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| In front of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul |
As I woke up on my last day at the Rule of Law Institute, I began to reminisce about
my time here in Bulgaria and with the Institute. It’s crazy to think that just
a little over five weeks ago I arrived in Sofia, and now it is my last day in
the office, and after tomorrow I will be flying back home. The Institute has
been a blessing. I have been able to do some real work that has made an impact.
As promised, I will now provide some details about one of the projects that I
consider the highlight of my work during my internship.
At
first, this project was supposed to be a quick response to a request from the
Sofia Bar Council about proposed amendments to the Bulgarian Law on the
Judiciary, but it turned out to be something much larger. During a meeting with
another Justice from the Supreme Court of Cassation, the Justice brought up one
of the proposed amendments that we were writing a response for. The issue the
Justice brought up was that the amendment required judiciary members to submit
information about their religious affiliations to a committee that inspects
their backgrounds to see if there are justifiable doubts as to the impartiality
of a judicial member “arising from participation in a personified or
unincorporated non-profit organizations (societies, clubs, lodges, etc.).” The
apparent issue with this statement is that it is ambiguous, and the Justice was
concerned that this committee could use religious affiliations as a reason to
remove members from their positions by stating that they are a member of a
“society, club, lodge, etc.”
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| With the Egham RFC |
Because of these concerns, I wrote a memorandum
discussing these issues. The memorandum discussed how this amendment was
ambiguous, as well as unconstitutional based upon the Bulgarian Constitution,
and in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights. The memo also
provided definitions of “secret societies”, and applicable statutes from other
European jurisdictions were provided to further address the issues. The
memorandum experienced great success after its presentation at the Republic of
Bulgaria Supreme Bar Council. Such success that the Bar Council published the
memo on their website.
As stated, this project was the highlight of my work. In
Bulgaria, there are issues with corruption in government authorities,
especially the Judiciary. The proposed amendment would have been another way
for corruption to occur, so if the memo made a difference in the battle against
corruption, then I say that’s a major win and a move in the right direction
against corruption and an improved Bulgaria.
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| In front of the Alexander Nevski Cathedral |
As the famous phrase goes, “all work and no play makes Jack
a dull boy.” With all of the hard work I have put in, I have had the honor of
enjoying multiple experiences along the way. For example, I had the honor of
presenting at the Rule of Law Institute’s 20th Anniversary Jubilee Forum, where
I received an Honorary Diploma for my efforts. As stated in my last post, I was
blessed with the opportunity to meet Justice Furnazhieva of the Republic of
Bulgaria Supreme Court of Cassation and have a tour of the Palace of Justice.
Also, I had the privilege to attend an exclusive lecture given by Justice Salim
Joubran of the Supreme Court of Israel at the Bulgarian Ministry of Justice.
Along with the educational experiences, I have been blessed
with the opportunity to adventure around Bulgaria and Europe. Other than
exploring Sofia, I spent a weekend at the Black Sea visiting Burgas, Promorie,
and the historic city of Nessebar. I had an amazing weekend in Panichishte,
Bulgaria at Rila Mountain, where I was able to attend a camp for
underprivileged youth where Latcho’s wife Lucy gave presentations to the youth.
Also at Rila Mountain, I hiked to the Skavavitsa Waterfall and visited the Rila
Monastery. Also, I spent a weekend—not long enough at all—in Istanbul, Turkey.
I can definitely say that it’s been a great balance of hard work and fun, but
overall an amazing experience.
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| At the Black Sea in Burgas |
In conclusion, I have to say my time spent here has been a
once in a lifetime experience. It’s amazing to look back and see how much I’ve
done in six short weeks. I came across the globe and met Latcho, someone I
truly call a dear friend. I was able to create work product that is actually
making a difference in a culture that I have learned so much about. I also was
overloaded with different types of experience.
In the end all I can is that God has honestly, truly, and
undoubtedly blessed me with the life I have. He has shown, and continues to
show me what he has planned for me, while providing me with the tools and
mentors to achieve this goal. This internship with Latcho has been one small,
but amazing step in that plan. I cannot wait to see the rest.
Here are some additional photos from my time here in Sofia:
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| At the Skavavitsa Waterfall at Rila Mountain |
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| At the Rila Monastery |
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| Latcho and I |
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