When President William Ruto officially signed documents awarding citizenship to the Pemba community at a ceremony held in Kilifi County in July, Juma Hassan could not hide his joy.
Hassan, 40, had been following the proceedings live on Facebook using an android phone he borrowed from a friend.
“When he signed the documents and started awarding members of my community identification cards, I went down on my knees and thanked God,” says Hassan, a fisherman from the Pemba community, who has been stateless since birth.
Hassan’s great-grandparents arrived in Kenya in the 1930s from the Zanzibar archipelago and ventured into fishing as their main economic activity. They settled within the 10-mile strip which was then under the sovereignty of the Sultan of Zanzibar.
Sultanate of Zanzibar
The Sultanate of Zanzibar was formally recognised as a protectorate and, therefore, not subject to the
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