Advancing the Rule of Law Abroad

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    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
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  "englishNewsletterAll": "democracy",
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  "regions": [
    "North America",
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Press Release

Advancing the Rule of Law Abroad

Published on Apr 18, 2012

In the modern era, political leaders and scholars have declared the rule of law to be essential to democracy, a necessity for economic growth, and a crucial tool in the fight for security at home and stability abroad. The United States has spent billions attempting to catalyze rule-of-law improvements within other countries. Yet despite the importance and the hard work of hundreds of practitioners on the ground, the track record of rule-of-law promotion has been paltry.

In Advancing the Rule of Law Abroad, Rachel Kleinfeld describes the history and current state of reform efforts and the growing movement of second-generation reformers who view the rule of law not as a collection of institutions and laws that can be built by outsiders, but as a relationship between the state and society that must be shaped by those inside the country. Based on research in countries from Indonesia to Albania, Kleinfeld makes a compelling case for new methods of reform that can have greater chances of success at helping these internal reformers and improving the rule of law.

Political Reform Security Military Foreign Policy North America United States Middle East South Asia

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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