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Rights advice centres:

a practical guide to providinglegal advice and informationservices in Malawi


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Rights advice centres: a practical guide to providing legal advice and information services in Malawi

Throughout the world, but particularly in developingcountries, poor people do not have access to legal

information and advice and therefore lack access tojustice. While the rich buy the services of a lawyer,the poor cannot. This booklet describes a projectthat has established rights advice and informationcentres in two areas in Malawi, Mangochi andDedza and is piloting ways of delivering outreachservices in rural areas.

This booklet sets out the methods and ways in whichthe project established its centres and outreachservices to identify lessons learned. A similar legal aidproject exists in Ethiopia, which was started earlierthan the Malawi one, and from time to time referenceis made to lessons learned which have beenincorporated in the Malawi model. The experienceof the project is offered as a way of informing and

improving future legal advice services in Malawi.

The principles of the service

Free: advice and information is free.

Confidential: Client information is confidential tothose who work in the service and information canonly be disclosed with the clients permission.

Impartial: Advisers do not discriminate in decidingto whom they will give advice and they behave

in a non-judgemental way, setting aside their ownviews and prejudices.

Independent: The advice and information givenis determined by what the law says and what iswritten down in Government policies. The centresare independent of Government.

Empowering: The centres aim to empower peopleby giving them the information and advice theyneed to claim their entitlements.

Rights advice centres: a practical guide to providing legaladvice and information services in Malawi


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The booklet was written by Gil Long of the ActiveLearning Centre, August 2012

Thank you to Brenda Graham for proof readingand to Louise St. Clair for design and layout.

Published October 2012

ISBN 978-0-9565140-3-5

Contents

1 Introduction 4

2 The origins of the project and its design 5

3 The rationale for the project 7

4 Partnership and management of the project 105 Setting up 11

6 Working with volunteers 16

7 Training 19

8 The centre managers 23

9 The paralegals 25

10 The work of the centres and outreach 29

11 Reaching people in rural areas 33

12 Local advisory committees 35

13 Raising awareness of rights 37

14 Advocacy 39

15 Lessons learned 4016 The way forward 41

Paralegals in Mangochi


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Rights advice and information in Malawi: Introduction

The project launched in July 2010 is funded by theScottish Government. The main partners are the ActiveLearning Centre, UK who are the grant holders, MalawiCentre for Advice Research and Education on Rights(Malawi CARER) and the British Council, Malawi.

The project aims to make a difference to the lives ofpoor people by raising awareness of their legal rightsand by providing them with the means to accessdetailed information and advice about how to seekredress. The beneficiaries are poor people living in theperi-urban centres of Dedza and Mangochi and in thesurrounding rural areas. Target groups include thosethat research shows are most vulnerable to poverty:

women, people with disabilities, people living withHIV/AIDS, the elderly and the young. The projecthas created two rights advice centres where trainedparalegals operate on a regular basis to give legaladvice to members of the public. From these centresa total of 14 outreach services have been establishedbased in trading centres in the surrounding ruralareas. These are piloting models of providing legal

aid to people who do not have access to the towns.A legal literacy campaign to raise awareness of rightsand advertise the presence of the centres is deliveredthrough radio programmes and local campaigns. Thecentres are staffed by full-time managers who organiseand support teams of trained paralegals to deliverthe rights advice and information. Each centre andoutreach post is advised by a committee composed

of local government and community representatives.Clients cases provide evidence of the types ofproblems and issues experienced and highlight gapsin the law or policy or lack of implementation. Thisinformation is collated and published in a briefingsheet format to advocate for reform.

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Velina came to the Centre because she said shehad been assaulted by her husband when sherefused to undergo female genital mutilation. Sherelated how her husband had consulted a witchdoctor who had instructed him to perform FGM.When Velina refused, a struggle broke out in which

she was wounded and suffered cuts on her thighsand stomach. Both parties were counselled by theCentre and the matter was referred to the police.The Centre is following up the case with the police.

The specific aims of the project are three fold: To ensure that poor people have access to advice

and information about their legal rights and the

opportunity to seek redress. To use the evidence gathered from the people

who use the legal advice centres to feed backto government information on the impact oflaws and policies and to make recommendationsfor improvement.

To create public awareness of human rights andthe laws of the country.


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The origins of the project and its design:the links between poverty reduction and human rights

The project was conceived and funded with theunderstanding that working on human rights isfundamental to addressing poverty and development.This was the starting point and framework for the project.

Much of current development literature focuses on

what is generally termed a rights based approachto poverty reduction1. This conceptual frameworkowes much to Sens work on understanding povertyas a deprivation of basic capabilities rather thanmerely a lowness of incomes. In essence Sen arguesthat poverty can be seen as a denial of freedom orthe lack of capability of a poor person to pursuehis or her well-being. Although low income is the

underlying feature of poverty, it alone does notdescribe or provide the reason for the condition. Forinstance, lack of access to basic health care leads toill health and often results in lack of ability to earn aliving. This way of understanding poverty replaces anarrow focus on low income with a multi-dimensionalapproach that encompasses, for example, lack ofeducation, health, the inability to participate

in society or lack of dignity. Whist Sen does notuse the language of human rights, developmentpractitioners have used his analysis and his emphasison freedoms and capabilities to view poverty as adenial of basic human rights: for instance, the rightto freedom from hunger, to an adequate standard ofliving, the right to health, to education etc.

Characteristics of a rights based approachA right is something to which one is entitled by virtue ofbeing a human being and can be distinguished from aneed. Rights are fundamental to human dignity, to selfworth and entail an obligation on the part of the state.By contrast, needs may express aspirations but without

any obligation on the government to respond.

Rights based approaches to addressing poverty anddevelopment espouse the key principles of human rights:

Universality and indivisibilityHuman rights belong equally to all human beings andprovide the basis for development. Using the human

rights framework recognises the interdependenceand interaction of economic, social, cultural and civiland political rights. For example, having a right toan adequate standardof living may dependon having rights tofarm land; exercisingthe right to the highest

attainable standard ofhealth may imply havingrights to information andeducation as well as anadequate standard ofliving.

Poster on land rights

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1 Sen Amartya, Development as Freedom 1999, Poverty Reduction and Human Rights: a practice note, UNDP 2003, Human Developmentreports, 2000 and 2002, UNDP; Human Rights and poverty reduction: A conceptual framework, OHCHR, 2004


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Equality and non-discriminationInequality and discrimination are major causesof poverty. Adopting a rights-based approach

emphasises that rights are the entitlement of everyoneand highlights the need to address discrimination.Human rights apply to people living in poverty as wellas the rich. International law prohibits discriminationon any grounds: ethnicity or race, colour, sex, orany other social status, for example, people livingwith HIV/AIDS.

Participation and inclusionAn essential tenet of the human rights framework isthat everyone is entitled to be an active participantin society and to enjoy civil, political, economicand social rights. In turn, this requires people to beempowered with the information and the voice to beable to participate fully in society.

