As many as 63 students and graduates of Faculty of Law followed Training of Legal Aid Excercise (Kalabahu) held at Faculty of Law, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), 25-30 January 2010. The participants coming from Yogyakarta Special Province, Purwokerto and East Kalimantan received training and learning from Faculty of Law’s teaching staff, practitioners and activists of Legal Aid Agency (LBH).
Chairman committee of Kalabahu, Sandro Andriawan, said that legal aid training is held anually since 2005. This event is part of efforts to produce candidates for legal aid workers and human rights defenders. “This is to produce candidates for law enforcers capable to conduct impartial legal policy advocacy for society,†said Sandro to the press at Multimedia Room of Faculty of Law, Monday (25/1).
From this training, said Sandro, it is expected that the participants gain additional knowledge and subjects about many cases among society, particularly land dispute, environmental law, and labour settlement.
According to Sandro, until now many state legal policies do not protect the grassroots. He cited the LBH’s year-end note in 2009 saying that many policies not taking side with the grassroots were found, such as eviction and land dispute.