Dr. Wangari Maathai, laid to rest in Kenya
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- JanforGore
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Mrs Maathai was cremated in a casket made of bamboo, water hyacinth and papyrus so that no trees would be cut down
A state funeral for Nobel Peace Prize winner and environmentalist Wangari Maathai has taken place at a Kenyan national park she fought to save.
Mrs Maathai, whose Green Belt Movement planted an estimated 45 million trees in Kenya, died last month of cancer.
Thousands of mourners lined the route of the procession to the funeral in Uhuru National Park in Nairobi.
President Mwai Kibaki praised her courage, tenacity and "selfless service to the nation".
Mrs Maathai, who died on 25 September, was the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, in 2004. She won the award for her campaigns to promote conservation, women's rights and transparent government.
Global legacy
Mrs Maathai was the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize
Because she opposed cutting down trees, her remains were placed in a bamboo-frame coffin, made of water hyacinth and papyrus reeds and draped with a Kenyan flag. After the funeral, she was cremated at a private ceremony.
"The best way we can honour her is to carry on the great work she started especially in the fields of environmental conservation, social justice, human rights and democracy," President Kibaki told the crowd at Uhuru Park, where Mrs Maathai once campaigned to stop the construction of an office tower.
In 2008, Mrs Maathai was tear-gassed at a protest against President Kibaki's plan to increase the number of ministers in his cabinet.
snip
She became known as the Tree Mother of Africa.
More at the link
A state funeral for Nobel Peace Prize winner and environmentalist Wangari Maathai has taken place at a Kenyan national park she fought to save.
Mrs Maathai, whose Green Belt Movement planted an estimated 45 million trees in Kenya, died last month of cancer.
Thousands of mourners lined the route of the procession to the funeral in Uhuru National Park in Nairobi.
President Mwai Kibaki praised her courage, tenacity and "selfless service to the nation".
Mrs Maathai, who died on 25 September, was the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, in 2004. She won the award for her campaigns to promote conservation, women's rights and transparent government.
Global legacy
Mrs Maathai was the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize
Because she opposed cutting down trees, her remains were placed in a bamboo-frame coffin, made of water hyacinth and papyrus reeds and draped with a Kenyan flag. After the funeral, she was cremated at a private ceremony.
"The best way we can honour her is to carry on the great work she started especially in the fields of environmental conservation, social justice, human rights and democracy," President Kibaki told the crowd at Uhuru Park, where Mrs Maathai once campaigned to stop the construction of an office tower.
In 2008, Mrs Maathai was tear-gassed at a protest against President Kibaki's plan to increase the number of ministers in his cabinet.
snip
She became known as the Tree Mother of Africa.
More at the link
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- groups:
- Green, Sustainable Agriculture, Earth Care, Women, 2 more
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- tags:
- Environment, Africa, Kenya, Trees, 5 more
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Dagum
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Good Woman. I am not a hardcore greenie but I had tremendous respect for her and what she did.
- 4 years ago
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Dagum
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JanforGore
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Rest in peace, Tree Mother.
- 8 months ago
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JanforGore
