New directions and trends
New trends reflect the priorities for each nation's legal system. For nations such as Korea, keen awareness of the impact of globalisation has meant this once homogeneous society is opening up its legal services market to foreign lawyers and legal service providers to accelerate this trend.
Like countries the world over, Korea has vigorously embraced new technology and the culture of the internet, and it is now a priority of its legal system to devise measures to regulate online technologies and also to protect intellectual property. For nations where creating, or restoring, trust and confidence in the legal system is the priority then new legal frameworks - institutions, mechanisms and legal instruments - are required. ForVietnam, where the task is a transformation of the legal system to one governed by law and under the rule of law, the reform process must go across all components of the legal system. Most important among these is the goal to create a new legal consciousness in which the government and the people are law-abiding and have trust and confidence in their own legal institutions. The task has commenced. Just as Doi Moi was the catalyst for new directions in Vietnam, so too was the Reformasi era in Indonesia. Having departed from authoritarianism to embrace democratic processes, priorities have been to ensure greater judicial independence, transparency and accountability, and to tackling Indonesia's endemic corruption in the judiciary, the legal system and society generally. There is popular support and pressure for such reforms both within Indonesia and also from foreign entities wishing to invest in the nation. The Philippines is another nation where the people are vocal in their demands for law reform after years of political repression, and look to the courts to keep national laws in line with international instruments.In China, too, the trend progressing over the last decade has been towards legal reform through modernisation and Westernisation, in which judicial independence, supremacy of the rule of law, judicial reform and political and civil rights are promoted.
However, such progress in an established socialÂist legal system has evoked concerns that the Communist Party's authority and legitimacy may be consequentially undermined. In line with the â€?Three Supremes' enunciated by President Hu Jintao in 2007, there has been a turn from this path and a revised direction commenced. From now on, judicial reform must adhere to the leadership of the Communist Party of China; be conducted within the boundaries of socialism with Chinese characteristics; accord with the developmental stage of Chinese society; and ensure that there is effective coordination between organs of bureaucracy and levels of government. Any reform must comply with existing laws, and foreign elements are to be borÂrowed with caution to ensure they fit with China's indigenous conditions. This revised direction, Jiangyu Wang cautions, does not necessarily mean a signifÂicant setback in China's reform path, as there have been some positive moves as well, including legalising open trials, adopting anti-torture measures, accelÂerating privatisation of the legal profession, and increasing rights for practicing lawyers. It is a balancing act between sustained legal reform and maintaining the dominant role for the Communist Party in China, including in its judicial institutions.This gives rise to related issues in the special administrative region of Hong Kong. Here the common law will continue to be important in the years ahead but the issue as to whether the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress will assume a greater role in interpreting the Basic Law remains uncertain. The current Secretary for Justice has indicated he will limit this as far as is possible. A related reform matter, and one that resonates with the people of Hong Kong, but is equally dependent on the will of China, is whether the Basic Law will be amended to allow electoral reforms, namely ones to introduce universal suffrage for the election of all Legislative Council members and for Hong Kong's Chief Executive.
In Singapore, the impact of English law continues to diminish as local needs take priority, creating a more autochthonic system. The efficiency in the SinÂgapore system, improving even more with current technology, is likely to see Singapore become a major mediation and dispute resolution hub for the region. Similarly the growing importance of Islamic banking and finance has seen lawyers specialising in this area of practice, tying in with the country's goal to become the financial centre for Asia. Brunei, too, is seeing a resurgence of interÂest in Islamic laws, not just for the financial sectors but as a way to strengthen its Syariah courts and laws, and to bring about greater convergence between its dual Islamic and common law systems.
Malaysia provides a timely example of how a rule of law once attained can never be taken for granted, and vigilance by a strong, independent legal profesÂsion can be an important safeguard. Malaysia's independent and often fearless Bar is a leading light in the region, demonstrating the importance of the legal profession as a voice of advocacy and for ensuring the rule of law is returned to its former supremacy, as found in the first 20 years of its independence. The legal profession is playing an active role in trying to safeguard the independence of the judiciary and the integrity of the Constitution. There is a way to go, but there are some positive signs, with steps being taken to ensure greater accountability of government and to eradicate any corruption within the judiciary, government and profession. Safeguarding the rule of law is also uppermost in the reform direction in Japan, to lessen bureaucratic intervention and increase the accessiÂbility and functionality of Japan's legal institutions.
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