Thread: The Reign of King Charles III begins

• King Charles III arrives in Kenya as calls for colonial apology grow

Britain's King Charles III arrived in Kenya late Monday for his first visit as monarch to a Commonwealth nation, where he faces widespread calls for an apology for abuses committed during colonial rule.

The palace says Charles, who is travelling with Queen Camilla, is expected to tackle "the more painful aspects" of Britain's historic relationship with Kenya during the four-day state visit.

This will include the so-called "Emergency" of 1952-1960, when colonial authorities imposed a state of emergency in response to the Mau Mau guerrilla uprising against European settlers.

About 10,000 people -- mainly from the Kikuyu tribe -- were killed during the crackdown.

"The visit comes as Kenya prepares to celebrate 60 years of independence and will spotlight the strong and dynamic partnership between the UK and Kenya," the British High Commission in Nairobi said in a statement announcing the royal couple's arrival.

The choice of Kenya for his first visit to a Commonwealth nation since becoming king in September last year has special resonance for the royal family.

It was there in 1952 that Charles's mother -- the late Queen Elizabeth II -- learned of the death of her father, King George VI, marking the start of her historic 70-year reign.

Charles and Camilla officially kick off the visit on Tuesday, when they will be welcomed by Kenyan President William Ruto.

During two days in the capital Nairobi, Charles will meet entrepreneurs, young Kenyans and participate in a state banquet.

He will also visit a new museum dedicated to the East African nation's history and lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Uhuru Gardens, where Kenya declared independence in December 1963.

The king and queen will then travel to the Indian Ocean port city of Mombasa, where they will visit a nature reserve and meet representatives of various religions.

'Unequivocal apology'

Although Kenya's government has said talks will focus on environmental issues, technology, innovation and women's empowerment, demands for an apology have dominated public discourse in recent days.

On Sunday, the Kenya Human Rights Commission urged Charles to make an "unequivocal public apology" and pay reparations for abuses committed by colonial authorities.

"We call upon the King on behalf of the British government to issue an unconditional and unequivocal public apology (as opposed to the very cautious, self-preserving and protective statements of regrets) for the brutal and inhuman treatment inflicted on Kenyan citizens," it said.

According to Buckingham Palace, Charles "will take time during the visit to deepen his understanding of the wrongs suffered in this period by the people of Kenya".

Following a years-long court battle, Britain agreed in 2013 to compensate more than 5,000 Kenyans who had suffered abuse during the Mau Mau revolt, in a deal worth nearly 20 million pounds ($25 million at today's rates).

Each claimant received around 2,600 pounds after legal costs were deducted.

At the time, then foreign secretary William Hague said Britain "sincerely regrets" the abuses but stopped short of a full apology.

'Save the Commonwealth'

Another lingering source of tension is the presence of British troops in Kenya.

In August, Kenya's parliament launched an inquiry into the activities of the British army, which has a base on the outskirts of Nanyuki, a town about 200 kilometres (120 miles) north of Nairobi.

Charles will not be going to Nanyuki during this trip, his fourth to Kenya.

Britain's Daily Mail newspaper has billed Kenya as "the first stop" on Charles's "mission to save the Commonwealth".

More than a dozen nations out of the Commonwealth grouping of 56 countries still recognise the UK monarch as head of state.

But clamour to become a republic is growing among some, including Jamaica and Belize, with Barbados making the switch in 2021.

"The late Queen was very much connected to the Commonwealth," said Poppy Cullen, African history lecturer at the University of Cambridge.

"And I imagine that the British government will be keen that the king sort of does something similar to try and raise its profile or keep it together."

The royal trip comes 40 years after Elizabeth's state visit to Kenya in November 1983.

• King Charles arrives in Kenya alongside Queen Camilla as calls for official apology continue

King Charles has arrived in Kenya alongside Queen Camilla for a historic State Visit amid calls for the monarch to issue an official apology regarding colonial era abuses.

The four-day trip has been billed as an opportunity to strengthen ties between the UK and Kenya.

It is the King's first State Visit to Africa and a Commonwealth nation since becoming monarch in September 2022.

