An Cosantóir

EUJUST LEX-Iraq | 19 PROMOTING THE RULE OF LAW IN IRAQ BY PTE PATRICK HUGHES (1 ADR) Mission for Iraq (EUJUST LEX-Iraq), is an excellent example of how a small group of international and domestic professionals are steadily improving the way of life for people living in a war-torn region. Some people may be inclined to react with a yawn to a 'rule-of-law' mission: what could be more boring than slowly educat- ing and training judges, police officers and prison governors? But this would be to miss the real- O ne of the smaller and lesser known EU missions, the European Union Integrated Rule of Law ity that, in what is still a conflict-ridden country, dedicated experts are continually striving to impart the benefits of their ex- perience so that in due course their Iraqi counterparts will be able to take over and continue the task of bringing Iraqi juris- prudence to an international standard. EUJUST LEX-Iraq, is currently led by Brigadier General László Huszár, who was Director-General of the Hungarian Prison Service. His deputy is Jonas Westerlund, a Swedish diplomat. The majority of the mission's activities ties the mission has successfully carried out 492 training courses and trained 5,069 participants from the Iraqi Correctional Service (ICS), the judiciary and the police. Some specialised courses are held in EU tion of security by underpinning the rule-of-law system. The mission promotes a culture of respect for human rights and provides professional development oppor- tunities for Iraqi officials from the criminal justice system. Working closely with the Iraqi authori- member states, as are work-experience secondments. All activities offer learn- ing opportunities and demonstrate rule-of-law best practice, as well as facilitating the exchange of views be- tween trainers and participants. EUJUST LEX-Iraq has excellent rela- are facilitated through in-house expertise, with the assistance of visiting EU experts, or in co-operation with other interna- tional actors. Apart from command and support elements, the 53 international staff are divided into three functional teams: judicial, led by a Bulgarian prosecu- tor; police, led by a UK policeman; and penitential, led by a UK prison officer. The mission started on 1 July 2005 fol- lowing an invitation by the Iraqi prime minister to the EU, calling for the start of integrated training for Iraqi professionals working in the criminal justice system. Originally based in Brussels for security reasons, EUJUST LEX-Iraq has operated in Iraq since the spring of 2011. The head- quarters is in Baghdad, with a field office in Erbil, an 'antenna' office in Basra, and a support office in Brussels. The mission was established with the core aim of contributing to a consolida- ible job satisfaction and despite the dangers of living in a conflict zone such as Iraq all mission members claim that the improvements in the Iraqi justice system make their efforts worthwhile. In addition to this author, another up on its alumni through evaluation workshops, to assess the applicabil- ity of its training and adjust it to Iraqi needs. Furthermore, the mission has achieved considerable progress in mainstreaming human rights and gen- der equality into its training activities with positive feedback from the Iraqi participants. Working on this mission gives incred- tions with its local and international counterparts and co-ordinates its activities on a bilateral basis as well as in rule-of-law policy fora. The mission systematically follows- check out the following: http://www. consilium.europa.eu/eeas/security-defence/ eu-operations/eujust-lex?lang=en or www. facebook.com/eujustlexiraq. About the author: Pte Patrick Hughes (1 For more information on the mission ADR) spent the last two years on second- ment to EUJUST LEX-Iraq serving as PA to the head of office in Erbil. Having completed his tour of duty, he is currently undergoing a course with the Folke Bernadotte Academy in Sweden. Patrick Hughes at the Citadel in Erbil EUJUST LEX Instructors (from left) Millar Sempey, William Irvine and Matti Virkunnen Defence Forces connection with this mission comes through Lt Col John Durnin (Retd) who took up the posi- tion of Press and Information Officer (PIO) following his retirement from the Defence Forces in February 2012. John previously served as PIO with the EUMS in Brussels and also served as Deputy Chief LO with UNIFIL. John Durnin (left of banner) with a group after a seminar in Erbil www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE

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