Myth exposed: Mombasa was NOT part of Zanzibar in 1961!

I do not purport to take a stance on the Obama birth certificate controversy, save to say that his refusal to release the full document is suspicious. I do take issue with falsehoods being put up in Obama's defense though. One of those falsehoods is currently being used to "debunk" the rumor that Obama was born in Mombassa, Kenya instead of Hawaii. The false claim is that Mombassa was part of Zanzibar in 1961 when Obama was born, and it is being repeated without scrutiny by the slothful mainstream media.

As with so many things about Obama, this claim is false. Mombassa and Zanzibar were both part of the British Protectorate of East Africa in 1961. Zanzibar is an island 30 miles off the coast of Africa and well south of Kenya. Mombassa was briefly a part of Zanzibar in 1963 due to the partitioning and independence of Great Britain's various colonial holdings. It was ceded to the newly formed nation of Kenya later that year. In 1961 though, Mombassa was definitely part of the British East African Protectorate and had been for over half a century.

Mombassa, a prominent port city, was formally annexed by the Sultan of Zanzibar in 1887. As British presence grew in the region of what would become Kenya, the Sultan formally reliquished the administration (though not title of land) to Mombassa to Britain in 1887. In 1890 the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty between Britain and Germany gave Zanzibar and all its holdings to Britain. The last resistance against British rule on Zanzibar island was quashed in the Anglo-Zanzibar war of 1896, and the puppet administration Britain installed there formally gave up any claim to Mombassa in 1898. Mombassa remained firmly in British hands until Zanzibar's independence in 1963 shortly before Kenya's. This includes the time when Barack Obama was born. Not only that, but Mombassa was actually the CAPITAL of British East Africa from 1898 to 1905, before it was moved to the present capital of Nairobi.

A simple glance at any historical map of Africa reveals that the claims about Mombassa being a part of Zanzibar are a myth (largely because Mombassa and Zanzibar were BOTH part of the British East Africa protectorate at this time in history). Simply look at the following images and see for yourself. Mombassa is on the mainland just west of the 40 degree longitude and the 4 degree latitude intersection.

1892 German Map of Africa - Mombassa (listed as Mombas) is part of "Brit. Ost-Afrika" and "Sansibar" is a British Protectorate. This map was drawn shortly after Britain acquired Zanzibar, and thus Mombassa, in 1890

1895 Map of Africa - Shows Mombassa, along with the island of Zanzibar, as part of British East Africa.

1911 British East Africa Map - Shows Mombassa in British East Africa (the island of Zanzibar is also included as a British protectorate)

1960 National Geographic Map of Africa - Africa as it approximately appeared at the time of Obama's birth. Mombassa is part of "Keyna, U.K." as is Zanzibar Island.

Here are several additional historical maps of Africa showing Mombassa. Each proves that the claim about Mombassa being a part of Zanzibar at Obama's birth is a myth.

This bogus "African Birth Certificate" doesn't say "British Protectorate of East Africa", ergo, it's a fraud. QED.

Steve, there's more to this story here. I can't speak for the document(s) having not seen them, but just because the documents don't have "British Protectorate of East Africa" stamped across it, it does NOT necessarily mean the docs are bogus, especially for a non-governmental entity as a hospital. The registrar's office at the time was going through changes in the early 60's, too — see indications of that below.

The Muslims who lived in the Zanj, or ten-mile (coastal) strip which surrounded Mombasa (note the spelling), were a very strong political force for the Brits to contend with. The Brits gave the “arabs” of the small, but strategically-important region, more latitude and autonomy than the rest of the protectorate to prevent unrest by the radicals there. Peace talks in London in 1961 (AND BEFORE) signaled that the UK would eventually have to give up the region back to the locals who lived there:

Before Kenya became independent and at the beginning of the Lancaster House constitutional talks, the British Government and the Sultan appointed a commissioner, James R. Robertson in September 1961 ‘to report to the Sultan of Zanzibar and Her Majesty's Government jointly on the changes which are considered to be advisable in the 1895 Agreement relating to the coastal strip of Kenya as a result of the course of constitutional development of East Africa.’ He visited the Kenya Colony, the coastal strip and Zanzibar (note: considered to be three different regions) to collect the views of all the stakeholders. Views were divided as to whether the coastal strip should be treated as a single entity with Kenya Colony, or whether it should be handed back to the Sultan of Zanzibar or it be treated as an independent entity and declared Independent. (source: KENYA REVIEW COMMISSION ON THE KADHI'S COURTS)

Part of the deal in which the Sultan of Zanzibar surrendered his Sovereignty claims over the Coastal strip on Oct 5, 1963, was consideration that the Kenya Government would CONTINUE to respect and safeguard the maintenance of the Sharia Law for Muslims and the retention of the Kadhi’s Courts. They were concerned they would be annexed by other countries who followed different factions of Islam.

There's plenty of newspapers articles that indicates the people in the Zanj region FORMALLY called themselves KENYA before the rest of the nation. They "formally" became KENYA, on Oct 5, 1963, before rest of the British Protectorate gained its independence from the UK on Dec 12, 1963 — most people are unaware of this (because Wiki doesn't say so - LOL)! Information regarding this is in the LONG 10,000-plus post thread, around the 5,000-post point and beyond. It was a pride and independence thing for the people on Mombasa and the surrounding Zanj, or ten-mile strip region. It was also a VERY important aspect of LAND OWNERSHIP, which is still fought by the people who live there in 2009.

Curious .. the photography site of his son has been scrubbed.

http://www.angawaimages.com/

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