Don’t worry Janet (or more importantly yet, mom) – the title of this post is not meant to question my decision to come to Kigali! It is meant to answer the most frequent question I have been asked during my month or so in Rwanda. What are you doing here?
It’s humorous, at times, especially when expats encounter each other for the first time, and one of them invariably asks “what are YOU doing here” – almost with an air is self-righteousness, as if to say “I’m here on a mission of great importance, what could you possibly be doing here that’s worth a damn.” Of course, none of us mean this, and usually laugh off the tone with which we inquire of one another.
But, the question is often asked (and with the illustrious Associate Dean of Students at the Pettit College of Law, a one Mindi Wells, having advertised my blog to the masses, it may be an appropriate time to give a bit of background to what I am doing here . . .
It all started with the cola wars in the mid-1980s. I was in primary school, and was pondering the international law implications of two multi-nationals battling it out on the global stage, and the effect of one foreign domestic court’s decision in another tribunal. Okay, that’s not it at all.
What REALLY happened is that I focused the majority of my elective studies in law school in the field of international law. Enough that I was awarded a certificate of study in the subject, and garnered enough credits to add one year of half-time study to earn my LL.M. in Ohio Northern’s program in Democratic Governance and Rule of Law. But, this still doesn’t explain how I got to the Supreme Court of Rwanda, or what I’m doing here.
As graduation was looming, and my esteemed peers and I anxiously searched for post-graduate employment, I kept finding that most careers in international law require some sort of experience. It was almost paradoxical that all jobs I found required experience, but I could find little opportunity to gain the experience needed to apply for these jobs. “Who do they even hire” I wondered, as I continued searching, frustrated with the fruits of my labors. Finally I spoke with my professor, Jean-Marie Kamatali. He himself is Rwandan, and frequently travels back here to assist with various projects, this time a USAID Justice Strengthening Program. I spoke with him shortly before a trip to Rwanda, and I was promised that he would see what he could come up with. Sure enough, upon his return, and correspondence with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, I got a one-year post as a clerk to the Chief Justice. The rest, as they say, is history. Well, recent history – I’ve only been here one month.
Of course, you’ve realized that I’ve still not answered the question – what am I doing here? Well, I thought it fruitful to explain how I got here. It makes sense to me, which is frankly all I care about in authoring this blog! But, I digress . . .
For those who aren’t familiar, judges in the U.S., and many other legal systems have the benefit of having one or more paid law clerks. These people are often, but not always, recent law grads, and in their first legal employment after graduation. Their tasks are similar – research and draft memos, opinions, orders, and other documents at the request of their assigned judge. Despite some legal minds engaging in academic discourse over whether the clerk has too much influence over the judge, it is generally agreed that the law clerk has become an integral part of the justice system in the States. At least, any law clerk will tell you this, which is good enough for me.
At the Supreme Court of Rwanda, we have a Chief Justice (known in the French vernacular as “Presidente”), an Associate Chief Justice (“Vice-President”), and twelve other Justices of the Court. However, as opposed to the U.S. Supreme Court’s model of four clerks per Justice, here there are four or five attorneys who work is a loosely similar role to that of a law clerk.
And then there’s me.
So what I do is work as a law clerk. Because the cases accepted by the Court are primarily in Kinyarwanda, my workload consists of cases that are filed in French. But, besides legal work in French, my English fluency will be well taken advantage of (even despite my public education). As Rwanda is transitioning from French to English as its operating language, Justices and Court personnel alike are happy to have a native speaker around to practice with. I have yet to develop a plan for one Justice a day to take me out to lunch or dinner for the exciting prospect of English conversation with yours truly, but I will let you know how that develops.
My other primary role is what is lovingly referred to in the development world as “capacity building.” Perhaps someone can comment and explain to me what this means!!! But really, I’ve been researching and preparing reports recommending changes to the operation of the Supreme Court, and the justice system as a whole that will help with a more efficient administration of justice. This is especially exciting because the justice system is in the middle of a transition from a civil law system to a hybrid common law / civil law system (for the non-lawyers out there, fear not, I will explain this in a future blog post – surely to be the most exciting yet!).
So, I’m acting as a law clerk and, I guess you can say consultant, to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, as they are in the midst of a (slowly) transitioning justice system. Pretty cool I think!
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