Inspiring Defender Excellence
During the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and ’70s, China’s legal system was completely dismantled. There were no law firms, no lawyers, and no prosecution system. Since then, China has invested heavily in efforts...
Imprisonment as a family affair: One family’s acquittal after years in prison
During one of his regular prison visits to the prison of Bururi, IBJ lawyer Janvier Ncamatwi identified five family members who were imprisoned and awaiting their trial, accused of willful destruction of property. After...
Wrong place, wrong time: One Auto-Rickshaw driver accused of abetting abduction released home to his wife and children after IBJ’s help
Prithu* is a 50-year-old street hawker who earns his living by selling eggs in a quiet neighborhood of north Delhi. He says he spent nearly all of his savings trying to get his 28-year-old...
Meet Baru, pinned as a terrorist in a new city
Baru*, a resident of a small village in West Bengal, travelled to Delhi in 2005 with the hope of earning enough money to provide sustenance to his family back home. A trained tailor, Baru...
Bankrupt and accused of breach of trust, Ary found help in IBJ
By Marcena Winterscheidt In December of 2007, Ary* borrowed $5,000 from a local middleman to invest in property. The man worked in the front office of the provincial hall, a position of influence and...
Justice Even for the Guilty
IBJ promotes bridges to justice. But who is justice for? And what does justice mean? Is it for the victim, to see a guilty person punished? Is justice for the accused, to ensure his...
Aditya and the Confession
In India, one of the most basic Common Law principles is “better that ten guilty escape than that one innocent suffer.” While the Indian criminal justice system is based along these lines, trial courts...
IBJ India conducted latest Rights Awareness Campaign for Convicted Prisoners at Central Jail No.2 Tihar (New Delhi)
On 8th March 2013, International Bridges to Justice (India) endeavored to inform convicted inmates in Tihar Jail (New Delhi) about their rights, focusing on the right to appeal but also the entitlement to parole,...
Acquitted for a Second Time on Appeal
When IBJ first met Makara in 2009, IBJ’s provincial lawyer in Pursat successfully defended him against a murder charge. The prosecution appealed and as is usual practice, he remained in detention until an appeal...
A Legacy of Support for the Rule of Law in China
Published by Chinese Business Review January-March 2013 US-China Legal Cooperation Fund A Legacy of Support for the Rule of Law in China by Anne Phelan In the spring of 1999, when the US-China Legal Cooperation...