ERNEST CORNEL: Pheroze’s memorial could not come at a more oppressive political moment

Today at 3 pm, we gather at the National Museums of Kenya to celebrate the life and legacy of Senior Counsel Pheroze Nowrojee, who passed away in the US on April 5, 2025, at the age of 84. 

Pheroze is now resting in power, where people like him belong, because he spent his life challenging injustice and upholding the constitution, even in Kenya’s most turbulent political seasons.

He believed that the law must serve the people, not oppress them. In his hands, the constitution became a sword and a shield, wielded in defence of the oppressed and in resistance against authoritarianism.

His memorial could not come at a more oppressive political moment. As we reflect on Pheroze’s towering contributions to the legal profession and human rights, we must also confront the unsettling escalation of state intimidation and repression under William Ruto’s regime. The regime has waged an assault on the very ideals Pheroze dedicated his life to defending. 

On June 26, three activists—Francis Mutunge, John Mulingwa and Mark Amiani—were arbitrarily arrested and slapped with trumped-up charges. Just days later, on July 5, Martin Mavenjina of the Kenya Human Rights Commission was detained upon arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport from South Africa and was extraordinarily and illegally renditioned to Uganda in a blatant violation of his rights.

Then on Sunday, at 2.08 pm, as Kenyan women prepared to address the press on extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and arbitrary arrests during protests, state-hired militia violently stormed the KHRC offices in Nairobi and attacked those inside, stealing valuable items.

I know without a doubt what Pheroze would have done. He would have stood firmly on the side of justice and reminded us, as he often did, that “history is society’s early warning system.” He would have recognised these patterns of repression, having lived and fought through Kenya’s darkest political chapters, particularly during the one-party dictatorship of the 1980s and 1990s.

Back then, he took up the legal defence of political prisoners, activists, journalists and opposition figures at great personal risk. He practised law and weaponised it in the service of freedom and justice. As Gina Din rightly said, “When the law was being weaponised against the people, Pheroze chose to wield it in their defence.”

If he were here, Pheroze would be in court, where he had set landmark precedents, holding the regime accountable for these atrocities and forcing the law to live up to its promise. 

His legendary 40-minute submission during the 2017 presidential petition, which led to the Supreme Court annulling the presidential election, a first in Africa, remains a masterclass in constitutional fidelity and civic courage. It’s a lesson we must revisit, especially as the next general election looms amid evidence of authoritarian backsliding.

But Pheroze did not leave us unprepared. He foresaw the ongoing struggles and deliberately cultivated a generation of progressive lawyers and human rights defenders to carry the torch forward. 

He generously mentored judges, scholars and advocates, many of whom now occupy influential positions within Kenya’s legal and civic landscape. For Pheroze, mentorship was a duty he discharged with humility, generosity and fierce conviction.

Today, we, the people Pheroze inspired, mentored and fought for, are gathering to celebrate his legacy. To celebrate a brilliant legal mind, a fearless public intellectual and a principled dissenter who stood tall when it mattered most.

As we honour him, let us commit to defending the ideals he stood for and to resisting the injustice he warned us about. The baton has been passed. May we run this race with the courage and clarity that Pheroze demonstrated.

Senior communications officer at the Kenya Human Rights Commission