A Human Rights Defender's Perspective

A friend recently commented on and listed the names of prominent personalities who had been nominated by their political parties as nominated senators and members of parliament. His post read as follows: " For the love of my beloved country... The constitution clearly states that the nomination slots to the National assembly, the senate and the county assembly should be a reserve of the special interest groups - People with disabilities, youth, ethnic minorities and the marginalized. Looking at some of the names presented by the political parties for the same, one asks what interests do the following people represent? Beth Mugo (Uhuru's cousin), Sakaja (TNA chair), Dr. Oburu (Raila's brother), Mudavadi (UDF presidential candidate), Kioni (UDF running mate), Bishop Wajiru (ODM Senator candidate), Janet Ong'era (ODM executive director), Dr. Sally Kosgei (ODM parliamentary candidate), Violet Chesang (Ruto's sister in law), Leah Naikanae (Ole Kaparo's daug...

Just concluded reading King Leopold’s Ghost , a book I had heard about for such a long time, but never actually got to read. Arguably one of Adam Hochschild’s best writing, the book is as close a depiction as will probably ever be written on King Leopold II of Belgium ; his dislike for life in Belgium (a kingdom too small for his ambitions), a dislike for his role as a constitutional monarch, his obsession with the big and grandiose, and an even greater obsession with a piece of property he called his own but never set foot on – neither did he long to -    État indépendant du Congo ( Congo Free state ). Hochschild commences his writing by introducing us to the main characters involved as protagonists and antagonists. A reader is introduced to the young Leopold – a largely neglected childhood that shaped who he later grew up to be – a self-obsessed mysophobic who had a liking for very young women. Other leading characters include Henry Morton Stanley (a famous and controv...