The Mombasa Republic is a proposed state that would encompass the former

Coast Province The Coast Province ( sw, Mkoa wa Pwani) of Kenya, along the Indian Ocean, was one of Kenya's eight provinces. It comprises the Indian Ocean coastal strip with the capital city at Mombasa and was inhabited by the Mijikenda and Swahili, among oth ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

. The Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) in the main separatist organisation to argue that

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

should secede from Kenya to become an independent state. They argued that secession would liberate the people of the coast province from marginalization by successive governments in Kenya. Their slogan is ''Pwani Si Kenya'' ("The Coast is not Kenya"). The MRC is a constitutional organization and aims to represent persons of all religions and tribes living in the Mombasa coastal strip. Mombasa has a unique cultural identity and history that long predates the current colonial borders of Africa. It has both Muslim and Christian supporters. The leader of the group is Omar Mwamnuadzi. The group denies claims by government officials that it has forged links with Somalia's militant Islamist group al-Shabaab. The Organization of Emerging African States (OEAS) supports the MRC program as a legitimate expression of

self-determination The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a ''jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It stat ...

under the

African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (also known as the Banjul Charter) is an international human rights instrument that is intended to promote and protect human rights and basic freedoms in the African continent. It emerged under th ...

History

The Mombasa Republican Council was formed in 1999 to address perceived political and

economic discrimination Economic discrimination is discrimination based on economic factors. These factors can include job availability, wages, the prices and/or availability of goods and services, and the amount of capital investment funding available to minorities for ...

against the people of the Coast Province. The group traces its secession claims to the 1895 and 1963 agreements transferring the ten-mile strip of land along the coast to Kenya from

Zanzibar Zanzibar (; ; ) is an insular semi-autonomous province which united with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. It is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of many small islands ...

. Some critics characterize these British agreements as a form of bribery designed to facilitate colonization of the interior. The group contests these agreements as invalid because the British Government enacted them without the consent of coastal stakeholders, claiming that the state of Kenya has failed to honor the provisions designed to protect the coastal population. In 2014, Omar Mwamnuadzi was arrested along with 11 other MRC members and charged with holding an illegal gathering and planning to breach the peace.

Secession claims

The Mombasa Republican Council was dormant until 2008, when it first raised claims that Mombasa should secede from Kenya to become an independent state. They argued that secession would liberate the people of the coast province from marginalization by successive governments in Kenya. In response, the government declared the group to be an illegal organization, along with 33 other groups. The Mombasa Republican Council contested the government's decision in court. The High Court in Mombasa lifted the ban, and ruled that claiming the group was illegal was unconstitutional.

Post-election violence

MRC members have been associated with violence, beginning from around the time of the 2013 election. In June 2022, 81 suspected members of the MRC in

Kilifi County Kilifi County was formed in 2010 as a result of a merger of Kilifi District and Malindi District, Kenya. Its capital is Kilifi and its largest town is Malindi. Kilifi county is one of the five counties that harbor the Kenyan Coast with 109km ...

were arrested while undertaking oaths to take over the leadership of the country, with violence continuing as part of the buildup to the August

2022 elections The following elections are scheduled to occur in 2022. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2022 United Nations Security Council election * 2022 national electoral calendar * 2022 local e ...

References

{{Mombasa Nationalist movements in Africa Political movements Separatism in Kenya