Accountability and the rule of lawStates have the obligation to respect, protect andfulfil the rights contained in international treaties andconventions. Respect requires states to refrain frominterfering in the enjoyment of rights, for example, theright to housing would be violated if a state engagedin forced evictions. The obligation to protect meansthe state should protect against the violation of rights

by third parties, for instance, ensuring that employerscomply with employment laws that set standards forfair conditions of work. Fulfil requires states to enactlaws and policies to progress towards realisation ofrights, for example, establishing policies to addresseconomic growth in order to provide an adequatestandard of living. These principles emphasisethe need for accountability and the rule of law.

Everybody is entitled to equality before the law andfor disputes to be decided by an independent andfair process.

Rights based approaches focus both on the desiredoutcomes of development the realisation of rights and on the process by which these can be achieved.The approach also highlights how development hasto focus not simply on service delivery but on the wayin which governance and decision-making processesare integral to progress. This more integrated

approach in which economic development is coupledwith a focus on rights and governance is reflectedin many poverty reduction strategies and also theMillennium Development Goals.

Benton was owed severance pay by thecompany where he had worked for 5 years.I went there reminding them about myseverance pay. I then came to the Centre. He( the paralegal) wrote me a letter on the sameday it quoted some section of the law. I said tohim is there any kind of money that I have topay for the service and he said no you donthave to pay for anything. I took the letter to thecompany. They called head office in Blantyre because in the letter he (paralegal) said that if Ididnt get my pay he would take court action. Igot my money. I came back to the Centre to saythank you so much I am sorted.


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72 World Bank data 2012: http://data.worldbank.org/country/malawi

The rationale for the project: the Malawi context 3Despite recent progress, Malawi has an estimated52.4 per cent2 of its 14.9 million people living belowthe nationally defined poverty line, the majority ofwhom live in rural areas. Specific groups are knownto be more vulnerable to poverty than others: women,people living with HIV/AIDS, the elderly and the

disabled. These groups are the targets for the project.

As described earlier, the project was conceivedwithin the framework of a rights-based approachrecognising that addressing peoples needs forinformation and advice about their legal rights isfundamental to tackling poverty. Raising awarenessof rights and offering information alone, however, is

insufficient. To claim entitlements people need accessto a means of redress. For example, helping womento understand their rights to freedom from abuseis only the first step. Securing the womens rightsrequires access to a means of ending the abuse andresolving the situation. It entails offering legal adviceand a means of pursuing a complaint; only then maysocial justice be secured. However, the majority of

poor people in Malawi are not able to secure theirrights or means of redress due to poverty, ignoranceof the law or illiteracy. The project therefore set outto pilot a cost effective model of providing free legaladvice and information and access to redress.

Why were Mangochi and Dedza chosen for the pilot?Mangochi and Dedza are centres of populationand hubs for surrounding villages. Both places wereidentified as in need of legal services by the MalawiHuman Rights Commission. In addition a previousproject, also funded by the Scottish Government,

had focused on training communities in Dedza andMangochi specifically on womens rights issues. Thishad undoubtedly raised expectations: once peopleare more aware of their rights, seeking redress is thenext logical step.

A further aim of the project was to provide feedbackto government and other bodies about the impact

and implementation of laws and policies. Laws aimto be comprehensive but practice often reveals gapsand anomalies. Alternatively, laws and policies mayexist but not be implemented. Advocacy based on theevidence of the people using the legal advice servicewas therefore built into the design of the project. Thisentailed setting up adequate monitoring systems tocapture the issues clients raise: the evidence base for

advocacy. The case recording system designed to dothis is described later.


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Malawi policies on human rights and legal adviceand informationThe Malawi Growth and Development Plan I, theme 5:

Improving governance included the followingcommitments:

Developing a strong justice system and the ruleof law

Ensuring personal security Promoting of human rights

The project sits firmly within this and the framework ofthe new Legal Aid Act that extends legal aid to coverissues of civil law and allows co-operation with otherorganisations involved in the promotion of humanrights and provision of legal aid services. The Actalso envisages the setting up of regional and districtlegal aid offices and the use of paralegals. However,it has to be noted that current provision falls short of

ideals. At present the Legal Aid Office employs only18 lawyers in three sites in the country, Lilongwe,Mzuzu and Blantyre, and it is estimated that a singlecase may take between 2 and 3 years to complete.Provision in rural areas is non-existent. The projecttherefore seeks to make a contribution to developingmodels and mechanisms for provision of service thatmay have wider application. The Government of

Joyce Banda makes a firm commitment to focusing onmarginalised groups and to the provision of humanrights and access to justice.

Many of our country men and women havelived in this country as destitute; as second classcitizens This has been either because one is awoman because one comes from a strangetribe because of age because one is bornwith a disability because one was born intoa poor family. These conditions have assignedmany of our citizens to punishment where oursociety has stopped caring for them.

Government will start conducting civic educationin readiness for the 2014 tripartite elections andbuild capacity of Civil Society Organisations toenable them adequately to deliver governanceand human rights programmes Governmentwill strengthen institutions that enforce andpromote human rights, accountability ingovernance issues and access to justice

Joyce Banda State of the Nation Address, 2012

Principles of advice work


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The project is also relevant to internationalcommitments. Malawi, along with 189 other countries,is signatory to the Millennium Development Goals,

a set of 8 time bound, quantifiable goals that focuson human development and which signatories arecommitted to implementing.3 UNDP in addressing thelinks between rights and development argues that:The human rights framework provides an importanttool for achieving the MDGs by helping to ensure theGoals are pursued in an equitable, just and sustainablemanner.4 Underlying the goals is the assumption

that discrimination and marginalisation need to beaddressed to achieve poverty reduction, for example,focusing on women and those living with HIV/AIDS.

In summary, the project design was based on analysisof the current situation in Malawi and identifiedneed. A base line study further documented the lackof understanding of legal rights and of access to

justice. The project took the definite decision to focuson social and economic rights rather than adopt anarrower definition of human rights as violations ofcivil and political rights. Project design was basedaround current development thinking about the linksbetween rights and poverty reduction and took intoaccount the Malawi Governments own strategyfor poverty reduction and its commitment to the

Millennium Development Goals.

3 http://www.beta.undp.org/undp/en/home/mdgoverview.html4 Human Rights and the MGDs, UNDP, 2006


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Partnership and the management of the project 4The project was originally a partnership betweenthe Active Learning Centre and the British Council(Malawi). Malawi CARER became involved becausethe British Council decided it did not wish to linemanage or employ the centre managers. In addition,previous projects in the Mangochi and Dedza

areas run by Malawi CARER provided a base forstarting up new activities. In the reorganisation ofthe management, Malawi CARER has a part-timemanager and takes responsibility for the two centremanagers and organising training and logistics for thecentres. The British Council retains responsibility forpublications and accounts and overall managementand direction of the project is the responsibility of the

Active Learning Centre.

In addition, the project has established a ProjectAdvisory Committee at national level comprisinggovernment representatives of the justice sector, forexample, the Office of the Ombudsman, the HumanRights Commission, the Legal Aid Office and IndustrialRelations Court, human rights consultants and other

NGO stakeholders. This committee meets twice a yearand provides advice to the managers of the project. Atlocal level, each centre and outreach has established alocal advisory committee. These groups have a specificfunction and their work is described in the section onreaching people in rural areas.

