In Memory of Nicholas Howen

Dear Lucy,


I am writing this from London at the time I know Nick’s funeral is going on. I have this clear picture in my head of his smile, his alert eyes and the animated eyebrows, the open palm gesture occasionally touching his chin.


I have known Nick for a very long time. It started in the days when he was legal advisor for Asia at Amnesty when he was involved in the approval of one of my first reports (on fair trial in the Maldives of all things). He labelled it a “good attempt at making a silk purse out of a pig’s ear” but in the end after a highly instructive exercise for me we managed to produce a report which was taken pretty seriously by the government. The cooperation went forward from there. In 1994, Nick undertook this very successful mission to Sri Lanka, where he was able to locate a secret place of detention in the heart of Colombo and even to take some pictures of it, which we later of course published in a report. That document became evidence in a case filed in the Supreme Court by one of the torture victims and the judgement referred to it as an impeccable source. I still remember the name of the victim – Jude Arulrajah.


Later on, as Nick moved up into the management echelons at Amnesty, we did not work together that closely. But each time we met in the corridor, he would ask about certain developments in Sri Lanka or other countries, always leaving me wondering how he managed to keep on top of things at such a level of detail and do all his other work to such a high quality (and quantity!).


Our paths crossed again in earnest while you were all living in Bangkok and Nick was working for OHCHR. I was researcher on Nepal at Amnesty and we were in very regular contact strategizing away at trying to get an OHCHR field office established. I have the fondest memories of his phone calls during my early morning. He would make them from his car while stuck in a Bangkok traffic jam, and they often came while I was cycling to AI across London traffic. Needless to say I had a long list of ideas of things to do by the time I got to my desk. And I felt energized to last me well into the afternoon!


A few years afterwards, while you were back in Geneva and Nick was at ICJ, this cooperation on Nepal continued. I remember fondly a dinner we all had at your house with David Petrasek, Christine, the children and I think Sue Appleyard who had only just arrived in Geneva. That’s the only time I saw a glimpse of Nick the father.


The last time I saw him was just before he got diagnosed with cancer. He had just returned from Australia having visited his mother and looked very tired. Of course, I attributed it to jetlag. Despite him being exhausted we had a stimulating strategy discussion on Nepal. In the months after that, when the news of his illness was only known to a small circle, I admit I got a little frustrated at the delay in the approval of my draft report – the result of a study of the Maoist “justice” system. But, then, in true Nick style, the hand-written meticulous comments rivalling the famous Ian Martin’s level of scrutiny arrived on the fax. I was grateful as always for them and of course duely incorporated them all.


I never had the opportunity to meet Nick after that last time. I had gained hope that we were going to work together again as I got news through friends that he was winning the fight against the cancer and that the treatment was successful. It’s indescribably sad that it wasn’t meant to be. Nick’s death is a tragic loss to so many, but his life has been and will continue to be an inspiration.
My thoughts are with you and the children and friends and colleagues at ICJ.