May 10, Nay Pyi Taw
The Union Minister for the Ministry of Legal Affairs and Attorney General of the Union met with Advocates General of the Regions and States, Law Officers of the Regions and States, and district law officers and discussed, clarified and gave instructions on the President’s guidance regarding strengthening the rule of law, guaranteeing equal legal protection for all citizens, and the Ministry of Legal Affairs’ 100-day action plan this morning at the ground-floor meeting hall of the Ministry of Legal Affairs, Office No. 25, Nay Pyi Taw.
At the ceremony, H.E. Dr. Thida Oo, the Union Minister and Attorney General of the Union said that this meeting was the first meeting held after the formation of the new government; the new Advocates General of the Regions and States had also been appointed; although the Advocates General of the Regions and States are members of the relevant Region and State Governments and are responsible for providing legal advice to those governments, they shall carry out their functions and duties under the supervision of the Ministry of Legal Affairs; Advocates General should supervise different levels of law offices to prevent corruption and bribery and to carry out administrative matters effectively; this meeting is the first activity under the 100-day action plan laid down by the Ministry of Legal Affairs in accordance with the guidance; under the 100-day action plan, legal awareness activities will be carried out forward and village tract administrators, who are the closest to the public and are the most fundamental level of administration; Advocates General of the Regions and States are requested to organize legal awareness training courses for ward and village tract administrators in their respective Regions or States on laws such as the Penal Code, the Gambling Law, the Prevention and Suppression of Trafficking in Persons Law, the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Law, the Child Rights Law, and the Public Military Service Law, adopting the same approach as that used in the Training of Trainers (TOT) courses organized for Grade 11 and Grade 12 teachers; in addition, Certificate of Legal Advocacy (CLA) courses will be opened for senior civil service officials in the regions or states; the Ministry of Legal Affairs shall carry out the functions relating to rule of law and legal awareness as its main functions; legal certainty is an index of the rule of law, and therefore draft law must be systematic to achieve legal certainty; in order to maintain consistency in legislative drafting, to avoid conflict with the Constitution and existing laws, and to prevent confusion or overlapping of powers among relevant government departments and organizations, the vetting and review of legislative matters, such as vetting draft laws prior to enactment, reviewing enacted laws, drafting laws and laying down legislative drafting practices and policy guidances, are essential to the rule of law; the Attorney General of the Union Law and its rules will also be reviewed and amended in accordance with current circumstances; since the pre-trial interview process carried out by the Pilot Law Offices is a measure through which law offices assist in uncovering the truth of cases on behalf of the State, it addresses the difficulties encountered by aggrieved persons, the ongoing Pilot Law Office activities should be improved and expanded for implementation in all law offices nationwide; and greater attention should be paid to the Code of Ethics for law officers; and for the dissemination of legal awareness, the Ministry plans to open Diploma in Legal Advocacy (DLA) courses, the internship program for students specializing in Law, and legal training courses for lawyers/legal practitioners as well as Certificate of Legal Advocacy (CLA) ·courses for the heads of ‘civil service organizations of the Union with approximately 30 participants per batch and a target of around 150 to 200 participants over a five-year period.
After that, the Deputy Minister and Deputy Attorney General Dr. Htain Lin Oo also provided necessary operational guidance; Advocates General of the Regions and States presented reports and discussed work implementation in their respective regions and states; thereafter, the Permanent Secretary, the Minister’s Office and Directors General from relevant departments discussed and clarified the respective work; and the Union Minister and Attorney General of the Union coordinated the discussions.
The coordination meeting was attended by the Union Minister and Attorney General of the Union, together with the Deputy Minister and Deputy Attorney General, Advocates General of the Regions and States, the Permanent Secretary, the Minister’s Office, Directors General from all departments, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Deputy Directors General, Directors, Law Officers of the Regions and States, and district law officers.
(MOLA’s News)