How often would the death of a senior counsel be mourned by Mathare Social Justice Center as well as by Bunge la Mwananchi, the latter by an event in Jeevanjee Gardens? That is precisely what has happened since the sad news of the death of Pheroze Nowrojee. These are in addition to a torrent of tributes through traditional and social media. They show what an impact he had on people’s lives. Many have praised him as a mentor and friend, as a courageous defender of right and rights.

His commitment to justice was a lifelong thing, partly owed to the example of his lawyer-father. Pheroze has often recounted how his father took him to the “Lari massacre” trial in 1953, in which his father appeared for some of the accused, and its impact on him, Pheroze (watch, for example, the KBC “Living Legends” interview at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjM588LLPx8).

Pheroze was a lawyer with the commitment and skills Katiba Institute hoped to emulate when it began its work 14 years ago. Indeed, Pheroze appeared in our first case in the Supreme Court—the issue was whether the annual Division of Revenue Bill should go through the Senate as well as the National Assembly.

He was punctilious when it came to matters like court rules and writing correct English. He was passionate about justice, rights, and the Constitution, a passion that he expressed in court and out. Not every good lawyer is also passionate about people and justice, but he was all of these.

As a person, he was charming, warm, and generous with his time, as many have said.

He was fascinated by and very knowledgeable about East African history. He was the intellectual backbone and curator of a project that all will soon be able to witness – a permanent exhibition at the Nairobi National Museum on the lives and contributions of the Asian communities of the region. He was once a law teacher in Dar es Salaam, then in Nairobi. He was a poet and a writer, particularly of a fascinating book about his family, short stories, and most recently, a book about law practice in East Africa, drawing on his own experience. He wrote a book about Zanzibar plates with his wife, drawing substantially on their collection. You might call him a “Renaissance man” (with “profound knowledge or proficiency in more than one field”), though that itself would ignore the personality and the passion.

As a patriot, writer, lawyer, activist, friend, and mentor to many, he will be enormously missed.

Katiba Institute joins others in offering our sincere condolences to his family.

Image :https://icj-kenya.org