The United Nations has scheduled a plenary session on Sept. 24 to discuss the rule of law
WASHINGTON (TrustLaw) - The United Nations will consider adopting principles for strengthening the rule of law as an essential part of its development and crisis prevention work when the heads of state from 193 countries gather in New York next week.
The high-level U.N. meeting on the rule of law will be the first event of its kind, and the first time since 2005 that these issues will be discussed by top leaders, the U.N. News Centre has said.
Even though the rule of law is embodied in the U.N. charter, there’s been a push for a clearer definition of how the principle should be applied to reflect the growing view that trusted legal procedures in a country, free from political intervention, are an important element in conflict prevention.
Providing people with security and justice through accountable institutions set up under the rule of law enables governments and its citizens to find solutions to conflict, said Jordan Ryan, director of the UN Development Programme’s Bureau of Crisis Prevention and Recovery.
“There is a strong link between protecting people from violence, building legal institutions and development,” Ryan said in releasing the agency’s report on Strengthening the Rule of Law.
U.N. staff and non-governmental organizations are drafting an action plan for the U.N. General Assembly to consider at its Sept. 24 session. The high-level plan would include a process for developing clear goals on the rule of law and for adopting measures to promote dialogue on the rule of law, according to the UN’s website.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is also encouraging member states to make individual pledges on the rule of law. But the issue has proved controversial, given the range of legal systems and differing views on human rights -- be it in the United States or Russia, Afghanistan or the Democratic Republic of Congo.
James Golson, executive director of the Open Society Initiative, wrote in a blog earlier this year that one element central to the rule of law is separation of law from political interference. He suggest that the United Nations includes three components in its resolution - that all crimes be thoroughly investigated including those where state officials may be involved; that the criminal process not be used to punish anyone for political expression; and that whistleblowers get effective legal protection.
The United Nations has long worked with countries emerging from war and conflicts to develop the building blocks for a safe society – setting up police forces, training on security, building courthouses and providing help with drafting legislation. But a policy to strengthen the rule of law would mark the first formal recognition that efforts must go beyond post-conflict efforts.
Effective rules could encompass methods for combating corruption and bribery in use of public resources, mechanisms for holding government officials accountable and for tracking improvements in the rule of law, justice and security.
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