Njeri Mwangi: My life with an activist

By CATE MUKEI

Njeri Mwangi has spent many anxious days and nights worrying about her husband, Boniface Mwangi, who was risking his life for activism, and was constantly away from her and their children. Due to numerous threats to his life, Njeri was constantly wishing and praying that her man would come home in one piece.

Boniface is an award-winning photojournalist, famous for his moving images of the 2007-2008 post-election violence, and tracking a police crackdown on the Mungiki gang. He is also widely known for his lobbying that often rubbed government agencies the wrong way. However, last month, he left the crusading world, saying he would rather be a father to his children.

“I’m relieved that he has quit activism, and glad that our children will have a chance of seeing their father as they grow up,” Njeri says.

She has been married to Boniface for seven years, and they have three children. For the last five years, her husband has been the face of new-age activism in Kenya.

In a candid interview, Njeri, who co-owns Pawa254 art centre with her spouse, revealed that although she had always supported his course, she breathed a sigh of relief when he hang his boots. Pawa254 is described as ‘a collaborative space that brings together journalists, artists and activists seeking innovative ways to achieve social change’.

“I trust Boniface with my life, and also share his passion for social justice, but there comes a time when family comes first,” she said.

“I told him that there is no glory in dying and leaving his children without a father. He needs to find another way of empowering the people since his current method is not working.”

Njeri is quick to point out that this does not mean she did not know what she was getting herself into when she married the self-driven activist. In fact, she thought he was too good for her.

“When I first met Bonny, I did not think we were compatible. He was too ambitious and despite being only 24, he was too focused for me. He knew exactly what he wanted in life, while my life was monotonous,” Njeri, who met Boniface through mutual friends, told The Sunday Magazine.

At the time, Boniface was working as a photographer for the Standard Group, while Njeri was an export manager at Amani ya Juu rehab centre. The couple would later sell their cars and other assets to set up Pawa254 along State House Road in Nairobi.

She describes her life with the award-winning photographer as adventurous. Her first adventure with her husband was getting over her motorcycle phobia and ‘trusting him with my life’.

On the other hand, an activist’s every other day seems to be a close shave with death. The mother of three recalls an incident during last year’s Labour Day celebrations, when the children saw their father being roughed up after attempting to disrupt Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Cotu) secretary general Francis Atwoli’s speech.

SHAKEN

“I was watching TV with my children when Bonny made his move and all hell broke loose. Our daughter, Naila, shouted ‘Mummy! They have killed my daddy!’ That is when it hit me that I should switch off the TV and calm the children down, although they could see I was also shaken,” she recalls.

Do their children understand what their father fights for?

“Our eldest son, Nate Simpiwe (who appears in Juliani’s latest hit, Utawala), is six years old, and knows that his father is famous because he fights for something, but he does not know what exactly he fights for,” she says.

Their younger children, two-year-old Naila Sifa and one-year-old Jabali Mboya, have also seen their father on TV, but don’t understand why he was there.

Njeri also says that her husband is constantly threatened, although he doesn’t always talk to her about it.

“I can tell there’s something going on when he starts getting over-protective, or when I overhear his concerns from his phone conversations. He also hates being alone, and, therefore, even when he is out, he makes sure I know whom he is hanging out with, in case his phone goes off.”

She describes their lives as a gamble, and says it is hard to explain the feeling of relief every time her husband comes home from a demonstration. She rarely participates in the protests, but is present when he takes the children with him.

“Our families have tried to discourage us from participating in the protests for the sake of the children. In fact, most of our friends do not understand me; a good number tell me I’m very strong to have stuck by Bonny this long.”

Just like the activist, Njeri denies that her husband is funded by foreigners.

“The people who say such things do not know how much we are struggling. Sometimes, I really need a car, or want to invest in a piece of land, but my husband has to use the little money he earns to make T-shirts and masks for his next protest. The most I can get is dinner or a spa treatment once in a while,” she defends him.

Last year, the 2012 Prince Claus Award winner expressed his ambitions to vie for a parliamentary seat in Starehe Constituency, but Njeri was not ready for such a ‘huge step’.

“He wanted to contest the Starehe seat, but I did not think that it was the right time. I prayed to God to take away the thoughts from his head. Fortunately, Bonny gave up on those ambitions in a week’s time,” she remembers.

While her husband has retired from activism, Njeri’s heart is not entirely at peace, for she worries that his numerous court cases might land him in jail and take him away from his family.

“I am only praying to God to help him get through the court cases, which are now our greatest challenge.”

Last week, Boniface had an application to have his provocation and breach of peace case heard at the High Court turned down. He was charged after disrupting the Labour Day celebrations at Uhuru Park last year, and calling Cotu Secretary General Francis Atwoli a traitor for backing MPs who wanted to increase their salaries.

Boniface is also headed to the Supreme Court to challenge the constitutionality of charges against the February 13 protest dubbed ‘State of the Nation’. Together with other protestors, he decided to go on with the planned protest despite a ban from the Government. If found guilty, Boniface faces life in prison.

These are some of the reasons why, even though her husband has quit activism, Njeri still has anxious moments.