King Charles and Queen Camilla arrived in Kenya late on Monday night and were welcomed at a formal ceremony on Tuesday by Kenyan President William Ruto.

The King is set to become the first royal to convey his sorrow over Britain's handling of the Mau Mau uprising during his State Visit to Kenya this week.

Charles III is expected to admit that Kenyans were subjected to torture during the 1950s uprising, however, he will refrain from extending an official apology.

In 2013, the UK Government consented to pay compensation of roughly £20million to Kenya.

Insiders have claimed that the King will abide by Government policy by not apologising or bringing up the topic of reparations while travelling on his royal tour.

A Palace aide told the Mail: "The King will be working on his speeches for the state visit up to the last minute and always has sensitivity in mind.

"He will be mindful of expressing deep sorrow."

The King's deputy private secretary, Chris Fitzgerald, said: "His Majesty will take time during the visit to deepen his understanding of the wrongs suffered in this period by the people of Kenya."

The visit falls in line with Kenya's plans to commemorate its 60th anniversary of independence.

• King Charles stops short of apology for ‘abhorrent’ colonial violence in Kenya

King Charles has spoken of Britain’s “abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence” committed against Kenyans during their fight for independence, but stopped short of an apology despite human rights groups demanding one.

The monarch made the comments in a speech, delivered during a banquet in Kenya held in his honour, in which he referred to the “greatest sorrow” and “deepest regret” for the “wrongdoings” of the past.

While Kenya’s president, William Ruto, praised the king’s “exemplary courage” in shedding light on “uncomfortable truths”, he described the colonial reaction to African struggles as “monstrous in its cruelty”. He added that “much remains to be done in order to achieve full reparations”.

Earlier, the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) urged King Charles to offer an “unequivocal public apology”.

“We call upon the king, on behalf of the British government, to issue an unconditional and unequivocal public apology (as opposed to the very cautious, self-preserving and protective statements of regrets) for the brutal and inhuman treatment inflicted on Kenyan citizens,” the KHRC said.

The commission has claimed 90,000 Kenyans were executed, tortured or maimed during the British administration’s counter-insurgency.

Addressing Ruto at the banquet, the king said: “The wrongdoings of the past are a cause of the greatest sorrow and the deepest regret.

“There were abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence committed against Kenyans as they waged, as you said at the United Nations, a painful struggle for independence and sovereignty – and for that, there can be no excuse.

“In coming back to Kenya, it matters greatly to me that I should deepen my own understanding of these wrongs, and that I meet some of those whose lives and communities were so grievously affected.

“None of this can change the past. But by addressing our history with honesty and openness we can, perhaps, demonstrate the strength of our friendship today. And, in so doing, we can, I hope, continue to build an ever-closer bond for the years ahead.”

• King Charles III meets in private with the family of the Kenyan rebel leader hanged by the British

King Charles III on Wednesday held a private meeting with the family of the executed leader of the Kenyan rebellion against British colonial rule, a day after the monarch expressed “greatest sorrow and the deepest regret” for the violence of the colonial era.

The family of Dedan Kimathi, who was hanged by the British administration, and relatives of other well-known Kenyan freedom fighters didn’t immediately comment — a change from their past outspoken calls for an apology and compensation from Britain, along with any information on the whereabouts of Kimathi’s body.

The British High Commission said only that the meeting was an “opportunity for the king to hear firsthand about the violence committed against Kenyans during their struggle for independence.” Attendees included the chair of the Mau Mau War Veterans Association.

The issue remains painful for many Kenyans, and police dispersed a couple dozen people protesting at the foot of a monument to Kimathi in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. “All the land under British should be given back to the Kenyan people,” said Juliet Wanjira with the Mathare Social Justice Center, calling also for the British military training mission in Kenya to leave.

Charles, who with Queen Camilla arrived on Monday in what is his first state visit to a Commonwealth country as monarch, on Tuesday cited the “abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence” committed against Kenyans as they sought independence. However, he didn’t explicitly apologize for Britain’s actions in its former colony as many Kenyans wanted.

