The story of Pete Ouko
Pete was arrested in 1998 and sentenced to death in 2001, at the age of 30. At the time, he was charged with his wife’s murder, a crime he has always denied. He spent almost 20 years in prison, most of it in very difficult conditions on Kenyan death row. He shared a cell of 2 by 2.50 meters up to 13 other prisoners.
His sentence was commuted in 2007 and he was finally released from prison in 2016. While in prison, Pete completed a law degree at the University of London and set up an organisation called Crime Si Poa, which works to prevent crime and support the reintegration of young people in conflict with the law.
Since then, Pete has been fighting for the truth about his wife’s passing and for the abolition of the death penalty in Kenya. In 2023, there were 120 people on death row in Kenya and Pete Ouko’s case embodies the flaws and injustices of the Kenyan criminal justice system.
Geneva : Participation to the 58th session of the Human Rights Council
Pete Ouko began his stay by participating in the side event “The Death Penalty and the Universal Peridoc Review (EPU)”, organised by ECPM, Culture pour la Paix et la Justice (CPJ) and Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO). Together with Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam (Director of Iran Human Rights), Honourable Christelle Vuanga (President of the Network of Congolese Parliamentarians Against the Death Penalty) and Raphaël Chenuil-Hazan (Executive Director of ECPM), Pete took part in a joint discussion on the death penalty and how it is dealt with in the Universal Periodic Review cycles.
This event brought together around forty participants, including around fifteen representatives of diplomatic missions, and was a great opportunity to highlight the stories of those directly affected by the death penalty and to make their voices heard by international bodies.
Paris : Conference at the Law Clinic of the Sorbonne and school interventions
Once in Paris, Pete participated in a conference co-organised with ECPM at the Sorbonne Law Clinic, by the university’s criminal law department, thanks to Gabriel Venosino, an ECPM volunteer and co-chair of the criminal department of the Law Clinic. Together with Marie-Lina Pérez, Head of the Africa-Asia Desk at ECPM, they presented the situation of the death penalty worldwide, with a particular focus on its dynamics in Africa and the situation in Kenya. Pete gave a moving testimony to the students, and then participated in several exchanges with them.
Afterwards, he took part in several school interventions in Île-de-France and Normandy, in particular in Georges Sand high school in Domont and Salvador Allende high school in Hérouville-Saint-Clair, and participated in an intervention at Unis Cité Paris, in front of about forty civic service volunteers. While creating a space for discussion on human rights, justice and reintegration, these interactions allowed over 150 high school students to learn more about the death penalty through a concrete testimony. Through these discussions, Pete captured the students’ attention and demonstrated the power and importance of civil engagment.
Rouen : Citizen meeting for the “Freedom Prize” in front of 120 high school students from Normandy
On the 1st of April, Pete spoke at the University of Mont-Saint-Aignan, in front of 120 high school students from Rouen and its surroundings. This meeting was part of a double event : including a youth citizen meeting organised by the Culture and Nature association and the Normandy Region and a voting event for the « Freedom Prize », co-organised with the International Institute for Human Rights and Peace of Caen.
Thanks to the great commitment of the students, who prepared a magazine in honour of Pete, and even a song written and performed by a student, this event was full of emotion and great discussions.
What is the “Freedom Prize” ?
The Freedom Prize invites young people aged between 15 to 25 years old from France and around the world to choose an inspiring person or organisation, committed to an exemplary fight for freedom.
Lyon : A message full of hope during two voting events for the “Freedom Prize” at the Jean-Paul Sartre high school and the Catholic University of Lyon
Pete’s stay ended in Lyon, firstly at the Jean-Paul Sartre high school in Bron, in front of 80 students for a voting event for the “Freedom Prize”. Secondly, he took part in another voting event organised jointly by ECPM and the Human Rights Institute of Lyon, in honour of the latter’s 40th anniversary. Pete told his story to an audience of 150 young people, most of them university students, who then voted for one of the three 2025 “Freedom Prize“ nominees.
What are the voting events for the “Freedom Prize” ?
The “Freedom Prize” is a three stage initiative, the last one is the online voting which invites 15-25 year olds from all over the world to nominate the laureate of the Freedom Prize from among the three people or organizations chosen by the international jury. The voting events allow the youth to meet a Great Witness and also to find out about the fights waged by the three nominees for the Freedom Prize and vote to determine the 2025 winner. This project is organised by the Normandy Region, implemented by the International Institute of Human Rights and Peace in Caen, a long-lasting partner of ECPM’s Education Programme.
Pete was invited to these events as a Great Witness to share his story and to campaign for the universal abolition of the death penalty, particularly in Kenya.
These events also included a presentation on the situation of the death penalty in France and worldwide by Laure Boukabza, Education Programme Manager at ECPM.
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