Seggae riots in Mauritius
Witness History
English - February 21, 2023 09:00 - 9 minutes - 4.15 MB - ★★★★★ - 853 ratingsHistory Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
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Mauritian musician Kaya, who pioneered a new genre called seggae, fusing reggae and sega, died in police custody on 21 February 1999.
His death sparked three days of rioting. People believed Kaya had been beaten to death.
Veronique Topize, Kaya's widow demanded an independent autopsy and President Cassam Uteem travelled into the heart of the disorder to appeal directly to the rioters to put down their weapons and go home.
Veronique Topize and Cassam Uteem shared their memories with Reena Stanton-Sharma.
(Photo: Painting of Kaya (left). Credit: BBC)