Lady Justice Joyce Alouch, a Kenyan Judge sitting at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has bagged the 2018 Fletcher Memorial Award.
Being the first African to be feted with one of Fletcher School’s top awards in the United States, Alouch has finished her 9-year term at the ICC in the Hague, Netherlands.
Justice Aluoch was recognized as a distinguished graduate who promoted the institution's standards.
She scooped the 2018 Fletcher Award due to the top roles she played during her service both in Kenya and internationally and by embodying and upholding the Fletcher Mission ideas throughout her career.
According to the University's Dean Prof Ian Johnstone, each annual recipient is honoured with a bronze and relief plaque which is hung in the Hall of Flags in the Carbot Intercultural Centre.
Acknowledging the award, Lady Justice Alouch stated: "I am humbled and grateful to be the recipient of the Fletcher class of 1947 memorial award. My heart is full and my spirit light.
"I may stand before you as someone with a rich legal experience and who has lived a full life but in many aspects, my story is like your own," she added denoting the challenges she has encountered in her legal career.
During her 9-years at the ICC, Alouch served as the First Vice president, Trial Division where she indicated that she "has lived a full life in the legal sector".
Having demonstrated hard work and resilience, Justice Aluoch did not shy from noting how she stumbled on her career.
"Law was never my choice but my fathers', he woke me up some morning, walked me to a law school and registered me," she revealed.
"He wanted the best of me and legal profession was his best choice. Today as I stand here, I have never regretted," Justice Alouch concluded.
