Media personality and mental health advocate Anita Nderu has shared a harrowing personal account of the 2007–2008 post-election violence in Eldoret, comparing it to the current wave of protests and the fear that has gripped Kenyan families once again. In an emotional post shared on Instagram, Anita reflected on her family’s survival, the trauma of displacement, and the unsettling similarities between Kenya’s past and present.
I am from the beautiful town of Eldoret. I am the daughter of the wonderful parents who put two tires so they would know where their home was because at that time, our area was a forest,” she began.
Anita recalled how her family narrowly escaped harm during the 2008 clashes that rocked Eldoret. With tensions escalating, her mother, sister, and herself spent nights sleeping in Bedford trucks next to their property while her father and brothers stood guard at home. From their veranda, they watched in terror as neighbours’ homes were burned.
“We waited anxiously for when they would get to us. We are grateful we were spared,” she wrote.
Eventually, the family joined a caravan of displaced residents fleeing to Nairobi in search of safety.
“What I see now is eerily similar”
Seventeen years later, Anita says the memories and anxiety have returned, this time, not from ethnic violence, but from state violence during protests. She described the current environment, where attending protests has become an act of courage and uncertainty.
What we saw then and what I see now is eerily similar. Every time my family, friends and I come for the protest I pray for our safe return home,” she wrote.
“In a normal scenario, I should not be doing that because this should not be how it is.”
Anita, like many Kenyans, is mourning the young lives lost during the recent anti-government demonstrations. Her tribute was especially poignant:
May all your hearts that went ahead of us and took the unnecessary bullet or baton for us be honoured. We shall continue to be brave for you.”
A Resounding Call to Remember—and Act
The post is being widely shared online, with many Kenyans resonating with her story and reflecting on the country’s cyclical trauma. It comes at a time when more than a dozen protesters have been reported dead, according to human rights monitors, despite official police figures claiming 11 fatalities during the July 7 Saba Saba protests.
Anita’s post adds to a growing chorus of voices; celebrities, survivors, activists, who are urging Kenyans and the government alike not to forget the lessons of the past, and to uphold the right to protest and to life as enshrined in the Constitution.
