The lawyer is often the last line of defence against oppression and abuse of power, a role that can put them metaphorically and literally in the line of fire. Richard Keen QC celebrates the creation of a unique international alliance that recognises the real risks that can flow from protecting those who are doing what is right, all around the world.

Lawyers are frequently portrayed in the media as “fat cats” interested only in how much they can earn by way of fees.
The role that they play in protecting the liberty and lives of individuals tends to be forgotten, particularly in a jurisdiction such as Scotland where the freedom to represent unpopular causes and clients without the heavy-handed intervention of the State is taken for granted.

It was noticeable that one of the first actions taken by Aung San Suu Kyi on her release from house arrest in Burma was to consult her lawyers about the status of her political party which had lost its registration because it declined to take part in the recent election.

We in Scotland can only imagine what risks these lawyers are taking not just for themselves but for their families, friends and professional colleagues in a country where there are still more than 2,200 political prisoners.

The legal profession is the bulwark that protects the rights of ordinary people against the intrusions of the state and the excessive use of power, a matter that has become acute as 2010 ends amid violent treatment of political demonstrators in London.
Against that background I was delighted that I could be in London on behalf of the Faculty of Advocates to lend my voice to the Alliance for Lawyers at Risk at its launch by the Peace Brigades International (PBI).

The Faculty has pledged its support and I am urging individual advocates to strengthen the Alliance by making available their specialist skills and knowledge.

The PBI was founded in Canada nearly 30 years ago and carries out remarkable work in providing unarmed accompaniment for lawyers and other defenders of human rights who are regularly threatened by violence, abduction and death in a number countries around the world.

Currently these include Colombia, Guatemala, Indonesia, Mexico and Nepal. In Colombia alone about 25 lawyers are killed every year.

In the words of Colombian lawyer Eduardo Carreno: “Our families, who live with a permanent anxiety that one day we may not return home, are less worried knowing that we are accompanied by PBI.”

The Alliance wishes to draw on the expertise and resources of lawyers in the UK, linking with lawyers at risk abroad, helping to protect them and promoting their work.

This can be achieved in a number of ways - setting up a direct link, taking part in fact-finding delegations, helping in the preparation of submissions to governments, advising on the review of legislation to ensure compliance with international legal standards, assisting with the training of local lawyers and providing financial support.

The aims of the Alliance will be familiar to every member of Faculty, because, although Scotland is a small jurisdiction in global terms, the Faculty of Advocates has always looked to elevate its gaze beyond national boundaries.

That is why the Faculty played a leading role in launching the Edinburgh Declaration Trust to provide practical and financial help to the legal profession and the judiciary in Zimbabwe in their struggle to remain independent and impartial under the Mugabe regime.
And by a happy coincidence Faculty sponsorship with Scottish PEN at this year’s Edinburgh International book Festival featured Wendy Law-Yone whose father was the founder of Rangoon Nation, the leading daily newspaper in Burma.

She was asked about her experience with law and lawyers and replied that in Burma there was no rule of law. The State could do what it wanted “at whim.”

At the very least we can hope that the Alliance for Lawyers will give repressive regimes pause for thought before they do what they want on a whim and flout the rule of law.

I am delighted that the Faculty of Advocates is a founding member of the Alliance for Lawyers at Risk and I earnestly hope that other lawyers in Scotland will lend their support in the important work that lies ahead for the Alliance.