§ 31. Mr. Stonehouseasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he can now announce when Mr. Jomo Kenyatta, Mr. Achieng Oneko and other political detainees will be released.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodWith regard to Kenyatta, I have nothing to add to my reply to mfr hon. Friend the Member 1167 for Haltemprice (Mr. Wall) on 5th May. Achieng Oneko's case will be reviewed by the Appeals Tribunal next month. Other cases are, as I stated in my reply to the hon. Member on 14th April, regularly reviewed.
§ Mr. StonehouseIs the Minister aware that Mr. Oneko was acquitted of all charges brought against him of being an organiser of Mau Mau, but that notwithstanding this he has been kept in prison for seven years? Will the right hon. Gentleman personally intervene to make certain that this man is released? With regard to the political detainees in Nyasaland, will they be released before the Constitutional Conference takes place?
§ Mr. MacleodI am not sure if the last part of that supplementary question is immediately relevant to the Question on the Order Paper, and I should like it tabled as a special Question. It is true that Mr. Oneko was acquitted on the charge of having a hand in the management of Mau Mau, but, as I am sure the hon. Member knows, those who tried the case said that they had no doubt that he was sympathetic to the Mau Mau cause. This case is being reviewed next month, which, after all, starts tomorrow, today being 31st May. I hope that it will be only a few days before I can let the hon. Member know the result of this review.