Dear Queen's Supporter,

Thanks to the generosity of Queen's Law alumni, I was able to use my legal education to make a positive difference for children in Africa this past summer.

My summer internship with UNICEF's Child Protection section, sponsored by funding from the Queen's Law School Fund, allowed me to participate in the transformation of youth issues in the legal system in Malawi, a small southern African country.

Globally minded students and international internships

I joined a project associated with the Malawian government's recent passage of a domestic bill that incorporates obligations of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Previously, Malawi's criminal law made little distinction between children and adults. It was my job to visit police stations, prisons and juvenile detention centres and report on how practices must change to meet the requirements of the new legislation.

The new law will address the fact that many incarcerated youth still share cells with adults in detention facilities that lack resources for schooling, rehabilitation and vocational training.

I was shocked by the living conditions of these children. Young and old prisoners alike live in squalor and children frequently languish in cells for years because their files are incorrect or missing.

Making a difference for international youth justice

I wrote a legal brief about police practices that violated Malawi's constitution and international human rights law. Among other things, it brought to attention the practice of police detaining street children simply because there is no alternative state care that will provide food and shelter.

Working with my mentor lawyer, I met and interviewed hundreds of children in criminal custody and ensured that their age, charge and duration of sentence remaining matched the information in their files.

At the end of the project, I presented the government with reliable data about the number of children in custody and where current conditions stood compared to core juvenile-justice indicators.

This assignment helped me understand the complexity of human rights law. It allowed me to bring what we learn in the classroom to bear upon a real-life situation.

Made possible through your gifts

My internship in Malawi gave me an insider's view of the potential impacts and challenges of law and development work in practice – an invaluable experience as I hope to work in the field one day.

It is hard to do public interest options in the summer rather than earning money with a summer job, but this opportunity was priceless. It would not have been possible without the funding made available through the Queen's Law School Fund and I am so thankful for this support.

It is the donations from alumni like you that really make it possible. We can't do it without you. Please, add your support with a gift to the Queen's Law School Fund today.

Yours in thanks,
Joshua Blum, JD'11

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