PBI Kenya recently hosted two events with a view to inform on how to better support Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) who find themselves in exile in Kenya.

On January 7th PBI Kenya’s partner Mathare Social Justice Centre (MSJC) celebrated the official opening of their new office in Mathare. At the event, PBI was proud to present MSJC’s administrative coordinator Stephen Kinuthia Mwangi with the Invisible Mandelas award, which he accepted on behalf of the members of MSJC. 

On December 8, 2016, PBI Kenya together with our partners at the Law Society of Kenya, Amnesty International Kenya and EACHRights, awarded the ECOSOC Pro Bono Lawyer Award 2016 to Allan Maleche, Executive Director of KELIN (Kenya Legal & Ethical Issues Network on HIV and AIDS).

On 25th November 2016 PBI Kenya, with financial support from the European Union, successfully launched the Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRD) Toolkit. The Toolkit seeks to empower and support WHRDs in Nairobi’s urban settlements.

Mathare-based human rights defender Ruth Mumbi and her family recently reached an important milestone in the search for justice for the alledged extrajudicial killing (EJK) of Mumbi’s brother-in-law Stephen Gichuru in May 2015.

In August, PBI Kenya facilitated a meeting between the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and Mathare Social Justice Centre (MSJC).

This year PBI is celebrating its 35th anniversary, and to honour the occasion PBI UK held a conference on June 17th with a focus on building enabling environments for human rights defenders (HRDs) at risk. The conference featured UN Special Rapporteur Michel Forst as the keynote speaker, and included several panels with participants from backgrounds in government, law, INGOs, and HRDs from Latin America, Nepal, and Kenya.

In early June, Mathare Social Justice Centre (MSJC) and  PAWA254 collaborated on a graffiti workshop in Mathare to officially launch MSJC’s ‘Art against violence’ campaign.

In March and April Kenyan HRD Gacheke Gachihi from Bunge la Mwananchi and Mathare Social Justice Centre has been on a highly successful speaking tour through the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Ireland, following a three-month fellowship at the University of York.

From 14-18 March PBI Kenya organised and facilitated a human rights training at Lake Elementaita, led by three experienced defence lawyers practising in the UK and Dubai.