The partnership with the Active Learning Centre alsobrings skills and experience to the project as theirproject manager worked previously in a nationalrights advice organisation in the UK: Citizens AdviceBureaux. The project also drew on the experience ofthe sister project in Ethiopia which started 18 months

in advance of Malawi. Lessons learned there havebeen incorporated by the Malawi team.

The project team

Advisory committee members and paralegals in Chimwala


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Setting up: developing the infrastructure for the project 5Setting up advice centres cannot be accomplishedovernight. There is considerable work to be donein establishing the infrastructure: deciding whichareas of rights are most relevant to the targetpopulation; developing the legal manuals that willbe used as reference materials by the paralegals;

establishing a mechanism for training theparalegals a training of trainers; developing thetraining materials that will be used and identifyingand setting up suitable premises which will bothserve as offices for the project and spaces in whichclients can be seen by the advisers. The startingpoint was the base-line survey.

The base line survey: terms of reference andfindingsThe main objective of the base line survey wasto identify the key areas of rights advice andinformation required by poor people. The results ofthe survey were used for two purposes:

To inform the legal literacy campaign to be

mounted as part of the project. To determine the contents of the legal manuals

to be used by the paralegal workers who willoperate from the two advice centres envisagedby the project.

The researchers were instructed to focus on therights and areas of law of the main target groups

for the project and to identify the key issues andproblems in order to provide sufficient detailto inform the writing of the legal manuals. Theresearch was conducted by two human rightsconsultants. The main findings of the survey areshown in the box below.

The main findings of the base-line surveyThe researchers reported: serious violations of both civil and politicalrights, and economic, social and culturalrights, and the rights of vulnerable categories,particularly in the following areas: land and

property (issues of access and possession,inheritance, housing and possession; familylaw (marriage and divorce, custody andmaintenance of children and succession,domestic violence); education and health policy;labour and employment law and political andcivil rights

the majority of people lack knowledge of thelaws that govern their daily lives. low levels of awareness of law on the part ofduty bearers (neither) districts have legal aid services(or) private legal firms. non-formal and formal courts had not


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popularised the use of the Prevention ofDomestic Violence Act and the Wills andInheritance Act informal justice delivery structures (that)trivialise some concerns and a feeling ofintimidation by the vulnerable people in this forum

Cases highlighted by the study included: Land dispossession of women Property grabbing after the death of a spouse Woman on divorce simply sent back to

home without being given any access overthe matrimonial property or land

High rates of early and/or forced marriagesof girls

Cultural approval of some practices such asearly and/or forced marriages for girls andthe practice of wife beating

High incidences of sexual offencesparticularly of rape and defilement with themajority of victims being women and girls

Issues of rape and defilement..unreportedfor the preservation of family honour

Polygamous marriages which give rise toproblems of wife and children abandonmentor lack of maintenance

Low awareness of labour rights and unfairpractices such as dismissal of women fromemployment due to pregnancy; employment-related discrimination of PLWHA and vagueemployment contracts

Child labour due to the presence of tobaccoestates, the fishing industry and farms

Persons with disabilities and people

living with HIV and AIDS low participationin development initiatives due to stigma anddiscriminatory practices

Trafficking of women and girls

Charlotte W Mesikano-Malonda and GraceTikambenji Malera, October 2010

Using the legal manual: paralegal in Mangochi


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Design and writing of the legal manualsAccurate, up to date and accessible legalinformation is absolutely crucial to the success ofany project that aims to use trained paralegals asadvisers. The information given to clients must beclear, concise, relevant to their own si tuation andabove all correct. Wrong information is worse thanno information at all and therefore the writing andupdating of the legal manuals is most important.Often attempts to re-write the law produce cutdown versions that follow the order of the articles

of the specific law. This is not very helpful: clientsseldom come for advice on a specific article orchapter of the law. Most frequently, clients beginwith a problem: my husband is violent, what canI do about it? Or my employer hasnt paid mywages for a month, how can I get my money? Themanuals also had to be accessible to people withoutany background in the law as the project recruits

community activists as paralegals.

information so that they can be used byparalegals running outreach clinics in ruralareas.

Wzwx{y{{zwwy~wopposed to a chronological rewriting of theexisting articles of the law.

fz{|wwxx{that the client has in resolving his/herproblem, For example, a woman trying todecide what to do if her husband is violentneeds to consider a number of differentoptions: intervention by a third party;referral to the police and criminal action;suing for divorce (may require informationon child maintenance); doing nothing.

[{~w{|{{y{w{wz{~{{there may be cross over between one lawand another. For example, the chapter on

divorce should remind an adviser to consultthe manual on child maintenance. [{~w~{{x{|~{{

target groups are covered, taking intoaccount urban and rural differences

k{{w{yw{z{w{particularly difficult areas of the law.

Format to be followed for the legal manuals

The Legal Manuals should: X{{ww}w}{wzx{

understandable by people who are non-lawyers.

fz{||y{z{w{wx{w paralegal to offer accurate and clearinformation about how the law addressesthe problem of the client. Key legal textswill be available in each of the advice centresbut it is important that the manuals canprovide sufficient detail and accurate


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A team of people (Grace Malera, CharlotteMesikano-Malonda, Fiona Mwale and Gil Long)worked on the manuals: writing editing and checkingthe legal content. A problem centred approach wasadopted which meant reorganising the order of the

manual and trying to focus on the problem areas thathad been identified in the baseline survey. All themanuals were first produced in English and there wasthen a lengthy debate about whether translation intoChichewa would be possible or desirable. Opinionwas divided. The experience of some members ofthe Project Advisory Committee had been that tryingto translate the law had proved unsuccessful in that

it had resulted in lengthy academic debates andno clear decisions about what was correct. Othersargued that it would enable non-English speakers tobecome paralegals and improve understanding. Itwould, however, have been very expensive and time

consuming and the resources and the time limit ofthe project simply wouldnt allow it. The first team oftrained paralegals was asked its opinion and mostsaid that they were happy to read in English althoughthey would always speak to clients in Chichewa. Inthe end a compromise was reached and the key legalterms in each of the manuals were translated intoChichewa to try to eliminate misinterpretations.

Paralegal team in Dedza


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The legal manuals1 Child rights (two parts)2 Civil and criminal procedure

3 Domestic violence4 Employment

5 Human rights 6 Trafficking

7 Land 8 Marriage and Divorce 9 Referral institutions (information about

other organisations)10 Wills and inheritance

Keeping up to dateThe introduction of new laws on inheritance requiredthe re-writing of manual 10 and also the generalinformation leaflet that had been produced. Themanuals were also amended after the first production

to include more cases and citations to assist withinterpretation. Fiona Mwale, who previously workedwith the Malawi Law Commission, was part of theproduction team for the manuals and has also beenresponsible for helping with the training materials,briefing sheets and leaflets. Her legal expertise andmeticulous approach to writing is invaluable.The manuals are produced in loose-leaf format to

allow updating. Each paralegal has a copy of themanuals and in addition each main centre has copiesof the Laws of Malawi and recent texts such as theDomestic Violence Act. It is a strict rule of being aparalegal that one should not rely on memory butalways check what the law says, using the manualsor, where necessary, the actual texts. Unfortunately,there are insufficient resources to provide legal texts in

all the outreach posts. Here, if they are unsure of thelaw or its interpretation, paralegals are encouragedto consult the centre manager. Maintaining links withthe centre and its support mechanisms is crucial toensuring standards of service.

