In October of 2006, the ABA conducted a televised forum on anti-money laundering legislation in the Kyrgyz Republic through its Anti-Corruption Program.

In April 2006, the ABA sent a U.S.-based attorney as an Anti-Corruption Advisor to Bishkek for seven months to assess opportunities for Kyrgyz institutional and legislative reforms and to increase regional capacity to fight corruption. The Advisor prepared an assessment of existing anti-corruption legislation in Kyrgyzstan that discussed how well those laws complied with the United National Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC).  Kyrgyzstan ratified the UNCAC in September 2005. In October 2006, this analysis was both presented to the Parliament and discussed during a roundtable attended by members of government, civil society, international organizations and the media.  In February 2007, the analysis had formed the basis of a draft anti-corruption law in Parliament that seeks to bring the legislative framework into compliance with the UNCAC.

The Advisor also built upon needs expressed by participants at a May 2006 regional judicial anti-money laundering training held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, by organizing a nationally televised public forum on Kyrgyzstan's new anti-money laundering law. The program aired in both Russian and Kyrgyz during prime time, and was complemented by the broadcast of an anti-corruption public service announcement developed by the Advisor and the Criminal Law Reform program.

In September of 2006, the ABA convened a conference on the status of Kyrgyzstan's defense bar and the need to establish a unified bar association in the country.

In October of 2005, the ABA commenced a criminal law reform program in Kyrgyzstan. The program is funded by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and focuses on enhancing the skills of the criminal defense bar, ensuring access to justice for the indigent, and supporting the establishment of a unified national bar.  Under this program, the ABA has convened a conference on the unification of the criminal defense bar and launched a working group to develop governing documents for an effective and consolidated national bar.

"Be a juror." A graphic from the ABA's PSA introducing the basic concept of juries and the responsibilities of the lay public. (2007)

In parallel to its Kazakhstan program, the American Bar Association's Rule of Law Initiative seeks to bolster the public's legal literacy and corresponding ability to assert its rights in Kyrgyzstan.  Among the activities undertaken through the public legal education program, the ABA employs a Street Law-style mechanism to instruct students in madrassas around the country on their basic legal rights and freedoms, and conducts similar classes in secular secondary schools. The ABA has also produced a series of public service announcements (PSAs) on basic rights and the function of the law in Kyrgyzstan that will air over the course of 2007. Finally, the ABA is currently in the process of producing and airing a three-part series of analytical programs entitled Vital Legal Reform Issues in Kyrgyzstan.

For more information, contact the Kyrgyzstan office aba-ceeli@abaceeli.kg.