hkunlat@legalaidnetwork.org
hkunlat@legalaidnetwork.org
Aiming to establish a free, fair, peaceful, and developed Federal Democratic Union, the Federal Law Academy was founded in Mai Ja Yang, Kachin State, in 2014. With academic support of some international legal academicians – alongside the contribution made by the Kachin Independent Organization (KIO) for administrative, residential and material requirements, and financial support from the Open Society Foundation in later periods – the Federal Law Academy has come into existence. The Academy is the only institution in the entire country that offers a variety of subjects covering ‘Federalism towards Human Rights’ by especially accentuating the right to self-determination of the ethnic nationalities and their states/provinces with the underpinning of the Rule of Law.
The various ethnic nationalities and their constituent units, which existed as independent entities in history, unitedly founded Burma, also known now as Myanmar, since its independence from the British in 1948. Since then, the country has been plagued by civil war given, inter alia, the lack of equal rights and self-determination of the ethnic nationalities, resulting in serious human rights violations to this day.
In terms of population, the Myanmar nationality forms the majority whereas non-Myanmar ethnic nationalities constitute a minority. Between1948-1962, the development of the country took place in the lowland – mainly inhabited by the Myanmar nationality – leaving behind the mountainous areas where non-Myanmar ethnic nationalities have been residing for hundreds of years. Such uneven development happened under the rule of the democratic regimes, which were mainly overwhelmed by the Myanmar leaders, under the 1947 Constitution. The non-Myanmar ethnic leaders deduced from these experiences that, due to lack of sufficient knowledge of the constitution and other laws, they were hoodwinked by the Myanmar leaders.
Before and after the independence of Burma, the main university, where law subjects could be studied, was located only in the capital of the country, Rangoon (currently, known as Yangon), to which the non-Myanmar ethnic youths had only rare access; as such, legal education was primarily enjoyed by the Myanmar youths. In the aftermath of the military coup of 1962, all people in Burma have suffered a lot. However, when the Myanmar nationality is contrasted with the non-Myanmar ethnic nationalities, the situation of the latter has been much worse than the former over the past five decades. Even under the current so-called democratic transition which commenced in 2011, a form of legal education – which would facilitate resolving underlying issues on civil war, advancing human rights and the Rule of Law, and leading to development of all ethnic nationalities – has remained unaddressed. At present, there exists no qualified law school in ethnic states.
In terms of geography, which is linked to the rights of the ethnic nationalities, the dealings of the international legal and human rights community have been uneven given that almost all of their major activities which seek to create an educational environment are currently conducted in the lowland – mainly in big cities such as Yangon, Mandalay, Nay Pyi Daw, etc. – whilst marginalizing the mountainous areas where uneducated non-Myanmar ethnic nationalities reside. Founding the Federal Law Academy is a modest attempt to address this gap.
To nurture and advance the ethnic youths so that they become legal practitioners who will implement the following objectives:
(1) Laying down the Rule of Law foundation for the emergence of an independent, just, developed, and peaceful Federal Union with the underpinning of human rights;
(2) Participating in the process of drafting, making, and enforcing the Federal Constitution, Constitutions of the Ethnic States – which constitute the Federal Union – and respective organic laws and other laws, which will reflect the will of the various ethnic nationalities and their Ethnic States; and,
(3) Facilitating the transformation of the national legal framework on the basis of international law, human rights laws, humanitarian law, and equal rights and self-determination of all ethnic nationalities in order that benefits of the constituent units of the Federal Union as well as of people who have been residing in each respective unit are protected.
The following law professors who are members of the International Academic Board of LAN, in addition to its founder, contribute as members of the Academic Board of the FLA:
1. David Fisher, Professor of International Law, Faculty of Law, Stockholm University, Sweden.
2. Dr. Venkat Iyer, Law Commissioner and Barrister, Northern Ireland, UK.
3. Mr. Aung Htoo, Human Rights Lawyer and Founder of the Legal Aid Network.
M.A. (Human Rights) R.L. Teaching Human Rights Law; Columbia University, New York, USA.
Certificates of Diploma in Law – signed by Dr. David Fisher, Prof. of International Law, Faculty of Law, Stockholm University, Sweden, Dr. Venkat Iyer, Constitutional Law and Media Law Expert from the United Kingdom, and Mr. Aung Htoo, the Principal of the FLA – will be conferred on the candidates, who have already achieved required qualification after completion of two years course.