DPLF is the only U.S.-based organization whose mandate is to promote the reform of national justice systems in Latin America with the goal of making them more transparent, independent, accountable, and, above all, capable of delivering justice and protecting the fundamental rights of all people—especially the most vulnerable.
To fulfill this mandate, the Judicial Accountability and Transparency Program carries out research and advocacy in coordination with judicial institutions and civil society organizations. Meanwhile, the Equal Access to Justice Program focuses primarily on strengthening small human rights organizations located outside capital cities. These organizations defend the rights of vulnerable groups and use the law as a tool for social change.
Who better than these local organizations to understand the main weaknesses of our judicial systems? For this reason—and because of all we have learned through working alongside them—we wanted to amplify their voices across the region. Starting with this issue of AportesDPLF, we will begin sharing information about our Equal Access to Justice Program and about the work carried out by our local partners to bring justice closer to the communities they serve.
We want strong, transparent, and independent judiciaries—but we also want judicial systems that are responsive to the immense unmet need for justice in our region. We want judicial institutions committed to expanding their reach, while also aware of their limitations. We want well-trained courts—but also ones that are willing to listen directly to those who face the greatest barriers to justice in Latin America and learn from the innovative solutions emerging from civil society.
DPLF seeks to build bridges—channels of communication and mutual feedback—between state institutions and a diverse, complex reality that faces daily conflicts and demands swift, effective responses. We hope that AportesDPLF will become a key player in this process of exchange and mutual learning between public institutions and the communities we work with every day—communities that, through both their successes and struggles, have much to contribute. This issue is dedicated to them.