Grace came to the Centre to complain that herland had been seized by her in laws becauseher husband had been sent to prison. She hadbeen married for twelve years and had fourchildren when her husband was sent to jailfor nine years for defiling a child. Her in-lawsclaimed that her field of crops belongs to oneof her husbands brothers even though Gracehas been cultivating the fields since she wasmarried. Grace wanted to know why her in-lawscould suddenly claim this land. The Centrecalled the in-laws to a mediation meeting andit was agreed that Grace could use the landand harvest her crops, despite their brothersabsence, to enable her to earn a living andsupport her children.

Paralegal team in Mangochi


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The centres are staffed by volunteers but this does notmean that the service is not professional. In order toensure the quality of advice, volunteers have to becarefully selected and trained and their work has to beboth checked and supported to maintain high standards.

It is often assumed that using volunteers implies thateveryone who puts him or herself forward shouldbe accepted. Whilst it is important to applaudpeoples willingness to assist their community andgive freely of their time, it must also be recognisedthat not everyone is suited to becoming a paralegal.Volunteers are selected and only those with theskills and abilities that match the job description are

accepted for training. This includes the ability toread and write in English. All volunteers completeapplication forms and are interviewed by the centremanagers before they are accepted for training.A leaflet setting out the responsibilities and jobdescription of a paralegal is given to all candidates.Once accepted and trained each paralegal signs aconfidentiality statement.

In total the project has trained 125 paralegalsand most remain in service. Some turnover ofvolunteers is inevitable and therefore training isan ongoing process. Often people who leave theservice do so for good reasons: paralegals becomeknowledgeable about the law and skilled in research,communications, writing, negotiation and mediation

and these skills make them much more employable.To date four paralegals have gained paidemployment as a result of their work in the Centres.

Working with volunteers 6

Charles is 40 years old and has been living inDedza for the past 10 years. Having movedthere with a company that subsequently wentbankrupt, Charles became unemployed. Hehad no permanent employment when hecame to train as a paralegal. Clients cometo us because they know we are fast, free andindependent and because they get a friendlyservice they are made welcome.

Although the Centres specialise in social andeconomic issues, Charles became interestedin the criminal cases that appear from time totime. He has taught himself about criminal lawand when a case arises in the Centre he takesit on, going to the District Council library andusing the legal texts in the Centre to research

the case. Criminal cases are now referred toCharles. Becoming a paralegal changed mylife. I know how to solve problems I can standfor someone and support him because I knowabout the law.

But Charles presence in the Centre is usefulin other ways. He is both disabled and HIV


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positive and so encourages other people withdisabilities and those living with HIV to usethe services of the Centre: I can say I am a

disabled paralegal I can help you ..it alsoallows me to relate to other people that areHIV positive. Through his membership of theFederation for People with Disabilities and theMalawi Council for the Handicapped, Charlesadvertises the work of the Centre and reassuresother potential clients.

Charles work as a paralegal has also gainedhim permanent employment as a Project Officerfor Youth and Childrens Rights Shield. The skillsand knowledge that he gained as a paralegalmade him attractive to another agency. AsCharles says: the training and the work that Idid as a paralegal got me the job. But he is notlost to the service. Dedza now opens its mainCentre on a Saturday and Charles is one of theparalegals on duty.

The Ethiopia project drew on law students fromthe Universities to serve as paralegals, as well ascommunity activists. While students gained valuable

practical experience to augment their theoreticalstudies, the Centres gained legal expertise. InMalawi, with the main University in Zomba, it isdifficult to see how students could best be used on aregular basis in other areas of Malawi but thoughtcould be given in the future to work out ways of usingstudents during the summer vacations. It is not onlylaw students who might gain. Students of community

development, social work and trainee teacherscould also enhance their studies by volunteeringfor paralegal work. In Scotland a regular supplyof students is provided by running crash trainingcourses after the annual university exams. In Ethiopiapractical service in the Centres is being incorporatedinto the law degree course.

Charles: helping to reach people with disabilities

Paralegals in Mangochi


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What do advisers do? _{{y{B{~{{

problem and identify the key questions

k{~{{}wwwwz~{y{research the law

^{~{y{z{wz~ware available to him or her

m{wyw{{yz|~{y{ W~{y{~}{{

submissions for the court d{}w{x{~w||wy{ c{zw{x{{{w{wx{

What skills and abilities must I have? Wx{wzwz{[}~ kz{wz}|~{x{|{{

the community and ability to empathise m}{wxz{x~{y{|~{

service m}{wx{y{wwz{ Commitment to work for at least 5 hours a week

Volunteer expensesBy definition a volunteer is someone who workswithout pay. However, this doesnt mean that people

should lose money by volunteering. The funding forthe project provides for travel expenses to enable thevolunteers to travel to the centre or outreach post andalso a small lunch allowance.

Paralegal in Maldeco Outreach


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Training 7Training the trainersHaving an effective training policy and good trainingmaterials is key to ensuring the quality of service.The project uses a cascade model in which a groupof people were trained as trainers and they thentake on responsibility for training the paralegals. The

initial training of trainers drew on consultants fromthe Office of the Ombudsman, the Human RightsCommission, the Industrial Relations Court, the LawSociety the High Court and as well as the CentreManagers and staff from Malawi Carer.

The training of trainers course focused on participativetraining skills and ended with the trainers designing

and delivering their own sessions on key aspects of thelaw. One of the problems with carrying out trainingfor the paralegals has been the availability of thesepeople, all of whom are full time employees.

The training materialsA set of training materials was developed for use bythe trainers. Each module is designed to be able to beused by the trainer in a group setting or for self-studyby a trainee paralegal working on his or her own.There are three colour coded parts to each module:

a set of notes for the trainer (yellow); a handout withcase studies and exercises to be completed by thetrainees (white) and a set of answers for those whoare working on their own to check their own work(pink). While all the training for the current groupsof paralegals has been conducted in a group set-ting, the self-study materials could be used by traineeparalegals who have either missed sessions or live

in remote places and therefore cannot easily accesstraining. The intention was to invest in materials thatcould provide flexibility in the future.

Opposite: Chimbizgani Kachere: training on land law

Extract from training module on marriage anddivorce

All the training uses participative methods andthere is a strong emphasis on case studies andpractical exercises.

Exercise 2: Marriage by repute and co-habitationA client comes to you to say her husbandhas moved out of the house and has married


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another woman. He is no longer supportingher although he is still paying school fees forthe children and buying food. The landlord has

given her notice as rent is no longer being paid.The client does not work. There are ankhoswebut they have refused to help because shemoved in with him before the negotiations werefinalised.

