Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor
Encyclopedia
United Nations Development Programme
The United Nations Development Programme is the United Nations' global development network. It advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP operates in 177 countries, working with nations on their own solutions to...
(UNDP), and established in 2005 as the “first global initiative to focus on the link between exclusion, poverty, and the law.” Drawing upon three years of research, the Commission proposed strategies for creating inclusive development initiatives that would empower those living in poverty through increased protections and rights. Its final 2008 report, Making the Law Work for Everyone, argued that as many as 4 billion people worldwide are “robbed of the chance to better their lives and climb out of poverty, because they are excluded from the rule of law” . In response, the Report proposed four “pillars” for legal empowerment of the poor (LEP), which, the Commission argued, would enable those living in poverty to become partners in, rather than passive recipients of, development programs. These four pillars are: access to justice and the rule of law, property rights, labor rights, and business rights .
Upon concluding its research and producing its final report, the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor ceased to exist as an independent organization. However, the Commission’s findings continue to be an integral part of the UNDP’s Initiative on Legal Empowerment of the Poor, and have contributed to the creation of similar LEP initiaves in organizations such as the World Bank and the Open Society Foundations.
History of Legal Empowerment of the Poor
Before legal empowerment for the poor (LEP) emerged as a conceptual tool in 2003, development scholars such as Dan Banik argued that “the relationship between law and development in the international development discourse was traditionally very narrowly focused on law, lawyers and state institutions.” The result, more often than not, was a “top-down” approach to development, in which aid initiatives often overlooked or excluded the voices of the very people they intended to helpLegal empowerment of the poor, by contrast, sought to bring these previously excluded voices into the development discussion, while at the same time working to expand the rights and protections afforded to those living in poverty. Stephen Golub, one of the founding scholars in the field, argued that legal empowerment “puts community-driven and rights-based development into effect by offering concrete mechanisms, involving but not limited to legal services, that alleviate poverty, advance the rights of the disadvantaged, and make the rule of law more of a reality for them” . Drawing upon these principles and bolstered by the UN’s Millennium Development Goals, the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor emerged as an effort to convert theories of LEP into action.
Founding of the Commission
The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor, co-chaired by former U.S. secretary of state Madeleine Albright and Hernando de Soto, Peruvian economist and founder of the Institute for Liberty and Democracy (ILD), was launched in 2005 by a group of developing and industrialized countries including Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, Guatemala, Iceland, India, Norway, Sweden, South Africa, Tanzania and the United Kingdom, and completed its work in 2008.Members
The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor (CLEP) was made up of influential policymakers and practitioners from around the world who were believed to be uniquely well-positioned to advocate among their peers for legal reforms in developing countries. Given its unique structure, CLEP was seen as a powerful catalyst for change among global leaders and within the development community.Commissioners
- Fazle Hasan AbedFazle Hasan AbedSir Fazle Hasan Abed, KCMG is a social worker with dual Bangladeshi/ British nationality and the founder and chairman of BRAC . For his outstanding contributions to social improvement, he has received the Ramon Magsaysay Award, the UNDP Mahbub Ul Haq Award and the inaugural Clinton Global Citizen...
, Founder and Chairperson, BRAC, Bangladesh - Lloyd AxworthyLloyd AxworthyLloyd Norman Axworthy, PC, OC, OM is a prominent Canadian politician, statesman and University President from Manitoba. He is best known for having served as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien...
, former Minister of Foreign Affairs for Canada - Leszek BalcerowiczLeszek BalcerowiczLeszek Balcerowicz is a Polish economist, the former chairman of the National Bank of Poland and Deputy Prime Minister in Tadeusz Mazowiecki's government...
, President of the National Bank of Poland - Lakhdar BrahimiLakhdar BrahimiLakhdar Brahimi is a veteran United Nations envoy and advisor. He retired from his duties at the end of 2005. Brahimi is a member of the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor, the first global initiative to focus specifically on the link between exclusion, poverty and law...
, former Special Representative to the U.N. Secretary General - Gordon BrownGordon BrownJames Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
, Prime Minister, United Kingdom - Fernando Cardoso, former President of Brazil
- Shirin EbadiShirin EbadiShirin Ebadi is an Iranian lawyer, a former judge and human rights activist and founder of Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran. On 10 October 2003, Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her significant and pioneering efforts for democracy and human rights, especially women's,...
, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Iran - Ashraf GhaniAshraf GhaniDr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai is a prominent politician in Afghanistan and the former chancellor of Kabul University. He is also the chairman of the Institute for State Effectiveness, an organization set up in 2005 to promote the ability of states to serve their citizens. Before returning to...
, Dean of Kabul University and former Minister of Finance for Afghanistan - Prince Hassan bin Talal, President of the Club of Rome
- Muhammad Medhat Hassanein, former Minister of Finance for Egypt
- Hilde Frafjord JohnsonHilde Frafjord JohnsonHilde Frafjord Johnson is a Norwegian politician from the Christian Democratic Party. She is a former Minister of International Development of Norway, and member of the Norwegian Government...
, former Minister of International Development, Norway - Anthony KennedyAnthony KennedyAnthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...
, Associate Justice, United States Supreme Court - Allan LarssonAllan LarssonAllan Larsson is a former Swedish Social Democratic politician. From 1990 to 1991 he served as Minister for Finance.From Sweden's entry into the European Union in 1995 to 2000, Larsson served as Director General for DG Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities in the European Commission...
, former Minister of Finance for Sweden - Clotilde Aniouvi Medegan Nougbode, President of the High Court of Benin
- Benjamin MkapaBenjamin MkapaBenjamin William Mkapa was the third President of the United Republic of Tanzania and former Chairman for the Revolutionary State Party .-Biography:...
, former President of the United Republic of Tanzania - Mike Moore, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, former Director General of the WTO
- Milinda MoragodaMilinda MoragodaAsoka Milinda Moragoda is a Sri Lankan politician and businessman. He is Opposition Leader of the Colombo Municipal Council and was, until recently, a Senior Adviser to President Mahinda Rajapakse. He was a former Cabinet Minister and Member of Parliament representing the Colombo District...
, former Minister of Economic Reforms, Science and Technology, Sri Lanka - Syed Tanwir H. Naqvi, former Chairman of the National Reconstruction Bureau of Pakistan
- Mary RobinsonMary RobinsonMary Therese Winifred Robinson served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate...
, former President of Ireland and former High Commissioner of Human RightsOffice of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human RightsThe Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is a United Nations agency that works to promote and protect the human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948... - Arjun Kumar SenguptaArjun Kumar SenguptaArjun Kumar Sengupta was a Member of the Parliament of India, representing West Bengal in the Rajya Sabha from 2006 until his death...
, Chairman of the National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector of India, United Nations Independent Expert on Human Rights and Extreme PovertySpecial RapporteurSpecial Rapporteur is a title given to individuals working on behalf of the United Nations within the scope of "Special Procedures" mechanisms who bear a specific mandate from the United Nations Human Rights Council.... - Lindiwe SisuluLindiwe SisuluLindiwe Nonceba Sisulu is a South African politician, member of parliament since 1994, member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress and Minister of Housing from 2004 to 2009, and Minister of Defence and Military Veterans since 2009.-Early life:Sisulu was born to ANC...
, Minister of Housing, Republic of South Africa - Lawrence SummersLawrence SummersLawrence Henry Summers is an American economist. He served as the 71st United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1999 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He was Director of the White House United States National Economic Council for President Barack Obama until November 2010.Summers is the...
, President of Harvard University, USA - Erna Witoelar, UN Special Ambassador for MDGs in Asia & the Pacific
- Ernesto ZedilloErnesto ZedilloErnesto Zedillo Ponce de León is a Mexican economist and politician. He served as President of Mexico from December 1, 1994 to November 30, 2000, as the last of the uninterrupted seventy year line of Mexican presidents from the Institutional Revolutionary Party...
, former President of Mexico
Board of Advisers
- Robert Annibale, Global Director of Microfinance, Citigroup
- Marek BelkaMarek BelkaMarek Marian Belka is a Polish professor of Economics, a former Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Poland, former Director of the International Monetary Fund's European Department and current Head of National Bank of Poland.- Biography :...
, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) - Diego HidalgoDiego Hidalgo SchnurDiego Hidalgo Schnur is a Spanish philanthropist, intellectual and businessman. He is the son of Diego Hidalgo y Durán , who was a prominent jurist, author, intellectual and Minister of War under the Second Republic of Spain , and of Gerda Schnur de Hidalgo , also an intellectual who lived in Paris...
