2007 Press Releases
Rule of Law Gets Boost in Iraq through University Exchange Program
(U. of Baltimore Law School and Tikrit U. law school forge alliance)
December 4, 2007
By Jim Fisher-Thompson
State Department Correspondent
Baghdad – The bedrock of all modern societies – the rule of law – got a boost in Iraq recently with the signing of an exchange agreement between the University Of Baltimore Law School and the University Of Tikrit Law School spurred by a U.S. legal adviser working on a Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Salah ad Din Province.
The November 27 ceremony, which took place in former dictator Saddam Hussein’s hometown Tikrit, included Dean Amer Ayash representing Tikrit Law School, Governor Hamood Al-Shaqti of Salah ad Din Province and Baltimore Law School Dean Phillip Closius appearing via a digital video hookup from Baltimore.
The interchange was the “maiden voyage” of communications equipment that will be used for electronic learning linking the two universities, said Andrew Norman, a Federal Prosecutor from Maryland and PRT member who helped put the program together.
The PRT program includes a rule of law component operated by the Department of Justice, from which Norman was seconded to work in Salah ad Din. The Department of Justice currently has 200 people in Iraq operating training in law enforcement and security as well as rule of law programs involving issues like anti-corruption and the courts system. According to a State Department document, total U.S. Government rule of law programs for Iraq totaled approximately $400 million in 2005.
The idea behind the U.S.-funded exchange program, Norman said, is to reach out to the 700 law students and teachers at the Tikrit Law School for “an exchange of students, faculty and ideas.” Additionally, 6 graduate students will chosen by the Iraqis to study at the University of Baltimore’s International Center for International and Comparative Law for one year.
Norman, who is returning to the United States after working for a year in Salah ad Din, said the new agreement, the first of its kind in Iraq, was an important step in reaching out to help reconstruct the country after years of political and sectarian and political disruption.
As in America, Norman said “Iraq’s attorneys will rise to prominent positions in government and business” such as Governor Al-Shaqti who is currently enrolled in the Tikrit law school. “And so I can’t think of a more appropriate way of furthering U.S. policy than this exchange of students and faculty.”
On a personal level, the former immigrant from the United Kingdom who has practiced law in the United States for 30 years said his work in Iraq was “the most interesting and fascinating job of my entire career. For me, establishing a relationship like this [between the law schools] is something that will be long lasting” as well as important to the legal profession in Iraq.
Someday, said Norman, “U.S. companies may want to come here and open businesses. When that happens they’ll want legal representation in Iraq and they’ll reach out to their Iraqi colleagues and hire them.”
In a statement congratulating the two law school deans Acting Ambassador Patricia Butenis said she was confident the agreement was “only the first of many such relationships that will be developed between our two nations.” And she encouraged colleges and universities across Iraq and the United States “to reach out to their counterparts in the other country to establish similar ties to promote cooperation, fellowship, and peace.”
The PRTS in Iraq were established in 2005 and consist of development specialists whose aim is to empower Iraqis at the Province and local levels to solve their own problems. The multi-million dollar Department of State-led project funds infrastructure and agricultural development as well as governance training.
Other members of the 28 PRT teams now operating in Iraq’s 18 provinces are from agencies like the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Department of Agriculture. Three PRTs have British, Italian and Korean leaders.
During a recent visit to Iraq Deputy Secretary John Negroponte met with 17 PRTS in eight provinces later touching on their importance at a December 2 news conference where he said, “These teams are working hard to promote reconciliation, foster development, and build capacity in Iraq's provinces.”