1. What is the first thing you need to be sureabout before you can offer advice?

2. If there was no valid marriage in this casedoes it mean the client cannot get any helpfrom the courts?

Extract from training module on interviewingskills. Paralegals are taught active listening skillsto fully understand the problem, to then researchthe law and explore options with the client. It isalways the clients right to decide on a course ofaction

Case 2 ChristineChristine is a domestic worker who is beingexploited by her employer. Her wages haventbeen paid and she is asked to work extremelylong hours and is treated badly.

Which areas of the law would you researchfor this client?

Which options would you explore with thisclient?

How would you go about clarifying whatare Christines aims?

Training the paralegalsAs the syllabus on the training record shows, thereare sessions on areas of the law but also on processskills such as understanding the principles of advicegiving, interviewing clients and writing case records.These two latter sessions are carried out in- houseby the Centre Managers, while the legal knowledgetopics are covered by legal experts in the week-longtraining course. The main emphasis on the legalcontent sessions is on providing an overview of thetopic, explaining any specific jargon or technicallanguage and enabling the paralegal to access thelegal manuals which give much fuller information. Thetraining materials have also been extended to includesessions on Alternative Dispute Resolution (mediationand negotiation) and a self-study pack called Usingthe legal manuals which is designed to familiarise theparalegals with the legal manuals and their contents.

It is fully recognised that one week is insuf ficient timein which to train a paralegal and therefore a periodof induction has been introduced when the parale-gal will observe experienced people or the CentreManager, conducting interviews and be observedhim or herself. This also allows time for self-studyand visits to key institutions like the courts and thelabour office. Each paralegal has a training record

to indicate which sessions she or he has completed.A complete record is required before a paralegalcan operate alone.

Opposite: Clients and paralegal in Chimwala


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Ri ht d i t ti l id t idi l l d i d i f ti i i M l i


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Extracts from paralegal training recordThese are the sessions on skills that you will study with your centre manager after the week long course.

Topic Date Initial to show attended session

Interviewing skills

Case recording

Alternative dispute resolution

During your induction you will be asked to observe some interviews being done by your centre manager or anexperienced paralegal. S/he will then supervise you conducting interviews to help you to acquire the necessaryskills. Please fill in the dates when you complete these activities.

Date Date Date Date

Observed interviews

Supervised interviews

During your induction period you will also begin to start using the legal manuals. There is a self study module to helpyou to do this. Please initial the column to show when you have completed each of the topics on the module.

Self study during induction: Using the legal manuals

Topic Date completed

Manual 1 Child rights 1

Manual 1 Child rights 2

Manual 3 Domestic violence

Manual 4 Employment law

Manual 7 Land lawManual 8 Marriage and divorce

Manual 9 Wills and inheritance


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The Centre Managers 8Madalitso (Mada) Masache and Stella Mpaso are thetwo Centre Managers based in Mangochi and Dedzaand are full-time employees of the project. Whileneither has a degree in law, both were trained asparalegals by other organisations and have practisedas paralegals for some years. Stella has a background

in community development while Mada worked forthe Civil Liberties Committee. It is a tough job whichMada describes as a challenge: I wanted to workwith communities it gives me a diverse knowledge ofissues affecting people in local communities.

Job description of a Centre Manager Set up and manage the Rights Advice Centre

in Dedza/ Mangochi town and throughoutreach in the surrounding rural areas tooffer legal advice and information to clients

fz{|{w~{ww{}wand maintain the quality of legal advice

Institute and manage a case recording systemto record client information about the nature

of enquiries and details of legal cases. i{wzww~{ stakeholders including the DistrictCommissioners Office, Labour Office andpersonnel in the courts

i{Bwzwwywwzywygroup to take forward issues highlighted bythe users of the rights advice and

information service. cww}{wzwyy|~{Y{{xz}{ W~{}w{wywy{B|

example, distributing leaflets ]w~{wz{|w{{z{z|

project monitoring and national advocacypublications

While much of the daily routine involves providingsupport to paralegals, the Centre Managers are alsoinvolved in case work, mediation and negotiationsessions as well as maintaining contacts with local

stakeholders and conducting local advocacy. Thereis the straightforward organisation of volunteers;to make maximum use of their labour and time,volunteers need to know when and where they willbe expected to work and provided with ongoingsupport. This means that they should be able to askthe co-ordinator for advice on legal matters andinterpretation of the law and assistance in how to

handle a particularly difficult case or client or help inwriting up cases.

One of the Centre Managers most important rolesis to maintain the quality of advice. They do this bymaking regular checks of the case records in orderto see that the correct information has been given tothe client. Managing a staff of 60 plus paralegals



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is difficult especially when half of those staff arespread out between outreach centres in remoteplaces. They try to visit each outreach post at leastonce a month and make use of Malawi CARERs

motor bikes for transport but this often involvesbetween 30 minutes and an hour on rough roads.According to Mada it is worth it: the outreachclinics are really working They are closer to thepeople the service is free clients appreciate this we provide professional advice for free.

While they have both increased their legal expertise,other skills have been gained as Stella explains:Supervising 50+ people is a hard job I have learnedto delegate and how to manage them. I introduced

a system of team leaders for each of the centres andthey report to me. I have also learned how to motivatepeople. Mada too enjoys his job: I love being aCentre Manager. It gives me satisfaction that I amhelping the people in Mangochi as I am going aboutmy work I am supported by this team of paralegals.

Ensuring the quality of advice: Centre Manager supporting volunteers


9


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The paralegals: working with the clients 9People volunteer to become paralegals for a varietyof reasons but most commonly it is a combination ofwishing to help others and serve the community andrecognition that the training and experience of beinga paralegal also brings benefits.

I am able to assist other people how they canassert themselves and where they can go if theirrights have been violated helping others(Donata, paralegal in Mangochi Centre)

What have I gained? Knowledge. I know about thelaw and I can help myself and my family and others.(Henry, paralegal in Mangochi Centre)

Most of the community are ignorant of the lawand so we can help them- so we can change ourcommunity for the better.(Phunziro, paralegal in Kachere outreach, Dedza)

Chisamba has been a paralegal in Dedza forover a year:

I have learned a lot I am clued up on the lawsof Malawithe constitution and the penal code.How to assist vulnerable people in the community... I learned all these things as a paralegal Ifeel empowered I was ignorant about the law buthaving been trained I am able to assist others andalso to study.

The principles of the service are covered in the firstsession of the training course and underpin the workof the paralegals. In all advice work but especiallyin rural areas where most people know one another,confidentiality is paramount.

Principles of advice workThe principles of the serviceFree: advice and information is free.

Confidential: Client information is confidential tothose who work in the service and informationcan only be disclosed with the clients permission.

Impartial: Advisers do not discriminate in

deciding who they will give advice to and theybehave in a non-judgemental way, setting asidetheir own views and prejudices.

Independent: The advice and information givenis determined by what the law says and what iswritten down in Government policies. Thecentres are independent of Government.

Empowering: The centres aim to empower

people by giving them the information andadvice they need to claim their entitlements.

After training paralegals are asked to guaranteetheir support for the principles and to sign astatement of confidentiality.



