Josephine Sinyo

Josephine Sinyo is a Kenyan lawyer, politician and disability rights activist. She is a member of Kenya's parliament, having become in 1998 the country's first blind person to be elected an MP.

Early life and education

Josephine Sinyo is blind since having measles when she was three years old. She studied for her bachelors (LLB) at the University of Nairobi and a masters (LLM) at the University of Hull in England.[1]

Career

Experiences she had after giving birth to a child pushed her towards disability rights activism and she became chief executive officer of the Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC).[2] She is also a trustee of the National Fund for People with a Disability.[3]

In 1998, she was nominated for member of parliament by the Safina Party and was elected, becoming Kenya's first blind person to be an MP.[4][1] She has also worked at the High Court of Kenya and the attorney general's office.[1] A former MP, Dt Oki Ooko Ombaka]] had become blind during his service.[5]

Awards and recognition

Sinyo has received a number of state awards including the Order of the Grand Warrior (OGW) of Kenya (2006), the Excellence Service Award (2015) and the Elder of the Burning Spear (2017).[1]

Publications
  • Environmental Law and Women, 1993[6]

See also

References
  1. pm, Ezra Manyibe on 21 January 2020-1:43 (21 January 2020). "Ambitious Woman Who Was Kenya's First Blind MP". Kenyans.co.ke. Retrieved 2021-02-26.
  2. Obiria, Moraa (21 December 2020). "I was blindly accused of stealing a baby". Nation. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
  3. "World Rowing - Kenya rows in East Africa Regional Rowing Championships". World Rowing. Retrieved 2021-02-26.
  4. "Kenya: Joy as blind woman is nominated MP". Daily Nation. 28 October 1998. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
  5. "Kenya: Moi Formalises Nomination Of Blind MP". Daily Nation. 13 November 1998. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  6. Sinyo, Josephine (1993). "Environmental Law and Women in In: Women in Development and Environment Network. Proceedings of the Kenya Assembly of Women and Environment 'Partners in life'. Nairobi: Women in Development and Environment Network". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
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