This archive report was first published on 10 November 2019.
It was 1962, and I had just been offered a job at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. The job was a dream come true, but I was hesitant to accept it. My wife, Marie, and I had been living in Sheffield, England, and we were both concerned about the racial discrimination and political situation in Kenya.
My concerns were not unfounded. The Sharpeville shooting in South Africa had drawn international attention, and we had heard stories about the racial tensions in Kenya. I was worried that as a mixed-race couple, we would face discrimination and difficulties in Kenya.
When I was offered the job, I declined by saying that I was afraid of losing my rung on the ladder of a consultant's post in Britain and that we were scared of the political situation in Kenya and racial discrimination prevailing in the country.
The chairman of the panel replied, 'Judging by your references, your work is excellent but I am afraid your knowledge of geography is woefully lacking.' He added, 'As far as I know, there is a distance of two thousand miles between Nairobi and Johannesburg! My boy, you don’t know what you are throwing away.'
Despite the panel's efforts to persuade me to accept the job, I remained hesitant. I was concerned about the cost of living and easy availability of housing and foreign goods in Nairobi. Marie asked searching questions about these issues, and the Aga Khan's representatives were unsure of the answers.
However, the Aga Khan himself was more optimistic. He said, 'You have a week to think about it now.' I replied that even if I accepted the assignment, I couldn't go until March next year because I had a year's contract with Sheffield and I had to stay at least for a year to gain British citizenship, which I had applied for.
After our meeting with the Aga Khan, we returned to Sheffield and gave a blow-by-blow account of our interview to our friends and family. We were both relieved to have declined the job offer, but we knew that it was a difficult decision to make.