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g p g p g g

A free service or only for the poor?There is a potential contradiction between providinga service that is aimed at helping the poor andproviding open access because it is free. There

is much research literature that demonstrates thebenefits of universalism and the problems of tryingto target through means-testing in countries that donot routinely gather data on peoples incomes.5The policy decision was made that the serviceshould be free but that we would try to ensure thatthe overwhelming majority of clients were poor bytargeting our service on those groups known tobe vulnerable to poverty: women, the elderly andyoung, disabled people and those living with HIV/AIDS. Case records suggest that this has been largelysuccessful. This was achieved through targetedadvertising,by inviting representatives of these specificgroups onto our local advisory committees whoprovide a conduit to their members and by recruitingparalegals from the target groups. The last pointis illustrated in the case studies of Charles and Ali.Equal numbers of men and women are recruitedas paralegals in the interests of equality but also totarget women clients: some women prefer to talk toa female paralegal. As the charts below show, theproject is succeeding in reaching its target groups.Over half of clients are women and other targetgroups are using the Centres. It should be noted thatthese figures are based on self disclosure; the clientvolunteering information about his or herself andthat people may fall in more than one category, forexample, being disabled and unemployed.

5 See, for example, S Kidd, Child Poverty in OECD Countries:Lessons for Developing Countries, Pathways Perspectives, Number 2

Lucy came to the RAC to find out aboutmaintenance for her child. I had a traditionalmarriage with a man who is a policeman. WhenI became pregnant he chased me from the house I was 8 month pregnant and I had to go back tomy village. When my baby was born I went backto him to try again but he said that he had married

someone else and he beat me and chased mefrom the house. I was bleeding and injured. I wentto the police to complain but because he is apoliceman they did nothing. They gave me a formto go to the hospital and the doctor completed theform but when I took it back to the police they stilldid nothing. I went to the Centre and they treatedme well. My husband was called to a meeting

with the paralegals and he agreed that he wouldpay 2000 KW a month for my baby and provideclothes. He refused to pay for a house for me buthe said he would pay for a blanket for the baby.At the Centre people really helped me. I wont takethe matter further because he is a policeman butthe Centre was good they helped me.

Working with clients in the outreach at Maldeco



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Working with the Moslem community:a case study of AliAli works in the Chimwala outreach service.

I saw so many people suffering because theyhad no legal advice, access to justice I am aparalegal I can advise them about the lawsand what it says I can help them and myselfbecause I know the laws of Malawi I didntknow them before but when I trained. Ali is alsoa sheik and religious leader and has standingwithin the Moslem community. As he points

out, some Moslems would be afraid or shy ofgoing to the RAC but as he has a position ofauthority he is trusted and is therefore able tohelp. When we are dealing with a case wehave to be confidential and independent andempowering. But how does Ali deal with thepotential conflict between the laws of Islam andthose of Malawi: We explain to them that in

Islam it is like these laws and in Malawi law itslike this ..the client chooses. Alis position alsoallows him to help target women: in Islamit (women) is not allowed to talk with a manseparately.. but sheik means you are pastor soit is no problem for them. Ali suggests that theproject needs Moslem women to be trained asparalegals in order to make the service moreaccessible. Other suggestions are for womenonly sessions and making provision for clients tosee a paralegal of the same sex.

Percentage of male and female clients

People from vulnerable groups as a percentageof all clients

Male

Female

0 10 20 30 40 505 15 25 35 45

Unemployed

Children

Elderly

PLWHA

People withdisabilities

Ali: working with the Moslem community


10


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10Case recordingThe case record developed for the project requiresdifferent sorts of information: a summary of the mainproblems of the clients to ensure effective follow

on if the client comes more than once, a record ofcontact and social details required to monitor thetypes of clients using the service and a third sectionon information and advice given. In this third part,the paralegal has to fill in the numbers of the sectionof the legal manual that he or she consulted andsummarise the advice given thereby allowing theCentre Manager to check that correct information has

been given. Support and help can be given whereparalegals have made a mistake and, if necessary,corrective action taken. It is adequate support forvolunteering that maintains professional standardsand ensures that poor people are not being offereda second class service simply because they cannotafford to pay for a lawyer.

Interviewing and advisingIn learning how to interview and advise clients,

paralegals are taught to use a routine:

Reassuring the client and explaining the principlesof the service, particularly confidentiality

Understanding the clients problem by listeningactively

Researching the law and advising the client aboutthe options available

Writing up the case record

Talking through the options open to the client mayinvolve thinking about the role of traditional customand law and also within the Moslem community,

sharia law. It is particularly important that paralegalsunderstand that it is the clients right to decide on acourse of action. Increasingly paralegals are beingasked to mediate in cases or negotiate on behalf

of a client and it is for this reason the training onalternative dispute resolution was introduced. As thechart below shows, most cases require additionalhelp beyond simple advice and information.Paralegals may be involved in case work, such aswriting a letter or submission to a court or mediationand negotiation. Most clients visit more than onceand nearly 50 per cent of cases take more than 3

hours of work.


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Views of stakeholdersIt takes two years for a case to go throughthe Industrial Relations Court Without the

NGOs we would be in a bad situation wecouldnt do our job we are the least fundedgovernment agency and the Centre has avery important function.

Joe Manase (Labour Office Mangochi)

Matthew Nyrenda from the Labour Office inDedza agrees. He reports that the Centre helps

to improve his work and reduce his work load.The Labour Office has no field workers so whatusually happens is that the Centre staff phonehim for advice on difficult issues and refer themost complex cases that they cannot deal with.

Views of stakeholdersThe Victim Support Unit in Mangochi reportedthat they had noted an increase in referrals fromthe places where the Centre is operating. TheCentre staff accompany victims to the Unit and

this is very helpful. The main advantage of theCentre is that people now know where to gethelp. VSU also reported that the leaflets wereespecially good and asked for more reprints.(Interview with Enock Tembo, VSU, Mangochi)

Views of stakeholdersWe work closely with the Centre and knowabout its work they refer to us peoplewhose cases need to come to court and dealwith complaints from people who want toknow why their case has not come to court.

Jack Njiko (First Grade Magistrate, Mangochi)

the project is doing fine It has assisted usa lot in the courts when clients have beento the Centre they know what to do and sayin court they know what to expect.(Damiano Banda, First Grade Magistrate,Dedza). Mr Banda also reports that fewer socialcases are reaching court because the Centre

is able to deal with them. They are doingcommendable work - people are gettingredress and this is important.

Rising demand for the service

The Centres opened at the start of January 2011and at the time of writing have been running for18 months. As the chart below shows there hasbeen a steady increase in demand and the Centres,together with their outreaches services are dealingwith a monthly average of 223 cases. This is aconsiderable contribution to providing access tojustice. One of the most common comments from

clients is that they like the service because theyget a friendly welcome and speedy response. Notall issues can be dealt with instantaneously butconsiderable efforts are made to resolving caseswhere at all possible. On average, in any onemonth, 80 per cent of cases are resolved and 20per cent carried over into the next month.