Charles on Wednesday also visited a war cemetery, laying a wreath in honor of those who fought alongside the British in the two world wars.

He handed replacement medals to four war veterans who had lost theirs. Among the four was Cpl. Samwel Nthigai Mburia, who claims to be 117. The other three are privates John Kavai, Kefa Chagira and Ezekiel Nyanjom Anyange.

Mburia, who fought in Damascus, Cairo and Jerusalem, said he got rid of his medal long ago for fear of being associated with the British colonizers but was now happy to get a replacement from the king.

Kavai, 101, who fought in India and Burma in World War II, said his medals were a “joy and pride for him and his entire family,” reminding him of his service.

The cemetery has 59 graves and is next to Kariokor market, previously the site of Nairobi’s Carrier Corps Depot, the administrative center through which soldiers heading to the front passed through. Charles also met with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission members and communities living near the cemetery.

Kenya is celebrating the 60th anniversary of its independence this year. It has had a close but at times challenging relationship with Britain after the prolonged struggle against colonial rule, sometimes known as the Mau Mau Rebellion, in which thousands of Kenyans died.

Colonial authorities resorted to executions and detention without trial as they tried to put down the insurrection, and thousands of Kenyans said they were beaten and sexually assaulted by agents of the administration.

On the roads leading to the war cemetery, at a walking distance from the central business district, authorities deployed heavy security including army, an anti-terror police unit, elite units and regular police.

_________

• King Charles to attend COP28

King Charles III will attend the COP28 climate summit in Dubai next month, Buckingham Palace confirmed.

The King — a longstanding advocate of bolder action to combat climate change — will deliver the opening address at the World Climate Action Summit, the gathering of global leaders which will open the two-week annual conference.

It will be the first time he has attended a COP summit as King. Having played a major diplomatic role as Prince of Wales at the U.K.-hosted COP26 in 2021, there was confusion last year as to whether he would attend the COP27 summit in Egypt. Downing Street eventually confirmed that he would not go as it was not the “right occasion.”

This year, the King will attend “at the invitation” of UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and “at the request” of the U.K. government, Buckingham Palace said.

He will speak at the summit on Friday 1 December and will “take the opportunity to have meetings with regional leaders” ahead of the event, according to a statement from the palace.

The King will attend COP28 UAE

• King Charles’s ‘deep regret’ for colonial atrocities was a ‘miss’, Kenyans say

King Charles’s expression of “greatest sorrow and deepest regret” over colonial atrocities committed by British forces in Kenya has been criticised as a “miss” in the east African country.

Reactions to the king’s statement were mixed, with the president, William Ruto, diplomatically welcoming Charles’s “courage and readiness to shed light on uncomfortable truths that reside in the darker regions of our shared experience”, but calling Britain’s colonial suppression of Kenya’s freedom movement “monstrous in its cruelty”.

“Much remains to be done in order to achieve full reparations,” said Ruto, who struck a reconciliatory tone by emphasising the need to “learn from history to foster relations between the two nations”.

King Charles’s first visit to a Commonwealth country since his accession has been marked by unprecedented calls for the UK to offer an unequivocal apology and reparations for colonial atrocities.

Human rights groups and historians said they were unimpressed by the king’s “careful choice of words”, and the two countries needed to “move beyond platitudes”.

“This was a ‘miss’,” said Ernest Cornel, of the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC). The rights body had called on King Charles to address colonialism’s enduring legacies, including land dispossession.

About 500,000 Kenyans from the Kipsigis and Talai communities were violently evicted from their ancestral lands under colonial rule, according to UN experts. Huge tracts of their land, given to British settlers, were developed into the vast British-owned tea plantations. Today, generations of the dispossessed Kipsigis and Talai communities continue to live in poverty.

In 2019, the British government indicated that it had “no intention to enter any process” to settle the communities’ claims. A case contesting the land expropriation is before the European court of human rights.

