Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai

BY WAWERU MUGO

NAIROBI, KENYA: A prophet is never honoured in his own country. One can say the same of Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai.

When MPs were not castigating her for her firm stand on environmental issues, she found herself in trouble for failing to follow the dictates of powerful politicians in her Central Kenya backyard. For that, her security was withdrawn at the height of post-election violence in 2008 and was only reinstated when she reported death threats sent to her phone and those of her staff.

In 1989, Kanu planned to build a 60-storey media complex at Uhuru Park, one of only a few green places left for recreation in the city.

Maathai, who had founded the Green Belt Movement to campaign for environmental protection, firmly criticised the move and found herself in trouble.

Wrong choices

As things heated up and the government was roundly condemned, Local Government Minister William ole Ntimama denied in Parliament what was obvious to many.

On November 8, 1989, he told the House that the Government planned to build the complex on another plot, and not inside Uhuru Park. It became a day that Kenya’s MPs would again make the wrong choices, and utter the wrong words. History would prove them wrong as Maathai, whom they said had no credentials as an environmentalist, went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize 15 years later in 2004.

“Hon Members will also definitely know that the greatest environmentalist is our great President of Kenya, Daniel arap Moi,” said Ntimama. “He has been recognised internationally as the protector of the environment.”

He went on the show to proof of this: The government had an environmental officer in every district (the district commissioner), the State was organising another park “which is going to be more beautiful than existing parks” and if it was not for Moi who stopped people cutting trees in Mau Forest, it would “have turned into a desert.”

“I still insist that Uhuru Park is going to be left intact,” said Ntimama when he rose on a point of order. “In fact, the fence that has been erected around the area where the Kanu Trust Media Complex is going to come up, is only for the safety of the park users while the construction of the 60-storey building is going on. It is also for the purpose of trying to find out water levels on the ground.”

Ntimama told Parliament that Moi had been on the frontline in protecting wildlife while Maathai kept quiet about poaching. He said Maathai, in her statement a day earlier, had appealed to a foreign power for protection as members shouted “shame!”

“Maathai is supposed to be a very well educated woman who should know that this is an independent sovereign state, under a president. It looks like she needs to be schooled more to know that we have just celebrated a quarter century since the attainment of independence,” he said.

Ntimama added: “I also want to say that the Green Belt Movement is bogus. I know of one place on the way to Narok, near Mai Mahiu, where there is a billboard written “Green Belt Movement” and under it are small pawpaw trees and eucalyptus which were planted by a farmer about 40 years ago. If this is what is called the Green Belt Movement, then it is seriously bogus.”

He said Maathai claimed to represent the interests of the silent majority but she represented no one.

“If there is an organisation that is hoodwinking Kenyans, then it is the Green Belt Movement. It is an organisation that is conning the international community to get funds for unknown reasons.”

Kennedy Kiliku, the MP for Changamwe, criticised the environmentalist for asking a foreign government to intervene.

“It is very strange for a citizen to write such a letter to a foreign country as if there is no security here. She should tell her foreign masters that this country is very stable…”

John Keen, the assistant minister in the Office of the President, said his respect for women had been watered down by Maathai’s actions.

“That woman is behind time,” he said. “She is guilty of incitement and I don’t see why she should not be taken to court. I do not condemn married women who have some standing in society; but I do not see why a bunch of divorcees, women of no standing at all, should come forward to criticise the efforts which are being made by this government,” said Keen.

Death threats

More MPS, including  the member for Matuga, Boy Juma Boy, joined the fray, saying Maathai had lost the way “and she does not know where she is coming from or where she is going.”

After the disputed 2007 elections, the country erupted in chaos. There were calls for negotiations as gangs spread havoc.

Maathai took a non-partisan stance much to the anger of those in Kibaki’s PNU. It was in the midst of this that her security detail was withdrawn in April 2008. She said she had received death threats from Mungiki, the criminal gang reported by investigators as having been used to attack ODM supporters during the mayhem.

One of the messages sent to her read: “Because of opposing the Government all times, Prof Maathai we have decided to look for your head very soon. You are number three after Were, chunga maisha yako (Watch out for your life).”

Her security was reinstated when she reported the death threats.