Week 6: Annual Meeting
“Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.” – Winston Churchill
This quote was stated about three times by different people over the course of the Annual Meeting as several guest speakers and panelists discussed the challenges faced by democratic societies and in ensuring the rule of law today. The Annual Meetings was an amazing opportunity to hear from important figures working in judiciaries and civil society organizations around the world. They included people such as Homer Moyer (Founder of CEELI), Judge John Walker of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and Ambassador Stephen King to the Czech Republic.
One of the opening speakers that I felt had a really fantastic message was the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, Beverley McLachlin. Judge McLachlin was the first woman to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada and the longest serving Chief Justice. She addressed a pretty common question found in this type of work, of whether the rule of law is still relevant. She demonstrated that it is by addressing the development and history of democratic societies across the world, including the shifts in government types prior to and after the World Wars, as well as concerns today where countries are experiencing democratic backslide. This includes the various populist movements, such as Brexit, and the comments of world leaders, such as President Trump in the first month of his presidency referring to judges who blocked his travel ban as “so called judges.” Her speech also included important distinctions between rule of law v. rule by law, and how leaders mix the two. Rule of law requires that all people be held to the law as well as benefit from it. On the other hand, rule by law is the result of people creating laws that benefit them. In Judge McLachlin’s view, these two camps became confused in the aftermath of the World Wars, as authoritarian governments moved to something new, whether democracy or communism.
There was one panel in particular that was a very sober reminder of how dangerous working in civil society can be in some countries. In Hungary, legislation was just passed the day before that criminalizes helping immigrants and asylum seekers in Hungary. A panel included a woman from Hungary who works for an NGO that helps immigrants and asylum seekers, who would be directly impacted by this new law. The Executive Director of CEELI asked her what she was planning to do tomorrow at work. She answered in the best way she could, but clearly there is a lot of uncertainty and a lot of concern about potential criminal charges. The NGO will continue its mission, but now resources are being used to help employees understand their rights in the criminal justice system and ways that they can seek protection.
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This week also came with the opportunity to be a guest at the U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic’s residence twice. Stephen King hosted a reception for Annual Meeting participants. Then on Thursday, the CEELI staff was invited to the U.S. Embassy’s 4th of July party. A few of the CEELI staff previously worked at the embassy, so I was able to meet some of the people currently working there. It was a great chance to see the kinds of work American expats are doing in the Czech Republic.
Finally, this weekend’s excursion was to Český Krumlov, Czech Republic. Český Krumlov is a small city in the South Bohemia region that is dominated by a 13th century castle. The city was absolutely beautiful with amazing panoramic views all over.
