CISDL Dialogues on Legal Empowerment of the Poor (LEP)
The CISDL Secretariat and Director, in collaboration with IDLO and numerous CISDL members, drafted a discussion paper on the topic of LEP. The background for the paper was the global Commission for the Legal Empowerment of the Poor (LEP), chaired by Madeleine Albright and Hernando de Soto, which released in 2008 a comprehensive report on LEP. The Commission was launched in 2005 by a group of leading developing and developed countries, including Canada, and directed by Dr Naresh Singh. Following the Report, the United Nations General Assembly acknowledged the importance of LEP in terms of its poverty eradication goals and initiatives (See UNGA Resolution A/C.2/64/L.4/Rev.2, 3 December 2009). “Over 4 billion people are “robbed of the chance to better their lives and climb out of poverty, because they are excluded from the rule of law.” LEP, conceptualised broadly in terms of access to justice, property rights, labour rights and business rights, is proposed to provide the opportunity for those living in poverty to improve their conditions and secure more sustainable development. The discussion paper was meant as a supporting document for a Canadian Roundtable on LEP, organized by the CISDL & IDLO on March 21 2011 in Ottawa. The Roundtable attracted numerous significant Canadian stakeholders, including for example the Canadian Bar Association; the Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice; the National Judicial Institute; the International Development Research Centre; the Canadian International Development Agency; the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs Canada; Indian & Northern Affairs Canada; Justice Canada; Natural Resources Canada; the Barreau de Quebec; the North-South Institute; the Institute for the Study of International Development; Pro Bono Quebec; the Ontario Social Justice Cluster of Tribunals, and other leading Canadian government departments, universities and legal empowerment institutions. The Roundtable was chaired by the CISDL Director and Dr. Naresh Singh, and generated a lively and interactive discussion on the contribution of Canada to international LEP initiatives. Participants with a wide array of experiences and backgrounds discussed challenges and barriers to LEP, and shared strategies and success stories in terms of overcoming these challenges and determinants of successful initiatives.
Report available for download CISDL – LEP Roundtable Discussion Paper