, Founder, Club of Madrid - Donald KaberukaDonald KaberukaDonald Kaberuka is a Rwandan economist and the current president of the African Development Bank.Kaberuka was born in Byumba, Rwanda. He was educated at universities in Tanzania and the United Kingdom and received a PhD degree in economics from the University of Glasgow. He worked in banking and...
, President, African Development Bank Group - Jean Lemierre, President, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
- Luis Alberto MorenoLuis Alberto MorenoLuis Alberto Moreno Mejía is the 4th and current President of the Inter-American Development Bank.-Life:Luis Alberto Moreno was elected president of the Inter-American Development Bank during a special meeting of the Bank's Board of Governors at IDB headquarters in Washington, D.C...
, President, Inter-American Development Bank - Kumi NaidooKumi NaidooKumi Naidoo, born 1965, is a South African human rights activist and the International Executive Director of international environmentalist group, Greenpeace. He is the first African to head the organisation....
, CEO, CIVICUS - Sheela PatelSheela PatelSheela Patel is the founding director of the Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers , which she organised in Mumbai in 1984 as an advocacy group for the pavement dwellers of Mumbai. SPARC continues to this day to play a major role in the politics of slum development in India and...
, Founder, Society for the Promotion of Area Resources (SPARC) - Jan Peterson, Chair, Huairou Commission
- Juan SomaviaJuan SomavíaJuan Somavía is the current Director-General of the International Labour Organization .He was elected to serve as the ninth Director-General of the ILO by the Governing Body on 23 March 1998.-Term as Director-General:...
, Director, International Labor Organization - Anna TibaijukaAnna TibaijukaDr. Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka is a former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme...
, Executive Director, UN HABITAT - Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Chairperson, UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
- John WatsonJohn WatsonJohn Watson may refer to:In politics:* John Christian Watson , known as Chris Watson, Australia's third Prime Minister* John Bertrand Watson , British Member of Parliament for Stockton-on-Tees, 1917–1923* John S...
, President, CARE Canada - Francisco Garza Zambrano, President, Cemex North America
- Robert ZoellickRobert ZoellickRobert Bruce Zoellick is the eleventh president of the World Bank, a position he has held since July 1, 2007. He was previously a managing director of Goldman Sachs, United States Deputy Secretary of State and U.S. Trade Representative, from February 7, 2001 until February 22, 2005.President...
, President, World Bank
Organization
Advocates of LEP argued that the only way to break new ground on legal empowerment was to learn from the experiences of those who live and work in slums and settlements around the world. Thus, CLEP, in conducting its research, partnered with grassroots organizations, governments and institutions to hear about the legal challenges faced by the poor. 22 National and Regional Consultations and 5 technical workgroups were hosted in Africa, South and Central Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Europe. These national and regional processes grounded the work of Legal Empowerment in local realities, and contributed to recommendations that reflected diverse cultural, socio-economic and political environments.CLEP’s final report, Making The Law Work For Everyone, argued that LEP initiatives must be grounded in four foundational “pillars”:
• Access to Justice and the Rule of law: including the right to legal identity, removal of discriminatory laws against the poor, and increased access to both traditional and alternative justice systems
• Property rights: including recognition of alternative methods of individual and collective ownership
• Labor rights: workers’ rights, protections, and benefits
• Business rights: access to credit and support for the poor (particularly poor women) to start and operate small businesses
Critiques of the Commission
Though scholars and practitioners of LEP programs applaud the CLEP for bringing legal empowerment of the poor into the international limelight, many have critiqued its 2008 report on both technical and theoretical grounds. For example, Matthew Stephens, in his article "The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor: An Opportunity Missed," argued that the Report lacked sufficient empirical data. Julio Faundez argued that the Commission's policy recommendations were too vague to be implemented effectively.External links
- http://legalempowerment.undp.org/
- http://youtube.com/LegalEmpowerment1
- http://lepknowledgebank.ning.com
- http://www.snap-undp.org/lepknowledgebank
- http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/legal_capacity/projects/lep
- http://www.hiil.org/
- http://www.sum.uio.no/research/poverty/anlep/
- http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTLAWJUSTICE/EXTJUSFORPOO/0,,menuPK:3282947~pagePK:149018~piPK:149093~theSitePK:3282787,00.html
- http://lup.lub.lu.se/luur/download?func=downloadFile&recordOId=1613415&fileOId=1613430