Author Archives: HM Government

During National Pro Bono Week 2017 (6 to 10 November) London teenagers spent time learning about the legal implications of what they say and do online. The session was hosted by lawyers from the Government Legal Department as part of the Citizenship Foundation’s Lawyers in Schools programme.

The workshop focused on the law on social media, and helped 30 students from the Ark Academy schools and the London Nautical School to understand the balance between freedom of expression and when the law has been broken.

National Pro Bono Week highlights the legal community’s work of providing free legal support and advice.

The Lawyers in Schools programme is made up of a series of legal workshops facilitated by legal professionals. It is aimed at increasing young people’s awareness and understanding of the law, developing listening and communication skills and raising aspirations and confidence.

Speaking after the event, Stephen Braviner Roman, GLD’s Director General who sponsors pro bono activities, said:

The Citizenship Foundation’s Lawyers in Schools programme gives students practical support so they are more aware of their rights and responsibilities. Today’s session helped these young people navigate the complexities of what they can and can’t say online.

I’m really pleased that GLD lawyers can be involved in projects like this. It gives them the opportunity to give back to their local communities and help teach young people about their rights and responsibilities.

Tom Franklin, Chief Executive of the Citizenship Foundation, said:

It’s fantastic that GLD is volunteering to help young people understand a crucial element of the law that affects them.

Like many thousands of legal professionals who volunteer on our programmes, they are helping young people become active, informed young citizens.

GLD also launched its Pro Bono Strategy this week. As a founding signatory to the Law Society’s pro bono charter, GLD committed to developing a pro bono strategy to support and encourage pro bono activity across the organisation. The new strategy demonstrates GLD’s ongoing commitment to the pro bono work carried out by its lawyers and aims to increase awareness of the opportunities and benefits of getting involved in pro bono work and develop a strong pro bono culture across the department.

On October 26, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM), a body established by unanimous decision of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), concluded that the Assad regime is responsible for the use of sarin in Khan Shaykhun on 4 April 2017. We have full trust in the JIM’s findings, its professionalism and independence. The Syrian regime violated international law, including the Chemical Weapons Convention. We condemn this heinous act and demand that the Syrian regime immediately cease any and all use of chemical weapons and finally declare to the OPCW all chemical weapons that it possesses.

The JIM also found that ISIS/Daesh was responsible for a sulphur mustard attack on the town of Um Housh in September 2016 on two consecutive days. We also condemn this despicable act, and we are united in our determination to defeat this abhorrent terrorist movement once and for all. We condemn the use of chemical weapons by anyone, anywhere.

We agree that it is vital for the international community to continue to investigate cases where chemical weapons have been used in Syria. We therefore urge the United Nations Security Council to maintain the JIM’s investigative capacity. We also call on the OPCW Executive Council to take action in response to the JIM report to send an unequivocal signal that those responsible for the use of chemical weapons will be held accountable.

Sadly, this is not the first report identifying those responsible for the use of chemical weapons in Syria. In 2016, the JIM came to the conclusion that the Syrian regime was responsible for the use of chlorine as a chemical weapon in at least three attacks in 2014 and 2015, and ISIS/Daesh used sulphur mustard once in 2015.

And there is more work for the JIM to do. The OPCW has now reported that a sarin attack “more than likely” took place in Al Lataminah in Syria, just a week before and 15 kilometers from the sarin attack on Khan Sheikhoun. The attack it describes bears the hallmarks of the Syrian Regime.

A robust international response is now essential to hold those responsible to account, seek justice for the victims of these abhorrent attacks and to prevent such attacks from happening again. After such a report, the Security Council and all its members have a common responsibility to protect the international non-proliferation regime and live up to their previous commitments.

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Attack at Khan Shaykhun: What Happened

Attack at Khan Shaykhun: What Happened

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