[legal-professionals] Barristers establish regional association in Khatlon province of Tajikistan

DUSHANBE, 3 March 2003 - A key step towards the creation of a national 
barristers' association was taken in Tajikistan last Saturday with the 
establishment of a regional association in the country's Khatlon province.

Thirty-five of the 43 practicing barristers in Khatlon met in the city of 
Kurgan-Tyube on 1 March. They not only laid the foundation of a regional 
association in their region, but also agreed on the need to create a 
national one.

The Chairman of the Union of Tajik Judges, Abdulloev Nusratullo, welcomed 
the foundation and called it a "necessary modernization of the Tajik 
judiciary".

Ambassador Marc Gilbert, Head of the OSCE Centre in Dushanbe, expressed his 
gratitude to the Open Society Institute, which funded the event, and 
welcomed David O'Connor, the Head of the American Bar Association office in 
Tajikistan.

Ambassador Gilbert stressed the importance of the move, which by 
contributing to the enhancement of the rule of law, will facilitate 
economic growth in the Republic of Tajikistan. "Increased shared prosperity 
and the implementation of the rule of law are indivisible," he said.

This was the second of a series of three meetings, aiming to lead to the 
creation of the National Association of Tajik Barristers on 26 March.

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