The dark side of Kenya's new 'major non-NATO ally' status

One of the apparent wins from President William Ruto’s visit to the United States is that Kenya has now been designated as a major non-NATO ally (MNNA). The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, comprised of key Western nations, is well-known for protecting its interests in various regions. Hence, Kenya’s new status as an MNNA, which is a first for a country in sub-Saharan Africa, will ensure that the United States (US) and its allies protect their interests in the larger Eastern African region.

It cannot also be ignored that the US seeks to have its interests protected due to latent fears that Russia and China are taking over the continent both economically and militarily. The US has for some time now expressed distress at the military stronghold that Russia holds in West Africa, as well as the economic stronghold that China holds over nearly the entire continent. But it cannot be avoided that, in allying with the US, Kenya is allowing itself to be used to fight the literal and figurative wars that the US wages.

This agreement comes about at an interesting moment when Kenya is currently holding a public inquiry against the British military for offences that it has committed in the country. The British, compared to the Americans, have had a hold in the region for quite some time, and one of the unfortunate consequences of this is that civilians have had to endure the ills of the military in the form of gross human rights violations. Aside from multiple unwanted pregnancies, many of which are the result of sexual abuse, the BBC reports that Britain’s Training Mission in Kenya is being accused by thousands of persons “among them are the family of a young woman allegedly disabled in a hit-and-run by a British Army truck, a mother who says she was abandoned when pregnant and a man who was mauled by a lion in the wake of fires allegedly started on an army training exercise.”

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Perhaps the most prominent case arising from the actions of the British Army in Nanyuki is that of Agnes Wanjiru who was murdered in 2012 by members of the army under unclear circumstances. The perpetrators, who were set to be extradited to the United Kingdom for prosecution, are yet to be held accountable for their actions.

In light of these prescient facts, Kenya ought to be more careful before allowing further military presence by imperial powers onto its land. As much as the government may consider the move to be a win for them, ultimately the effects on Kenyans and the environment are dire. Kenya must be aware of the difficulties of prosecuting nationals of the US should they commit a crime on local soil. This difficulty in prosecution adds to the impunity of the soldiers themselves, as has been witnessed in places like Abu Ghraib where American soldiers callously assaulted and took photos while violating Iraqi prisoners.

Kenya must also consider the larger history behind America’s military offensives around the globe. Already, we are being utilised as the guard dogs of the US by sending our police to Haiti, whose political situation does not exist within a vacuum. Haiti is the first former slave colony in the world to have fought for and attained its freedom, and this fact has deprived it from achieving true peace ever since, as the US and other powers work towards permanently destabilising the country. By inserting itself into this complex political situation, Kenya fails to stand in solidarity with other former colonies that remain under siege, choosing instead to align itself with the oppressive power.

And so, one must ask: Are the 16 helicopters and 150 armoured vehicles that Kenya is to receive from the US as a result of the deal really worth it? If the aim is to strengthen the US’s hold within the region, then we are already fighting a losing battle as, just like the case with Haiti, some of the regional conflicts are not organic, but instigated by the US and other foreign powers. Perhaps the Kenyan government needs to consider where it lies morally and politically, before making ostensibly financially sound deals that have long-running negative impacts on the people of the continent and the Black diaspora at large.

Ms Gitahi is an international lawyer