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ABA Center for Global Programs Annual Report 2022

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Overview

The American Bar Association Center for Global Programs (ABA CGP) is pleased to launch its 2022 Annual Report—covering a breadth of programmatic work from around the world between the ABA Center for Human Rights (CHR) and the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ROLI). 

In August 2022, Retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer became the new Chair of the ABA’s Rule of Law Initiative’s board. Justice Breyer oversees the 20-member board and five regional councils that help guide the direction of ABA ROLI’s rule of law programs around the world.

In November 2022, Judge Chirlin, who insisted we all call her Judge Judy, passed away. She was a ABA CEELI volunteer, ABA ROLI Board Member, and longtime friend. Her dedication to ABA ROLI and warmth toward colleagues will leave a legacy here and abroad. We are grateful for the time she invested in our work and cherish the time we were able to spend with her. She will be dearly missed by her family, friends, and colleagues.

Since that fateful meeting in Moscow, I have undertaken more than 20 CEELI or ROLI programs in Russia, Slovakia, Latvia, Bulgaria, Serbia, Iraq, Morocco, Turkey, Jordan, Georgia, Oman, Ecuador, Moldova, Qatar, and Libya, as well as a dozen or so courses at the CEELI Institute in Prague. The programs varied in length, some as short as three or four days, others as long as three weeks. The subject matter varied, depending on the needs of the countries served. But they all shared one thing: dedicated to-or at least curiosity about— advancing the rule of law. In every country I met wonderful people and learned about history, customs, and legal cultures.

Judge Judy, “Killing Two Rabbits with One Bullet (Russia, Bulgaria, and Iraq 1992-2009)

Building the Rule of Law: Firsthand Accounts from a Thirty-Year Global Campaign

Comprised of the Center for Human Rights (CHR), Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI), and the ABA Representatives and Observers to the United Nations (UNR), CGP was established in 2018 as part of the ABA’s efforts to focus the organization’s international work supporting the Association’s Goal IV: Advancing the Rule of Law. The ABA’s work to advance the rule of law and defend human rights started over three decades ago with the launch of the ABA Central and East European Law Initiative (CEELI). ABA ROLI is the global successor to CEELI (formed in 1990), UNR was formed in 1997, and CHR was established in 2001. These entities remain the primary vehicles for the ABA’s Goal IV international programming.