Stateless: Nubians pain in long fight for recognition

That they were brought to the country over 100 years ago, played a significant role in the struggle for independence, then settled in Kenya but still remain unrecognised as a tribe in the only place they call home, is something that pierces the hearts of Nubians to the core.

Despite having a title deed issued for some 288 acres of land in Kibra Nairobi granted to them by former President Uhuru Kenyatta in June 2017, their problems are just getting harder.

“Ultimately, we have found justice for you and I am very proud…You have lived in Kibra for many years without knowing whether you will continue living in your home the next day but that problem is over,” President Kenyatta said in 2017 while handing the title deed to the late Sheikh Issa Adulfaraj, the then chairperson of the Kenyan Nubian Council of Elders.

But now, the government has created a taskforce of 17 members from the Nubian community and 27 from different State offices to map out the same land for affordable housing project.

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“This is a ploy to kick us out of our land and bring government projects here. This project will leave us homeless and tenants on our own land,” Shafi Ali Hussein, the Executive Director of the Nubian Rights Forum (NRF) said.

In Kisumu, the members of the community are in camps, even after a court order given on February 17, 2022, showing they were wrongfully evicted from their land.

Their forefathers were forcefully conscripted into the colonial British Army in the early 1900s when Sudan was under British rule. They were part of the King’s African Rifles, (KAR) popularly known askaris, and were deployed to various parts of the then British-East Africa, including the present day Kenya.

Their role, was to assist the British military expeditions and later on, in the First and Second World Wars.

But unlike their Indian counterparts who were brought in for railway construction and were later on recognised as a tribe in Kenya, the Nubians still remain stateless. As such, the process of acquiring an ID, the crucial document proving citizenship is an uphill task that has denied many several opportunities for advancement in their lives.

“Without and ID in Kenya, you cannot buy land, you cannot register business, you cannot register a SIM card. You are as good as dead,” Mr Hussein said.

The NRF boss wonders why Nubians, despite being raised up in Kenya for the last century, are yet to be recognised as a tribe in Kenya.

The major argument has been that since the Nubians had no ancestral land within Kenya, they could not be granted Kenyan citizenship.

“How is this line of thought even logical? If this is the reason for us being denied citizenship, why then, would the Makonde, the Pemba, be granted citizenship?” he posed.

In tens, disgruntled members of the Nubian community flock at Mr Hussein’s office in Kibra seeking assistance. Their problems range from challenges in acquiring the ID, land issues, (several Nubians have land, but cannot obtain documents to prove ownership because they lack IDs).

For the school-going learners, missing out on government scholarships, has become a norm. The simple reason being they did not have an ID when applying and therefore miss out on privileges such as the Higher Education Loans Board (Helb) . This is the case for Mwanaisha Kidega, currently a second year student at Mawego Polytechnic, in Homa Bay County.

The Nation caught up with her at her makeshift home at Kunya Camp, Kibos in Kisumu County where she, alongside several other teenagers and children, sleep in an iron-sheet make shift dormitory after their houses at Kibos Nubian Village were demolished three years ago by Kenya Railways. The Railways claimed the land ownership.

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NRF went to court; the Railways was found at fault and now, the community awaits the court’s determination of the compensation.

“This court orders that the petitioners are entitled to the full protection from discrimination which right was violated by Kenya Railways ...the petitioners are entitled to full compensation for the loss suffered during and after the illegal demolition of their structures,” the court ruled in February 2022.

Taaban Khamis, representative of NRF in Kibos, lost his three-bedroom house in the ordeal.

“Being a Nubian is an offence in Kenya. Obtaining an ID is a problem, yet we are Kenyans who were born, raised, studied and married here in Kenya. We are taxpayers too,” he said.

His sentiments were shared by Abdul Rahman Mohamed who is a coordinator of the Nubian community in Kibos. He too, lost a three-bedroom house, after saving religiously while working in Saudi Arabia for 13 years.

“Whenever our children complete their secondary school studies and want to apply for the IDs, everyone feels the stress. We have to start seeking for their parents IDs, copies of title deeds for those who families have, then seek affidavits from advocates, before we head for the application. It is very hectic,” he said.

Then after all this struggle, the long wait begins.

“At times, we wait for close to two years before the ID comes out. Now tell me, how many employment as well as academic opportunities can pass you by in these two years? !” Hassan Sharif, the chairperson of the Nubian Community in Kisii, said.

Ismail Hassan, the chairperson of the Kisii Nubian mosque also revealed that most of the Nubians in Kisii have land leases and not title deeds. Interestingly, the natives have been encroaching their land.

But with their tribe not being recognised, Nubians applying for government jobs at the E-citizen digital platform often have nowhere to insert their tribe as it is not listed in the portal.

“We feel betrayed, deeply, by both the colonial government and the post-independence governments for their failure to give us what we deserve. We are Kenyans, we have been here for over a century, but have very little to show for it,” he said.

• In the next series, we delve deeper into how the Nubians found themselves in Kenya and why it was not easy to go back to their home country — Sudan

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