Discussions on colonial atrocities have resurfaced online, with activists recalling painful aspects of colonial history during the height of the country’s fight for independence between 1952 and 1960. Mau Mau suspects were forced to eat faeces and urine, one recalled, and Kenyan women were raped and humiliated by having bottles, hot eggs and other items thrust up their vaginas.

“If you’ve watched those [colonial] documentaries, your blood boils,” said Wanjira Wanjiru of the Kenya Social Justice Centres, a community mobilising group. “For us, he is the representation of when our ancestors experienced that shame and humiliation in their own land, so for him not to say ‘I apologise’, it pains me.”

Elderly Kenyans and rights groups also demanded that King Charles reveal the burial locations of freedom fighters, including Dedan Kimathi, and return the skull of Koitalel Arap Samoei, an anti-colonial leader of the Nandi people whose severed head was taken to the UK as a souvenir of war.

Researchers say that, as past and present rights violations have not been remedied, the king’s statement of “regret” and “sorrow” rings hollow.

“The statement of regret is happening in a vacuum,” said Suhayl Omar, an historian of the colonial era. The statement “co-opted” the colonial experience and made an appearance of amends without addressing the enduring aspects of colonial legacy, he said.

The Kenyan public’s reaction to the king’s visit has been mixed. Some have called on the UK to address rights issues, while others have seemed indifferent or been intrigued by lighter moments, such as the king’s use of Swahili and Sheng greetings during the state banquet.

Young people expressed different views on bilateral relations.

“We don’t need to forget [history], but we can put it behind us,” said John Karanja, a 23-year-old university student in Nairobi.

Others say atrocities still persist, citing more recent alleged rights violations by British army units training in Kenya, including murder, sexual abuse and environmental damage. Planned demonstrations about those claims were blocked this week, according to the KHRC.

“There is still an unequal partnership between the UK and Kenya,” said Wanjiru. “As young people, we want those issues to be addressed.”

The KHRC has called for assessments of human rights infringements of the British military and multinationals operating in Kenya. It also called on the UK to make reparations for colonial atrocities.

Heridatary pigs ar the trough with annointed slappas UK od LOS pick your take?

New Oil wells to help destroy the envirnoment, so much for greenery the only man in history to desert a young beautiful fertile lady for a worn out older swallower

to each his own

Unelected adulterer leads Ango decline
It's ok to look at appreciate even talk to flowers but this guy listens

King of Australia Canada New Zealand etc Hannoverian-Greco- Veggie anachronism who promoted his whore

again,.....to each is own

Well known hunter big game random pussy and small confessions
RIP Diana Princess of Wales

you should start a "I miss Diana" thread.

Would be better than the "What color is your table top?" threads.

• King Charles finds his Seoul food in the suburbs

King Charles became the "King of Korea Town" - or New Malden as it's otherwise known - on a royal visit on Wednesday.

This unobtrusive London suburb claims to have the biggest concentration of Korean people anywhere in Europe.

The King chatted to crowds crammed outside the Seoul Plaza supermarket, on a high street full of Korean businesses and takeaways.

The royal trip comes ahead of this month's state visit to Britain by South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol.

The King has described his vision of Britain as being a "community of communities".

And here he seemed to really enjoy visiting the place known as "Korea Town", named after the 20,000 Koreans living around this part of the south-west London Borough of Kingston.

There was K-Pop playing to greet the King when he arrived to meet members of the Korean community gathered inside the town's Methodist church.

This is on a street that, despite the rainy November weather, is a little slice of Seoul food. Adverts in the window are for Korean sports teams, a K-Pop competition and a Korean language church.

There's a job advert for bus drivers with its own Korean language helpline. Possibly gangway rather than Gangnam Style.

The supermarket is full of the national vegetable dish, called kimchi, and later this month this part of London will be the first in Europe to celebrate Korea's "Kimchi Day."

On such royal trips, it's unmistakable how much the King enjoys meeting the crowds.

Ditching the initial script, he dived into an impromptu walkabout and several more after the official greetings - so much so that his own Bentley was more or less tailing him to scoop him inside at the end.

It's not all tame stuff either. The crowds were there to cheer him, but there were a couple of placards dotted around - Not My King and Help Gaza were visible - but he goes into the crowd in a way that few politicians would now contemplate.

