Making the Law Work for Everyone
The Open Society Justice Initiative uses the law to promote and defend justice and human rights.
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How a Legal Aid Program is Tackling the Crisis of Nigeria’s Overcrowded Prisons
In Nigeria, the overuse of pretrial detentions has placed a crushing burden on the justice system and the nation's overcrowded jails. That's where the Police Duty Solicitors Scheme, a legal aid program that has helped over 15,000 suspects, comes in.
Q&A: How a System to Document Police Stops Improved Policing in Fuenlabrada, Spain
Police inspector and criminal justice expert David Martín Abánades shares his insights on the implementation of a new system to collect data on police stops in Fuenlabrada, Spain.
Kenya’s Controversial Digital ID Scheme Faces Pushback
Kenya ushered in a national biometric ID system with little public input. Now, advocates are challenging the government in the courts to ensure inclusive policies and data privacy.
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As part of the Open Society Foundations, the Justice Initiative shares its mission of building vibrant and inclusive democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens.
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Since 2003, Justice Initiative lawyers have represented scores of individuals before domestic and international courts, in cases that have sought not only to vindicate individual claims, but to establish and strengthen the law’s protection for all.
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Amid COVID-19 Lockdown, Justice Initiative Calls for End to Excessive Police Checks in France
The Open Society Justice Initiative has called on the French government to ensure that police checks carried out during COVID-19 do not use excessive, violent, or discriminatory force.
Acquittal Marks Advance for Struggle against Torture in Brazil
A criminal court in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, has for the first time acknowledged the validity of internationally agreed standards on effective legal and medical investigations into allegations of torture—resulting in the acquittal of seven torture survivors who had been tried for drugs-related charges.
Justice Initiative Sues U.S. Government for Denaturalization Records
In light of the Trump administration's use of denaturalization proceedings as a tool for general immigration enforcement, the Justice Initiative has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Departments of Justice and Homeland Security to obtain government records on the denaturalization and deportation of Americans.