| Chapter 1: | Introduction |
|
|
that would provide for a sharing of political power among racially defined political groups—and in particular reducing the dominant position held by Kenya’s Europeans at the end of the war. However, few would have foreseen in March 1954, when the terms of the Lyttleton Constitution were announced, that Kenya would be independent in December 1963. The speed of this transformation owed much to events that marked the period after 1959 rather than the constitutional momentum that characterized most of the 1950s.
Nevertheless, the second half of the 1950s witnessed a quite dramatic change insofar as the CO’s calculations for Kenya’s constitutional future were concerned. The period after 1957 saw officials in London and Nairobi try to accommodate African demands for a rapid transition to majority rule while safeguarding the political interests of the Europeans in particular. Until the first Lancaster House constitutional conference of 1960, the constitutions imposed by the CO had tilted in favor of the European settlers, with their acceptance viewed as most critical. By contrast, African acceptance of the 1950s constitutions was not seen as critical. That stance also changed dramatically in 1960: from that point forward, Kenya’s African population became the most important for British constitution making.
Imperial Perspective
By the end of World War II, Kenya had long occupied the status of one of Britain’s most difficult or problem colonies in Africa. For example, the years after World War I witnessed controversies involving labor policy and the so-called Indian Question. These issues put pressure on the CO and the colonial state to balance the interests and demands of Kenya’s diverse population groups: Africans, Arabs, Asians, and Europeans. The last two groups were recent migrants to Kenya, given that the majority arrived in the colony after the start of colonial rule. European farmers were encouraged to settle in Kenya, and a substantial block of land (known as the white highlands) was set aside for exclusive European occupation. The colonial state also encouraged the immigration of people from British India. These