Events

As Liberia continues its struggle to rebuild institutions destroyed by years of brutal conflict, the rule of law has emerged as a focus area of national and international development efforts.  A key policy question concerns the future of Liberia’s dual justice system under which a hierarchy of chiefs’ courts managed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs exists in parallel to the formal judiciary.  Co-authors Deborah Isser and Stephen Lubkemann discuss the policy implications of the newest USIP Peaceworks with the Chair of the Liberian Law Reform Commission.

Representatives of the Partners for Democratic Change's new Center in Colombia, the United States Institute of Peace, and the Due Process of Law Foundation will host a roundtable discussion about these mechanisms for democratizing justice at the community level. Discussion with invited experts will explore other experiences of community dispute resolution, as well as the challenges community justice mechanisms face and how they have been addressed. 

Women are an important part of the peacebuilding equation. Too often they are excluded or marginalized in the peace process. Limiting or excluding women in the peacebuilding process not only leaves a critical resource untapped but also hinders a society's recovery. Admission fee is required.

In the aftermath of violent conflict in countries such as Nepal, public distrust of the police can undermine justice and security sector reform efforts and weaken the rule of law.  How can justice and security sector reform be approached in a way that strengthens the rule of law?

Three weeks after the August 20th national elections, the outcome of the election remains contested. Results posted by Afghanistan’s Independent Election Commission show President Hamid Karzai at 54% and his main challenger Dr. Abdullah at 28% with 91.6% of polling stations tallied. But widespread allegations of fraud have marred the results,  with over 2000 complaints filed to the Afghan Elections Complaints Commission (ECC). Please join us for a discussion of these issues with experts just arrived from Afghanistan, all of whom have observed the Afghan political process up close for the last few years.