Berkley Center

Bethuel Kiplagat was a former diplomat and Kenyan government official who served as the chairman of the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) from 2009 to November 2010, when he resigned after coming under investigation for past human rights abuses (particularly his role in the 1984 Wagalla Massacre). He was reinstated as TJRC chair in 2012 despite objections from other members of the commission. Kenya’s special envoy to the Somalia peace process from 2003 to 2005, Kiplagat headed the board of the African Medical and Research Foundation from 1991 to 2003. Prior to that he served in then-President Daniel arap Moi’s government for 13 years (1978-1991) as Kenya's ambassador to France, high commissioner to Britain, and permanent secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Kiplagat was also the founder and former executive director of Africa Peace Forum. He passed away in July 2017.