I first came across the term "pro bono" from the article in the Yale-NUS College blog that discusses more about lawyers or law students who wish to use their knowledge for the greater good. "Pro bono" is actually derived from Latin - the phrase "pro bono publico"; meaning "for the public good". The benefits of pro bono work are not subjected to the disadvantaged communities alone, however it is for humanity as a whole as it incorporates professional knowledge, skillsets and values. (Lim, 2012, para.7). For lawyers or law students, this could come in the form of advocating for human rights, or defending the innocent.
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| Image from rayharris57.wordpress.com |
By now, I am sure you are well aware of my dreams of being a social entrepreneur if I could. Whilst I am still in the midst of pursuing that dream of mine, as the time for uni applications begin approaching, I have been trying to figure out which path to pursue for uni education. I remembered enjoying and excelling in Mr Patrick Seong's 'Legal Framework For Social Enterprise' module, so I thought of maybe furthering my studies in law. Mr Damien had come across a social enterprise law firm and found it to be a rather apt organisation for me to intern at to gain a better understanding of how I could incorporate what I have learnt in BZSE, with knowledge in law. The organisation was called International Bridges to Justice (IBJ) and it was founded by Karen I Tse, who hoped to create a community of people that would help secure a successful legal representation for children, women and men held in detention, more so in developing countries. It had not crossed my mind before, but this could be just as meaningful a job as being a social entrepreneur.
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| Image from huffingtonpost.com |
Here is Karen I Tse, she was a trained public defender that had travelled to Cambodia in 1994 to provide humanitarian aid work for both "the United Nations and the International Human Rights Law Group, as a judicial mentor and to build a community of legal
defenders." (Koshy & Samy, 2012, para.5). While she was there, she came across a 12 year old boy who had been beaten up, denied any legal representation and imprisoned, just for attempting to steal a bicycle. She realised how many innocent people in countries like Cambodia were in need of help, help that she could provide for them and she returned back to the US in 1997 and founded International Bridges to Justice.
"In
her dream, IBJ would create a community of people in the United States
and Europe who would join forces with human rights defenders and legal
aid lawyers in Asia “to ensure effective legal representation for every
child, woman, and man in detention”. IBJ works to guarantee the
right to competent legal representation, the right to be protected from
torture and the right to a fair trial for everyone." (Koshy & Samy, 2012, para.19-20).
So there are many ways in which we can be changemakers, and besides social entrepreneurship, being a human rights lawyer is one significantly meaningful way to help the most vulnerable in this world. This serves as yet another possible career path for us to consider.
"We are at a unique time in history because there is so much we can do." - Karen I Tse
References
Koshy, S. & Samy, F. A. (2012, October 14). When every step goes a long way. In TheStarOnline. Retrieved on 5 November 2012, from http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/10/14/focus/12149161&sec=focus
Lim, A. (2012, November 5). Are lawyers vampires?. In YaleNUSblog. Retrieved on 5 November 2012, from http://yalenusblog.com/2012/11/05/are-lawyers-vampires/
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