Okay - you've gotten some information about my pending post as a law clerk / attorney advisor to the President of the Supreme Court of Rwanda. Here is a bit more detail:
the project I'm working for is funded by USAID, and is being administered by a group in D.C. called Chemonics International (a for-profit international development consulting company). The project I'm working for is called "Strengthening the Rule of Law for Policy Reform, 2009-2011." A description follows:
The 1994 genocide left scars on the Rwandan justice system as well as its people. Courthouses were destroyed, and citizens lost their trust in the government’s ability to resolve conflict. To rebuild its judicial system, in 2003 Rwanda began implementing wide judicial reform, overhauling the system to create new courts, procedures, and academic standards for judges, lawyers, and senior registrars. The Strengthening Rule of Law for Policy Reform project is helping the Government of Rwanda in its efforts, working along two tracks: institutional capacity building and regulatory reform. For the first, the project will work with the Institute for Legal Practice and Development to develop postgraduate curriculum for both Rwandan law graduates and active judicial professionals. For the second, the project will work with the government to extend its reforms to promote judicial independence and to enhance civil liberties by supporting the creation of a Law Reform Commission, by increasing opportunities for citizen input on new legislation, and by strengthening the Legal Drafting Units in the Ministry of Justice and the Parliament. E-solutions will be developed to help judges to research and apply the law and allow lawmakers to collaborate on drafting legislation. Through these efforts, the project will be supporting the growth of an efficient and effective judiciary that is more responsive to Rwandan citizen’s needs.
I'm still waiting on details, which should be here in the coming weeks, but all is a go! It is most likely a Christmas in the U.S. for me, but we are not sure, given my time home, whether we'll be leaving Ohio. More details will follow when I get my travel itineraries.
Janet and I are excited, and nervous, and agreed that we're not looking forward to the time apart. We're constantly being creative at how to spend more quality time now, and see each other a lot while I'm in Rwanda. No doubt, I'll be blogging about my experience while I'm away.