He was also wearing a Black Poppy Rose badge for the visit, as well as a conventional poppy, remembering black veterans from Caribbean and African communities.

Inside the Cake and Bing Soo cafe, an Earl Grey-flavoured birthday cake was presented to the King in honour of his 75th birthday next week.

Chatting to a representative from a senior citizens' group, he asked about the age of admittance. When he was told it was 65 years old, he said with a shrug: "I've certainly passed that mark."

There was a more serious chat with some North Koreans, asking them how they had left and was it by crossing the border into China.

Timothy Cho told the King he had escaped that way, and later he talked about how he had initially been deported back from China to North Korea and that he's now campaigning for such escapees to be sent from China to another third country.

He eventually escaped by being deported to the Philippines.

But why have so many Koreans settled in New Malden?

It depends who you ask. There are claims it dates back to Samsung having offices here once. Or that a South Korean ambassador had a residence here.

Neither seem convincing to some of the locals.

Councillor Elizabeth Park, wearing Korean national dress for the visit, said: "My theory is education - there were very good schools. And it's a safe place."

Another suggestion was that Koreans needed to be near Korean food, which is now in abundance on this rainy high street.

South Korean ambassador, Yeocheol Yoon, said the Korean "craving for our own food is strong".

Korean culture has been a remarkable export story in recent years, down to the King chatting to young people here about Korean music.

Why has Korean culture caught on so much?

"I've got my own wacky personal interpretation. Koreans can be very emotional and get wild," he says, and he believes that intensity lends itself to creativity.

"It's like Korean food. It's tangy. You get addicted once you have a taste," said the ambassador, who welcomed the King to this small pocket of Korea.

That gift for performance clearly goes right up the chain.

When President Yoon Suk Yeol visited US President Joe Biden, the South Korean president gave a stirring and surprising rendition of "American Pie".

Whether such diplomatic karaoke is likely during his visit to Buckingham Palace remains to be seen.

• King Charles is Big Issue cover star with food project

King Charles is going to be the cover star of the Big Issue magazine, which helps the homeless, to mark his 75th birthday next week.

The King will highlight his Coronation Food Project, to be officially launched on his birthday on 14 November.

It aims to help those in need of food, while at the same time reducing surplus food being thrown away.

"Food need is as real and urgent a problem as food waste," King Charles will say in the Big Issue.

Emphasising the idea of a public service monarchy, the food project will be a big theme of the King's birthday celebrations.

It wants to address the growing problem of those who cannot afford food, at the same time as tackling the widespread waste of perfectly good food.

"If a way could be found to bridge the gap between them, then it would address two problems in one," the King tells the Big Issue, in an edition to be published on Monday.

"It is my great hope that this Coronation Food Project will find practical ways to do just that - rescuing more surplus food, and distributing it to those who need it most."

The project says there are 14 million people in the UK facing food insecurity, with food banks warning of rising demand.

The Trussell Trust charity said this week that 1.5 million emergency food parcels were given to people by its food banks between April and September 2023, a 16% increase on last year. Almost two-thirds of these were for families with children.

But alongside this growing need, millions of tonnes of food are thrown away unused, so the project aims to bring together supermarkets, farmers and distributors to save more of the food that otherwise might be discarded.

There are already 8,500 local charities trying to share surplus food, and the Coronation Food Project wants to set up regional distribution hubs to make this a more effective network.

Baroness Louise Casey, co-chair of the project, says: "Too many people in the UK are living in poverty and going hungry. At the same time, we are wasting too much food on farms, in manufacturing and across the food industry."

The King will be 75 years old next Tuesday, and on Monday he will share a party in Highgrove in Gloucestershire with other people or organisations who are 75 this year.

On the day of his birthday, the King is hosting a reception for nurses and midwives as part of the NHS 75th anniversary celebrations.

The Royal Mint has produced a commemorative coin to mark the birthday, which for the first time uses silver recycled from medical and industrial X-ray film.

