By Amos Kareithi
Takaungu, Kenya: When the seven elders converged in the small office, patiently waiting for the verdict, they were confident that history would be on their side. They keenly listened as the white man read through the lengthy document and finally appended his signature. This, as it turned out, sealed the fate of the thousands of locals whose forefathers had broken their backs as they slaved in the expansive grain fields with whips cracking their bare backs, sweat freely pouring from their furrowed faces.