Rule of Law vs. Rulers of Law. Justice Barnabas Albert Samatta's Road To Justice: Justice Barnabas Albert Samatta's Road To Justice

Foreword

Foreword Dr. Asha Rose Migiro, Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations. RetiredChiefJusticeBarnabasAlbertSamattahasmadeanoustanding contribution to strengthening the rule of law in Tanzania. This volume showcases some of his most notable writings, and documents his life and career, as well as the views of his peers. The portrait that emerges is of a well-rounded practitioner, a man of prescience who pursued important causes long before many others, and a leading judicial voice who, over decades, rendered groundbreaking decisions in criminal, public, constitutional and environmental law. Assuch,thisbookisnotjustanhistoricalaccountbutofferslessonsfor global efforts to strengthen our work for international justice and peace. In my capacity as the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, I strive to coordinate the United Nations’ efforts to strengthen the rule of law at both the international and national levels. From this global perspective, I can only emphasise how critical national practitioners of the stature of Judge Samatta are for strengthening the rule of law at the country level. Without such robust expertise and leadership, the promise of international law would not be accessible to those most in need of the protection it affords. Activities to improve access to justice, legal assistance and protection, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable, are central to the United Nations’ approach to strengthening the rule of law. As a former Legal Aid attorney, I was especially moved to read the first-hand accounts of Judge Samatta’s deep commitment to ensuring access to justice for all. He consistently advocated for the right to legal representation, including for the most indigent, arguing that “legal aid should be the right of every poor person and a constitutional obligation of the government”. He has been equally passionate on the need for the legal profession itself to uphold the highest ethical standards, a stance for which he was widely known and admired. He has taken the view that the law, rather than powerful individuals, should rule, calling on fellow judges to “have the courage to say no to those in society who wish to rule the law”. And he steadily defended the independence of the judiciary, striking down legislation he found to be unconstitutional. In his own way, Judge Samatta has thus greatly contributed to the rule of law, which the Secretary-General of the United Nations has defined as “a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions and entitites, public and private, including the State itself, are accountable to laws that are publicly promulgated, equally enforced and independently adjudicated, and which are consistent with international human rights norms and standards.”1 In these times of great turbulence, the mission of the United Nations to strengthen the rule of law is more critical than ever. Without, at the national level, the leadership of eminent jurists of the calibre of Judge Samatta, the United Nations’ efforts to this end would be in vain. I thus commend this volume on Judge Samatta to all those who share our determination to achieve this noble goal. Both his writings and his life offer profound insights on the way forward. 1. Report of the Secretary-General on the Rule of Law and Transitional Justice in Conflict and Post-conflict Societies, S/2004/616 ...