Kenyan becomes Sierra Leone Special Court Appeals judge
Justice Philip Waki, a prominent Kenyan jurist, has been sworn in as an alternate judge of the Appeals Chambers of the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL), which is yet to hand down verdict in the trial of former Liberian President Charles Taylor.
Waki made his solemn declaration Monday before Registrar Binta Mansaray at a special ceremony held in the Special Court’s courthouse in Freetown, a court press release said.
The solemn declaration was witnessed by Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Franklyn Bai Kargbo, on behalf of the Government of Sierra Leone, and by Acting Head of Mission, UNIPSIL Berhanemeskel Nega representing the United Nations.
Justice Waki joins the Appeals Chamber in advance of any appeal which may follow judgement in the trial of former Liberian President Charles Taylor. He was appointed jointly by the United Nations and the Government of Sierra Leone.
Justice Waki became a judge of the Kenya Court of Appeal in 2003, after having served as a Judge of the High Court of Kenya for nine years. Prior to 1995, he was in private law practice in Kenya since being called to the Bar in 1975.
Waki has worked actively for reform within the Kenyan judiciary. In 2008 he was named to head the Commission of Inquiry into Post-Election Violence in Kenya, also called the “Waki Commission,” to look into the political violence committed during Kenya’s 2007 elections.
In 2008 the International Commission of Jurists (Kenya) presented Justice Waki with the “Jurist of the Year Award.”
The Special Court is an independent tribunal established jointly by the United Nations and the Government of Sierra Leone and is mandated to bring to justice those who bear the greatest responsibility for atrocities committed in Sierra Leone after 30 November 1996.
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