In Tajikistan, three years ago, the Concept of Providing Free Legal Aid was adopted, one of the points of which is the creation of permanent state legal bureaus in all regions of the country. They are created and work.
We went to Vose district to find out how the free lawyer Kurbon Sitamov works in the State Legal Bureau in the district. .
The queer office of Kurbon Sitamov, who is in the same building as the paid legal office, does not line up. But the neighbors of the people are full: lawyers in the Vose District have a very demanded profession, and private specialists earn well.
Kurbon Sitamov is not upset, although he is surprised: after all, many of his fellow countrymen with money are tight, but they do not regret giving the latter for paid services, although he sits next to them – a completely free lawyer! Kurbon thinks that people are not used to it yet, that the state can help them absolutely free of charge and qualitatively, but hopes that they will be able to change the situation by hisr work.
Moreover, he has enough customers .
– In a month I take an average of 60 people, this is twice what we expected. And this is not counting consultations on the phone: people call and ask questions even at night, – Sitamov says .
In addition to legal assistance, he often acts as a psychologist for his clients. Sometimes people just do not have anyone to talk to and they carry their experiences or joys to Sitamov, get to it and do not want to leave.
As for the main problems facing his rural clients, most often these are family conflicts. To the lawyer, people applied for adoption, paternity, because the child was born in a marriage that was not officially registered – a very frequent phenomenon in rural areas. There are divorced women who want to get child support from their husbands; Former families often divide the property through the court.
– Somehow the widow came, she wanted to sue the family from her deceased husband's family, their house was on the same plot as her husband's relatives. When the husband died, his brothers kicked the woman out of the house with her children. The widow sues, and then it turns out that the territory on which this woman's house is built is illegal, it is not in the documents for the land. We decided to issue this part of the land for a woman. She ran around the courts, but there was another problem – this part of the land in the general plan of the district is designed for road construction. So people built the house by their own will. We wrote in different instances – uselessly. The other day a representative of the district administration came to see me, we agreed with him that the site will be temporarily transferred to the woman.
Local resident Robie Shaikhinurova after 10 years of running around and inconclusive legal proceedings, Kurbon helped restore the selected plot of land.
– He supported me in difficult times, when I was already on the brink, I was ready to commit suicide. In my intercourse with him, I found solace, felt that I was not alone – woman says.
Such grateful customers of Kurbon Sitamov have a lot, because he admits that when people come to him, he presents himself for a while in their place.
The state legal bureau has been working in Vose for 1.5 years, during which time around one thousand people have applied. Lawyer – Kurbon Sitamov is engaged in almost all the same cases as private specialists.
Just totally free.
