On Tuesday, 19th January, 2016, LexisNexis sponsored the launch of the Independent Lawyers Association of Myanmar (ILAM). Held in the capital city of Naypyidaw, the inaugural ILAM meeting was opened by David W Rivkin, President of the International Bar Association (IBA) and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi – prominent human rights activist, humanitarian, Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Burmese Opposition politician and President of the National League of Democracy.
ILAM is the first national, independent professional organisation of lawyers in the country, and is the conclusion of a three year capacity building program by the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) in Myanmar. Since 2013, the IBAHRI has worked with Myanmar lawyers to establish a consensus of the need for an independent body to represent the legal profession nationally, and brought together a national steering committee to design ILAM.
The inauguration ceremony was hosted by the country’s Parliamentary Committee on Rule of Law and Tranquility and also the IBAHRI. IBA Executive Director, Mark Ellis, said: “As Myanmar signals to investors that it is open for business, it is essential that ILAM works to safeguard the independence of the legal profession and push for greater legal certainty. The association has an essential role to play towards developing Rule of Law and access to justice as the country works towards democratisation, ending impunity and achieving greater protection of human rights.”
Veronica Rios, Head of Rule of Law and Emerging Markets for LexisNexis Asia Pacific, also attended the event and had the pleasure of meeting Daw Aung San Suu Kyi after the ceremony.
“What an honour it was to attend the ceremony and be in the presence of Aung San Suu Kyi who delivered the keynote address. She spoke of the role of ILAM in rebuilding the Rule of Law in Myanmar and urged practitioners to uphold professional standards and ethics in their practice. Afterwards when I met her, she thanked LexisNexis for the support and asked about our projects. I walked away in awe! It’s a great reminder of how our business is able to contribute in such a meaningful way through the work we do to uphold, promote and maintain the Rule of Law,” said Veronica.
http://info.lexisnexis.com.au/TJsHighlightsFeb2016#rule