Hon. Phillip Weiner on Bringing the Rule of Law to Developing Nations

 By Jeorgia Jahumpa

Phillip Weiner says the struggles of bringing the rule of law to developing nations lied in the lack of training, resources, and refusal to change.

A recent lecture sponsored by The Martin Institute was held at the Petit Atrium where Weiner talked about his experiences in changing the legal systems of developing, post-war countries. “While it seem
s so simple on paper, there are many roadblocks,” Weiner said. 

Weiner said these roadblocks include cultural differences, prejudice, fear of change, and corruption in these countries. 

Weiner is a former international judge who oversaw cases of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2008 to 2012. He also served at the war crimes court in Cambodia overseeing investigations relating to the Khmer Rouge regime during the Vietnam War. He was then knighted for training Cambodian police officers, judges, and attorneys.

He said that it is not easy to train judges and attorneys after changing a country’s legal system. Cambodia, Croatia, and Bosnia lacked the necessary textbooks required to train students on the rule of law, with few textbooks on the subject and fewer students who can read and take notes during their training, he said. 

The concept of human rights, or the lack thereof, proved to be an issue in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where beatings and torture methods were used, and domestic violence is a part of their culture, he said.

One student, criminology major Quingquan Guan, who was familiar with Weiner and his work, attended the lecture. He asked Weiner about how natural and substantive law were taught to these developing countries. Weiner said that both are important when in teaching students about the rule of law.

“When you’re dealing with war crimes cases, you find the most bizarre, and horrendous, and violent situations that you have ever imagined in your life,” Weiner said.

 He said it was difficult to deal with war crimes, as going through evidence and sentencing was difficult. He said he had to listen to seven hours of beatings, torture, and rape. While dealing with war crime cases in Cambodia, Weiner said he would carry around and play a trumpet or go out for a walk between cases.

“You had to find some way to keep you mind clear,” Weiner said.

English major Grace Duncan said she went into the lecture blind with her religious studies class, knowing nothing about the speaker. She said when Weiner described a situation where eight fathers and eight sons were shot in Bosnia stuck out to her.

“The part at the end where that one man shot them all dead and then he saw a friend in the crowd and then shot his son as well––that was horrific to me, especially when he described the humiliation that the man subjected them to,” said Grace Duncan. 

Weiner offered advice to the audience,

“You must at each roadblock as a challenge and find a way to navigate it. Remember that establishing the rule of democracy is an ongoing process, it’s not going to happen overnight. So, you can’t get disappointed, you can’t give up. You pick your battles, decide what you want to fight and then go for it,” he said.