To strengthen the rule of law and the promotion and protection of civil rights in Iraq the Max Planck Institute is planning a training program for Iraqi judges, prosecutors and other lawyers.
As a start a judiciary conference is scheduled for 2009 in Erbil, where members of the Max Planck Institute together with representatives of Iraqi judiciary institutions – the High Judicial Council, the Federal Supreme Court, the Ministry of Justice, the Public Prosecution Department, the Bar Association and others – will discuss the state of the rule of law development in Iraqi and elaborate potential areas for assistance by the institute. Concurrently the Iraq team is compiling a “Manual on the Rule of Law in Iraq”, which is to be the basis for seminars for local jurists to be conducted in 2010. Within the concept of legal protection this manual discusses subjects like the independence of the judiciary, the impartiality of judges, fair trial principles, as well as human rights and their protection. These issues will be discussed in the training seminars in 2010 using exemplary case studies. Initially, several native Arabic as well as Kurdish speaking trainers will be instructed by members of the Institute. Subsequently they are to instruct approx. 400 participants from all parts of the country in two-week seminars in Erbil.
