Not long past, I sat in a classroom, subtopic; The Maji Maji War. Let me jog your memory; the spiritual medium Kinjikitile “Bokero” Ngwale led a number of Tanganyikans in the uprising until it became a war lasting from 1905 to 1907, resulting in the deaths of 75,000 to 300,000.
The above is all I knew, but Agnes Lisa Wegner and Cece Mlay’s; The Empty Grave brought the story full circle as it follows the lives of John and Cecilia Mbano as they look for the remains of their Great Grandfather, Nduna (Chief) Songea Mbano, leader of the Ngoni Community.
Having first premiered at the Berlinale Film Festival in Germany, this documentary delves deep into the generational responsibility bestowed to John amidst the toll of bearing the reality of Songea’s grueling execution. In the Maji Maji war, the Germans captured 68 Tanganyikans and hanged them publicly on a tree locally known as Chikunguti. Upon their death, they were buried in a mass grave. Songea however was exhumed and his body decapitated, his skull exported to Germany.
The same pain is shared with Ernest and Felix Kaaya, descendants of Mangi (Chief) Lubulu Kaaya, from the Meru Community whose skeletons were exported to Germany and found in the United States in 2022. The two try to navigate the bureaucracy of repatriation and come to terms with their ancestor’s history.
April 23, Wednesday 2025, saw the film screened at the Goethe Institute Nairobi, with co-director Cece Mlay in attendance. The room’s silence reflected the state of mind of the audience as they sat through the film. 
Coupled with brilliant cinematography, evoking music and sound effects, the film was rather calm considering the type of themes portrayed. A balance of the Tanzanian and German point of view shone a spotlight to the shame felt by the latter upon learning from other mediums of the inhumane nature of some of their ancestors towards the people of Tanganyika.
The aforementioned echoes the failure of not only the German curriculum but Tanzania’s in delving deep to the realities of German occupation 130 years ago, this probably due to international relations between the two.
However, The Empty Grave acts as a barrier breaker as it is set to screen at the University of Dar Es Salaam and pushing for other screenings in other learning institutions.
This begs the question, hapa nyumbani, are there historical records shrank or distorted in our curriculum that need exposure, if so which are they, and how do we find them?
The Empty Grave’s ability to reveal so much without instigation of any kind reflects the power of film in inspiring action.
Instead of just telling facts, art tells stories. It tugs at our emotions and spurs us to do something. We are transformed by stories of healing, and renewed by engaging in creative practices,” Contra-Tiempo
