Bishkek, June 13, 2020 / Kabar /. On 12 June 2020 Louise Chamberlain, UNDP Resident Representative met with Marat Dzhamankulov, Minister of Justice during the visit of Bishkek Free Legal Aid Center. She also handed over two minibuses to the MOJ to support the Bus of Solidarity initiative.
Through the Bus of Solidarity, lawyers, social workers, and other professionals take regular van trips to rural areas of the country, offering free legal advice on a range of matters. They go where other lawyers do not, leaving the relative affluence of urban centers such as Bishkek, the capital, to travel to the mountains which house two-thirds of Kyrgyzstan’s population. While they help men and women alike on a spectrum of legal issues, they are especially vital in empowering and protecting women. Moreover, the bus presents a uniquely adaptable, flexible approach to addressing the intersections of rural poverty, gender equality, and law.
During the event, Marat Dzhamankulov noted the high results of the cooperation between the UNDP and the Ministry. He highlighted that with the expert support of the UNDP, a law on free legal aid was developed, and citizens living in remote areas not only learned about the law, but also received a legal support.
Louise Chamberlain addressed the participants in the ceremony, noting that the FLA Centers and the Solidarity Bus allowed thousands of women to access civil documents, such as birth certificates, and exercise their rights in areas such as land law, family law, divorce and child support, inheritance, child custody and freedom from violence:
“The Free Legal Aid Centers and the Bus of Solidarity are clearly a success story for the Kyrgyz Republic. Hopefully, from today, the services they provide in raising legal awareness, strengthening linkages between the government and the people and addressing urban-rural inequities in justice and development, will be further scaled up. We hope that the services they provide in the field of raising legal awareness and strengthening ties between the government and the people will continue to expand and continue,” said the head of UNDP.
To remark, the UNDP has been cooperating with the Ministry of Justice for more than 20 years and results of partnership are impressive: a law on free legal aid was adopted, thousands of people living in remote and rural learnt about the law and received legal support, 27 Free Legal Aid Centers were established in cities and villages of Kyrgyzstan. UNDP in Kyrgyzstan supported the opening of 13 FLA Centers.
During the meeting the Minister and the UNDP Resident Representative discussed further strategic cooperation and then Ms. Louise Chamberlain handed over the keys of two minibuses to Mr. M. Dzhamankulov. This was organized to expand the legal aid in the country with the financial support of the Government Finland and the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund.
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