The deadline for nominations for the 2011 Precedent Setter Awards is fast approaching. We need all nominations for great lawyers in their first ten years of practice in to us by February 15! Click here for all the details on how to nominate someone for this award.
Waikwa Wanyoike, one of the winners of the inaugural Precedent Setter Awards in 2010, was introduced to us with an amazing story: He went to law school after arriving in Canada in as a refugee from Kenya in 1997, and started his own solo immigration and criminal practice immediately after articling, and served as a supervising lawyer at Parkdale Community Legal Services.
Now, though, he’s taken an even bolder step. Here’s an excerpt from a letter Waikwa sent us last week:
Before I left Kenya in 1997, I was involved in a number of political advocacy initiatives that sought to pressurize the Kenyan government to change the Constitution. They included Citizens Coalition for Constutional Change (4C’s) — where I was a Board Member and the National Convention Executive Council (NCEC). At the time, the laws, including the Constitution, were so draconian that often those who criticized the political establishment would be detained for lengthy periods of time without charge and/or trial. Often, they would be severely tortured. The police also shot and killed those considered anti-government at whim. I was a student leader, and together with others, I was summarily expelled from university for my political and human rights activism. I was one of the lucky ones — some of my university colleagues were killed.
The push for the change of constitution was the recognition that, to change the oppressive nature of the state, we had to start with the Constitution — effectively overhauling the entire legal system and culture. It was not easy, and it was not until August 27, 2010 that Kenya gained a new constitution. I was happy to travel to Kenya then to witness the promulgation of a new constitution — which by any measure is significantly revolutionary.
When in Kenya in August/September 2010, a number of colleagues who had been involved in the campaign for a new constitution invited me to return to Kenya to assist with some aspects of the implementation of the Constitution. They included Prof. Yash Pal Ghai, a renowned Constitutional Designer and scholar, who the initial chair of the Constitution Review Commission of Kenya (CKRC). This was Godsend, since I had been planning my return to Kenya for a while, to give my contribution.
We are in essence creating a constitution institute, known as Katiba Institute (Katiba is swahili for Constitution) to assist in inter alia, in strategic public interest and Constitutional litigation — as well as constitutional education mostly for persons directly engaged in constitutional matters, such as lawyers and policy makers.
In addition, I am assisting as a technical consultant with the Kituo Cha Sheria (Centre for Legal Empowerment). Kituo is engaged in legal aid work as well as groundbreaking Public Interest Litigation on an array of issues, including the Bill of Rights, consumer rights and refugee rights. For more on Kituo’s work, you can visit its website at www.kituochasheria.or.ke.