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300

250

200

150

100

50

0

Jan-11 FebM

arch April May June July Aug SepOctober Nov Dec

Jan-12 FebM

arch April May June

Client numbers: January 2011 June 2012

Not everything goes smoothly. Paralegals report thefrustrations of respondents not turning up at arrangedmediation meetings, people being aggressivebecause they are upset and some officials who resentbeing told what the law says. some are workingin Government offices like the police they donteven want to know about the law they think theyalready know and they dont want to be assisted byus. (Isiah, paralegal, Dedza) Similar comments weremade in Mangochi but both Centres are workinghard at improving relations with the police andKwauma, a paralegal in Dedza Centre commented

that the situation is improving with some police cominginto the Centre to make use of the legal manuals.

However, overwhelmingly the paralegals report theirsatisfaction and pride in being able to help and thefeeling that becoming a paralegal has significantlyraised their status within the community. They trust usas people who can help them without discriminating People even come to my house they know that Iknow something about the law so they say can youassist me. I am known in the community they know Ican help. (Donata, paralegal in Mangochi)


11


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Reaching people in rural areas 11A key aim of the project was to experiment andestablish ways of reaching people in rural communities.This presents considerable challenges but has beenachieved through the outreach services. On average66 per cent of Dedzas cases are in the outreachclinics and 50 per cent in Mangochi, and as the graph

below shows, these have become increasingly popular.The figures for June alone show that the outreachclinics in both areas are dealing with over 70 per centof the cases. In Dedza 8 outreach clinics have beenset up in each of the traditional authority areas, whilein Mangochi there are 6 established around centres of

rural population. Most typically the outreach clinics areset up in trading centres that people would visit in thecourse of their daily routines. Paralegals are selectedfrom within the communities and then trained alongwith other people living in different outreach areas andthe towns themselves. An alternative model would be

to invite paralegals living in the towns to travel out toprovide outreach services on a regular basis. Howeverthe distances involved and the lack of public transportmake this unworkable in Malawi. The recruitment andtraining of people from the outlying communities alsobrings benefits.

Using bicycles to visit clients in rural areas



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The Centres are also experimenting by collaboratingwith other organisations to provide additional servicesand make maximum use of the paralegals. In Dedzatwo CBOs have been identified who will allow their

premises to be used for advice sessions, the VictimSupport Unit is also co-operating by providing spacefor paralegals to work with clients and in Mangochian outreach post in the court is being developed.

The advantages of outreach are primarilyaccessibility. Poor people do not have the money or

June

May

April

March

Feb

Jan

0 20 40 60 80 100

Outreach and Centre: clients using rural and urban services

Mangochi Outreach Mangochi Centre Dedza Outreach Dedza Centre

time to travel to seek advice. Mada, Centre ManagerMangochi, explains: They are closer to the peoplethat we are targeting the paralegals are from thosecommunities, they know what issues are affecting

people, they also speak local languages. Thereare also problems to overcome. For example, somepeople may be shy of using the Centres because theythink that their business will be talked about locallythat is why confidentiality is so important.

12


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Local advisory committees: local ownership 12The local advisory committees are crucial inestablishing local ownership particularly of theoutreach clinics. These small committees comprisinglocal community leaders, including chiefs and villageheadmen, and representatives of locally basedorganisations such as womens groups and HIV/AIDsorganisations, have a number of functions. They takeresponsibility for identifying local premises, usuallyone room, where the paralegals can work; supportingparalegals within the community and identifying newrecruits for training; mounting local awareness raisingcampaigns; advertising the presence of the serviceand increasing their own knowledge of local issues.

The local advisory committee in Kachere, aboutone hour by car out of Dedza, meets monthly and isattended by the traditional authority. The paralegalteam reports to this committee to give informationabout the type of issues being dealt with and discussplans for local campaigns on rights issues. Here theCentre opens two days a week and they have anaverage of 5 clients in a day, although once theyrecorded 10. Trust in the service has been built upby the committee and the paralegals. The traininghelps we can talk to chiefs now we are recognisedby society they rely on us to know what the lawsays, we are resource persons we are invited tothe Area Development Committee to advise about

what the law says. (Phunziro, paralegal, Kachereoutreach)

There are, of course, difficulties in working in remoteareas. Communications with the Centre are complex.The Centre managers visit once a month but inbetween times support and advice on complexissues has to be by mobile phone each outreach

has one allocated for Centre use only. There is alsoone bicycle allocated to each outreach in order tofacilitate follow up case work, for example, travellingto give a client a letter or to ask parties to cometo mediation. Although there is a team of 4 or 5paralegals for each outreach, they can feel isolated.They would like to meet with colleagues from otherCentres; feel that more refresher training is needed to

Members of the local advisory committee in Kachere



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keep them up to speed and would like access to theinternet so they could be fully up to date.

Traditional justice and statuteIn Malawi the traditional system of justice is wellestablished with a hierarchy of village headmen,

group headmen and traditional authorities able todecide on issues within their jurisdiction. Potentially,there is a conflict between the decisions of thetraditional system and statute although as ChiefKachere explains, both have similar aims: We areboth trying to get stability in the community we tryto settle small disputes (although) very few knowabout the law.. we inherit our position we are only

the first level of justice.

Recognising the potential conflict, the CentreManagers have worked hard to bring the chiefson board and to recognise their positions, byincluding them on the local advisory committees andencouraging them to use the facilities of the Centres.For example, Group Village Headman Mtambo from

Martha inherited land from her grandmotherand planted maize and fruit trees but waspushed off the land by her cousin. The matterwas reported to the senior chief in the area whoruled on behalf of Martha. However, the cousinrefused to accept the ruling and threatenedto kill Martha if she came near the land. Thematter was referred to the Magistrates court that

ruled in favour of the cousin. The Centre hasassisted the client to appeal to the High Court inLilongwe where an outcome is still awaited.

the Chimwala outreach near Mangochi, recognisesthat there are: lots of changes in the law and I needto keep up to date. He cites a case in his area of apiece of traditionally held land being sold off. He

went to the RAC and together with the paralegalslooked up what the law said in order to deal withthe case. He also mentions gaining information onthe law on domestic violence via the Centre. As arepresentative of the RAC local advisory committee,he reports on its work to other meetings that heattends, for example with the police, the hospital andregular meetings with other chiefs.

The main thrust of the strategy with respect totraditional law has been to try to involve chiefs inthe running of the Centres and to offer the resourcesof the Centre to ensure that when traditional justiceis dispensed, it has the benefit of the knowledge ofstatute. The paralegals report that a number of chiefsare coming to the Centres, using the legal manualsand seeking advice on what the law says.

Working with the custodians of traditional justice:Group Village Headman Mtambo


13


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Raising awareness of rights 13The base line survey indicated that very few peopleare aware of their rights, indeed knowledge levelsamongst the general public and officials is low.Raising awareness of rights is therefore a preconditionto being able to claim entitlements or seek redress. Inthe project most awareness raising has been carriedout using radio broadcasts. These have taken a varietyof formats including phone-in programmes wheremembers of the public phone with their questions ona particular topic; discussion programmes with legalexperts and features with interviews with clients andparalegals to discuss specific issues.

