F rom May 22–31, the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) brought four U.S. delegates to participate in a nine-day study tour in Vietnam. A second phase of an exchange program supported by the U.S. Department of State’s Read more »»

I n early October, the Moroccan parliament passed a landmark law to protect trial witnesses and experts, as well as whistleblowers who report corruption. Working with Morocco’s Anti-Corruption Commission, l’Instance Centrale de Prévention de la Corruption (ICPC), the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) provided research assistance for this legislation, providing analogous legal codes from other countries in the region, and drafting and amending the initial text to produce the final law. Read more »»

In The News: Mobile Courts in Congo

ABA ROLI’s mobile court program in the Democratic Republic of Congo was covered in several media outlets in November. In “On Rape’s Front Line,” the Times Live (South Africa) discusses our Open Society Institute for Southern Africa-funded access to justice program and how it combats impunity for rape crimes and offers counseling to rape survivors. The Economist cites that our mobile gender courts are both effective and a good value for the money in its November 26 piece, “Cosy club or sword of righteousness?”

T he Philippine judiciary is beset with major constraints in resources from dispersed and fragmented court facilities, inadequate staff and supplies, and archaic rules and laws that weaken the capacity of local courts to respond to increasing public needs. As a direct consequence, courts are challenged by large case backlogs and caseloads. Putting performance management at the forefront of judicial reform measures, the Supreme Court, in partnership with the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), spearheaded the establishment of a monitoring and evaluation system for all first level trial courts in the country. Read more »»

T ravelers to Ganja—Azerbaijan’s second-largest city and the economic center of the country’s rural west—find an ancient cultural center that has grown into a bustling commercial marketplace. Yet, they are rarely aware that Ganja is also a major hub for Azerbaijan’s human trafficking networks. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and committed local activists, many of whom are lawyers, are often the only forces fighting the problem.

The ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) trains those activists, advocates, lawyers and NGO representatives who are striving to curb human trafficking. Read more »»

During a November 7 Good Morning America broadcast, ABC News anchor Ron Claiborne shared some highlights from his recent trip to Tajikistan, where he served as an expert for an ABA Rule of Law Initiative program teaching journalism techniques to students in Tajikistan. Watch video »»

O n October 1, the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) launched a new program in Papua New Guinea that will work to prevent violence against women and human rights abuses associated with extractive industries. The human rights-focused program, which is funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, will train judges and lawyers and build awareness within local communities of legal services, remedies and resources. Read more »»

T he ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) and the International Commission of Jurists co-sponsored an October 18–23 conference on international human rights law in Geneva. A total of 20 lawyers from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan attended the conference, which provided participants with practical training on international human rights instruments and enforcement mechanisms. Read more »»

O n September 24, the Media Rights Institute (MRI) of Azerbaijan published its Media Rights Manual in Baku. More than 130 journalists, lawyers—including those representing journalists prosecuted in relation to their participation in the 2011 opposition protests—and representatives of various news agencies, and local and international non-governmental organizations attended the event. Read more »»

T he ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) will partner with the University of the South Pacific (USP) to host an exchange program in 2012 for 24 young legal professionals. Employing a legal empowerment approach, the program will focus on enhancing participants’ skills to advocate for and provide legal services to women. While governments in the Pacific recognize the challenges of addressing violence against women, lack of exposure to best practices, a small pool of women’s rights advocates and limited understanding of international legal standards among the advocates has hindered progress in protecting and advancing women’s rights in the region. With support from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Professional Fellows Program, the program will work with young lawyers from selected Pacific Island nations to create a stronger, better-educated group of advocates empowered to advance the rights of women, particularly those who have experienced violence. Read more »»