Draft Legal Aid Law Unveiled in Kyrgyzstan
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan—The administration of the president of Kyrgyzstan today officially presented a new draft law on legal aid which, if passed, would create a national system of legal aid management and delivery in Kyrgyzstan.
The new legislation would fulfill Kyrgyzstan's obligation, under international law and the national constitution, to provide effective access to justice and to guarantee free legal aid for indigent criminal defendants. The draft law limits the scope of legal aid to criminal matters at this stage, but also opens opportunities for future extension of the system to administrative and civil matters.
The draft, announced to representatives of the government, legal community, and civil society, is the result of a one-year drafting process led by the working group on reform of the legal aid system, set up by the president of Kyrgyzstan. The Open Society Justice Initiative and Soros Foundation-Kyrgyzstan provided input on the draft. The announcement is the latest step in the reform process, which the Ministry of Justice began in 2004 in partnership with Soros Foundation-Kyrgyzstan and the Justice Initiative.
According to the draft, a national council on legal aid will assume responsibility for the overall development and evaluation of legal aid policies. A specialized department under the Ministry of Justice will be responsible for implementing those policies and providing access to free legal counsel immediately upon arrest or within limited time in other cases. The financial test for meeting the eligibility requirements will be performed according to clear and straightforward procedures, defined in the law. Lawyers wishing to provide publicly-funded legal aid will have to apply for registration with the Ministry of Justice and will need to meet new standards established under this legislation. The bar association of Kyrgyzstan will have responsibility for ensuring the quality of participating lawyers.
It is expected that the parliament of Kyrgyzstan will consider the draft law by the end of 2007.