Government

This post first appeared on the Council on Foreign Relation's Emerging Voices blog, featuring contributions from scholars and practitioners highlighting new research, thinking, and approaches to development challenges. The article was posted as part of an ongoing CFR Development Channel series on global justice and development.  

“The WJP Rule of Law Index is a key contribution to the knowledge trust within the rule of law and economic fields.” – Scott Fulton, Beveridge & Diamond, P.C., DC, Visiting Scholar, Environmental Law Institute, Adjunct Professor, George Washington University School of Law   On April 8th, the American Bar Association Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources World Justice Task Force (SEER) convened a multidisciplinary panel of experts to discuss the intersections of rule of law and sustainable development.

The New York Times editorial board called out New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday for breaking his promises to investigate corruption in the state’s politics. After shutting down the commission he had started to “investigate and pursue wrongdoing” among a government riddled with recent scandals, it seems the Times has lost their trust in Cuomo's efforts—a value he had repeatedly espoused.

Congratulations to our 2014 World Justice Challenge grantees! The World Justice Project has awarded seed grants to 15 startup initiatives including projects focused on advancing labor rights for cotton pickers in Pakistan, promoting equal treatment for women soccer players in Brazil, developing an open-source, online civic participation platform, and more.

Healthcare may not be thought of as a rule of law issue, but when the right to free healthcare is violated by corruption, counterfeit medicines, or discrimination, innocent people suffer. A seed grant from the World Justice Challenge in 2013 allowed the Cameroon Healthcare Access Program to tackle corruption in the healthcare system, where patients do not receive the free medicines they need and are asked to pay bribes for free services.

Since we released the WJP Rule of Law Index 2014 two weeks ago, on March 5th, our findings have been featured in over 20 languages—in more than 200 media outlets—worldwide. Following are a few notable mentions, but you can always check our media page for the most up-to-date information on where WJP is contributing to the rule of law conversation around the globe.  

“Effective rule of law helps reduce corruption, alleviate poverty, improve public health and education, and protect people from injustices and dangers large and small. Wherever we come from, the rule of law can always be strengthened.” - William H. Neukom, WJP President & CEO.  

On March 5th, the World Justice Project will launch the WJP Rule of Law Index® 2014, a report that measures how the rule of law is experienced by ordinary people around the world. Our latest release of the Index relies on surveys gathered from over 100,000 citizens and experts worldwide to offer a comprehensive look at a country’s performance in regards to fundamental rights, justice, security, corruption, governance, and other rule of law issues.

Legislators react. They don’t enact. A politician who declares a revolution is actually just announcing the phenomenon which he seeks to legislate can no longer be ignored. The real changes are made by people, by society, by individual choices and actions, not by political statements or election propaganda. The legislator simply updates the law to reflect the changes that the people have already made a reality through individual acts of autonomy and self-expression.