The topics that have been covered by radio

programmes reflect the types of issues about whichclients have sought advice and include: land, domesticviolence, employment, wills and inheritance, childmaintenance and custody, marriage and divorce.In addition jingles have been aired which relaymessages about rights.

Other methods of publicity are also used to advertise

the centres, including leaflets and posters. However,word of mouth is probably equally important andoften clients mention that a family member or friend orcolleague told them about the service. The informationleaflets are in Chichewa and aimed at the generalpublic and cover: the Bill of Rights; child rights,domestic violence, employment rights, land, traffickingand rights on arrest.

Leaflets on key aspects of the law

Stella: Centre Manager in Dedza



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Madalitso explains:I am still at school but Iam an orphan and I have to pay for myselfI want to stay at school and become an

accountant. In the school holidays I took sometemporary employment to save money to staybut when I finished the work and I went to askfor my wages, the employer refused to payme. I went to the RAC where the paralegalssaid they would help me. I went to the Centrebecause I heard that the police often victimisepeople. After many missed appointments

the employer eventually visited the officeand agreed that Madilitso should be paid.However, the employer went back on hisagreement and the Centre had to interveneagain, writing letters to the employer, askinghim to attend a meeting in the RAC officeand visiting his place of employment, beforeMadalitso finally received his money. The

Centre gave me very good service... if theCentre hadnt got my money I would havebeen a very worried boy - it was my last hope.


14


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Advocacy: the evidence of clients 14Client records generate substantial evidence of gapsin the law and demonstrate where existing laws areconstantly flouted or lack implementation. This valuableinformation can be used by the Government to improvethe wellbeing of its population. Case records providethe evidence for briefing sheets on specific legal issuesin order to advocate for review, revision or betterimplementation. To date briefing sheets have beenpublished on: childrens rights, domestic violence,employment, human trafficking, land law, marriageby co-habitation and repute and a further threepublications are planned before the project end.

The target audience at national level for thesebriefings includes Members of Parliament, officials inthe justice sector including: the Ministry of Justice; theLegal Aid Department, the Law Commission; the LawSociety; the Human Rights Commission; the Officeof the Ombudsman; other relevant GovernmentDepartments such as the Ministry of Gender;members of the judiciary; NGOs and donors. Othernational advocacy activities have included: a pressconference to launch the briefing sheets and meetingsheld in Blantyre and Lilongweto which Members ofParliament and other policy makers were invited.A letter from the Law Commission on receipt of thebriefing sheets stated that: The Briefing Sheetsare very informative to us as an institution that ismandated by the Constitution under section 132 toreview and make recommendations relating to therepeal and amendment of the laws in Malawi.

At the local level briefing sheets have also beendistributed to the courts, the District CommissionersOffices, traditional authorities, members of the

district executive committees, the police and otherGovernment offices. In addition, various awareness-raising campaigns on most of these topics have beenmounted both in the towns and outreach areas.



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Rights advice centres: a practical guide to providing legal advice and information services in MalawiRights advice centres: a practical guide to providing legal advice and information services in Malawi

l d 15


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Lessons learned 15Our experience to date has allowed us to identify anumber of practical lessons:

Volunteerism does work people are willing togive their time but they need support andguidance to provide an effective and qualityservice. The role of the Centre Managers inproviding support is crucial and they needtransport to do this efficiently.

The principles of legal aid work are important;they underpin a professional service and developtrust with clients.

Good legal manuals are essential and it isimportant to keep them up to date and insist ontheir continual use.

Case recording is essential to providing a qualityservice and checking the accuracy of information.

Good communications are important; the bikes toreach remote places and the phones to keepoutreach services in touch with the Centres.

There is a need to search out additional placeswhere paralegals can offer a service, for

example, within the premises of otherorganisations or institutions. The Ethiopiaexample of establishing outreach in rural andtown courts should be piloted. This will also makemaximum use of the teams of paralegals butthere will be an impact on the budget.

Working in outreach clinics ensures that legaladvice and information is provided to the poorpeople right in their communities. This underpinsthe RAC principle of a free service.

Working with community stakeholders andestablishing local advisory committees pays off:local ownership and trust by the community arevital.

Rights Advice Centres need to work withtraditional authorities and can provide a resourceto ensure that traditional justice respects theConstitution and statute.

There is a large gap in terms of understanding ofthe law and access to redress demonstrating aneed for awareness raising and more rightsadvice centres.

Feedback from client records provides valuableinformation on the efficacy and implementation ofthe law and contributes to a culture of evidence-based advocacy.

Legal advice and information are essential toimproving the lives of poor people.


Th f d 16


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The way forward 16This project is time and geographically limitedand can therefore only contribute ideas towardsestablishing a cost effective and efficient way ofdelivering legal services. The funding, generouslyprovided by the Scottish Government, has enabledus to pilot the methodology that scaled up andapplied more widely could establish legal servicesfor many more in Malawi. Ultimately, the Governmenthas the obligation to ensure access to justiceand the means by which citizens can claim theirrights. This does not mean that the Governmentitself has to be the provider, as the Legal Aid Actacknowledges. It is possible to envisage a networkof legal services providers drawing from a number ofdifferent organisations. However, in order to ensureconsistency and quality of service there needs tobe agreed criteria about the principles under whichthe service operates and the standards of service tobe delivered. Likewise there needs to be agreementabout geographical coverage and the focus onspecific client groups.

There are many ways in which providers can co-operate and co-ordinate to provide services. Trainingand legal manuals can be shared and a commonsystem of case recording would provide substantialinformation about the problems experienced andaccurate identification of areas of the law wherereform is needed or where implementation is weak.

There are other avenues to explore that would contributeto a more robust and uniform provision of service:

Integration of legal community service into lawand social work degree courses and otherrelevant courses. The experience of Ethiopia andother countries where this is practised indicatesproven benefits for communities and students alike.

A system of accreditation that could be availableto community activists who volunteer forparalegal work. This would not only rewardvoluntary activity but also help to securestandards of service.

Development of lay representation for specifictypes and levels of cases. Such systems exist inother countries and can bring benefits whenqualified lawyers are in short supply and beyondthe means of most ordinary people. Specific typesof cases and the more complex remaining theprovince of qualified lawyers.

Finally there is the issue of funding. Whilst manydonors have been generous in funding legal aidprogrammes, in the very long term it will be up tothe Government to provide the resources for a legalaid scheme. In the meantime it is important to worktowards a system that can guarantee a quality ofservice and equitable provision.



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Rights advice centres:a practical guide to providing legal advice

and information services in Malawi

Throughout the world, but particularly in developing countries, poor people do nothave access to legal information and advice and therefore lack access to justice.

While the rich buy the services of a lawyer, the poor cannot. The booklet describes the

process of establishing rights advice centres dedicated to offering legal advice and

information to people living in Mangochi and Dedza and the surrounding rural areas.

The experience of the project is offered as a way of informing and improving future

legal advice services in Malawi.

The project is a collaboration between the Active Learning Centre, UK; Malawi Centrefor Advice Research and Education on Rights (Malawi CARER) and the British Council,

Malawi and is funded by the Scottish Government.

www.rightsadvicecentres.comwww.activelearningcentre.org

malawi rac

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