Island where 2,000 Mau Mau fighters were held now ruined

Vandalised gates in Mageta Island at the site where some 2000 political detainees were held in 1953. [Harold Odhiambo, Standard]

A historic site on an island in Lake Victoria that is linked to the struggle for the country’s liberation is in ruins. 

In 1953, the site in Mageta Island was the home to some 2,000 Mau Mau detainees who later broke free and escaped. And just like other national treasures, attempts to turn the site into a tourist attraction and a national monument have been futile. Despite its potential as a tourist attraction site, the place is in a deplorable state, characterised by fallen fences, broken slabs and vandalised gates. Residents say historians and university students who have visited the place have left disappointed after finding it in ruins.