With the King now into the second year of his reign, the names of his charities are also changing - such as the Prince's Trust becoming the King's Trust and the Prince's Foundation becoming the King's Foundation.

LIVE EVENT: King Charles Leads Remembrance Day Service at The Cenotaph

• King Charles Holds Early 75th Birthday Party at Highgrove House

King Charles celebrates his birthday twice every year, once in June with a parade known as Trooping the Colour and once in November, on his actual birthday. His real birthday celebrations have already begun; the king, who turns 75 tomorrow, held a party at Highgrove House today, hosted by the King's Trust (formerly the Prince's Trust), to celebrate other organizations and individuals turning 75.

The King made the first cut into his three-tier birthday cake, created by Jan Blackmore from Buttercup Pantry, and urged his guests to try a slice. "Who can I donate it to? Can we get rid of it? We need to give you doggie bags," he said with a laugh. At the party, a rock choir also performed.

Highgrove House is already decorated for Christmas, and guests of the birthday include local residents who were nominated by friends and family, Jay Blades, a King's Foundation ambassador (formerly the Prince's Foundation) and pioneering members from the Windrush Generation, who were painted in the "Windrush: Portraits of a Pioneering Generation" project, commissioned by King Charles to mark the 75th anniversary of the HMT Empire Windrush.

King Charles will spend his actual birthday just as a normal day, launching the Coronation Food Project alongside Queen Camilla and hosting a Buckingham Palace reception for nurses and midwives. He'll have a private birthday dinner at Clarence House in the evening, which his son, Prince Harry, was not invited to, according to the Duke's spokesperson.

Camilla once shared that her husband is hard to get birthday presents for. "I will tell you that he is the most difficult person in the world to buy a present for," she said a decade ago, ahead of his 65th birthday. "He is a man! They are hopeless! I spend ages trying to find something that is really wonderful and then [imitating Charles], 'Oh, thank you very much.' It is so annoying. So he likes to make a list of things that he wants so you get it exactly right. I find this time of year impossible as it's his birthday and then it's Christmas… Everybody else is easy, but he is not!"

WATCH LIVE: Birthday Gun Salutes in London For King Charles III

• King Charles celebrates 75th birthday by launching new food project

Britain’s King Charles celebrates his 75th birthday on Tuesday and will use the occasion to launch a new scheme to tackle food poverty and cut down on waste.

The king, who has spent more than five decades as an outspoken campaigner on environmental issues and supporter of a sustainable economy, will officially launch the ‘Coronation Food Project’, his mission to try to stop people going hungry.

“Food need is as real and urgent a problem as food waste - and if a way could be found to bridge the gap between them, then it would address two problems in one,” Charles wrote in an article for the “Big Issue”, a magazine which is usually sold by homeless people.

“It is my great hope that this Coronation Food Project will find practical ways to do just that - rescuing more surplus food, and distributing it to those who need it most.”

With his wife, Queen Camilla, Charles will spend his birthday visiting a surplus food distribution centre. He will meet major British supermarkets to see how his project can help redistribute food which would otherwise go to waste.

The project says 14 million people in Britain face food insecurity, and as the rising cost of living has pushed even more into food poverty, charities say there has been a 38% rise in those using food banks for the first time in the year to March 2023.

• King celebrates 75th birthday by chatting to hundreds of NHS nurses

The King celebrated his 75th birthday by chatting to hundreds of NHS nurses at Buckingham Palace.

Charles hosted a reception in central London to highlight the work of nurses and midwives over the decades as part of the NHS 75 celebrations.

Among the guests were around 400 nurses and midwives from across the NHS as well as the new Health Secretary, Victoria Atkins, following Monday’s Cabinet reshuffle.

The King took the time to meet many of the guests and the crowd around Charles was sometimes five deep as he made his way around a ballroom.

He appeared to enjoy himself as he moved around the room making jokes and thanking nurses for their work.

Don't engage with this guy David
He doesn't share your sense of humour.
To be sure.guys a nutter. Long winded cut n pastes
Non stop
Bollocks. Me thinks

You a republican, Snakeeyes ?

he leans far right