblocks at various strategic points.

With the passage of time, these became permanent features of the Kenyan road system, a daily irritant to the law-abiding motorist.

Shortly after the Kisumu catastrophe however, it could be disconcerting to be stopped at one of these roadblocks, especially at night. Metal spikes barred the traveller’s progress. Identification would be demanded by armed gendarmerie, whose attitude ranged from bluff bonhomie to sullen truculence and surly suspicion. I would be ordered to get out of the car and open the boot. This invariably evoked cries of consternation as its contents were revealed: drugs, bottles, ropes, knives, instruments. Further proof of identity would be demanded, more explanations required. In the ditch a few feet away, soldiers crouched over machine guns glared aggressively at me. Finally, after an interminable delay, I would be allowed to carry on my way

‘You may proceed.’

‘Thank you, officer!’

After a while things settled down to an uneasy calm. The surface was smooth, but unseen currents and eddies swirled and boiled in the hidden depths.

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