From Fear to Hope: Upholding the Rule of Law via Public Defenders (Innovations Case Narrative: International Bridges for Justice)

Abstract

tured, and denied access to counsel. In recent years, however, the majority of transitional and post-conflict countries have demonstrated their commitment to human rights by signing international conventions and passing domestic laws to safeguard citizen rights. Unfortunately, many of these new laws remain unenforced due to a lack of trained lawyers, legal infrastructure, and resources. As a result, torture remains the instrument of choice as the cheapest form of investigation. Although this human rights issue threatens millions of people all over the world, the human rights advocacy community has focused much of its efforts on higher profile political prisoners and on developing the international and local prosecutorial side of the justice system. Without support for the local implementation of the rule of law, which includes effective defense counsel, the vast majority of ordinary citizens are still left vulnerable to everyday practices of brutality and lack of due process rights. International Bridges to Justice (IBJ) was founded to fill this gap by focusing on the local implementation of laws safeguarding citizen rights and by strengthening the critical, and most often neglected, defender side of the scale. IBJ aims to ensure that citizens in all countries have access to basic legal rights, including competent representation, protection from torture, and a fair trial. IBJ started in 2001 with a focus on China. For the past six years, IBJ has helped bring about both widespread and targeted changes in China. For instance, IBJ conducted criminal defense training in China in a unique partnership with public authorities. It also has held nationwide annual public awareness campaigns that China’s legal aid community heralded as the start of a legal rights revolution. An example of a more targeted change is the opening of the first juvenile interrogation room in Sichuan Province, China. Equipped with video recording equipment for interrogations, this room ensures better protection of juvenile defense rights. As part of this initiative, legal aid lawyers will also be given timely access to inter-