It used to call "Network of Legal Aid Providers Awn", in March 2013 the member of the network change the name to "Awn Access to Justice Network in Gaza Strip" AJ Net. Also known as "Awn Network" ( ar, شبكة عون), many people in Gaza prefer to call it

Legal Clinic A legal clinic (also law clinic or law school clinic) is a legal aid or law school program providing services to various clients and often hands-on-legal experience to law school students. Clinics are usually directed by clinical professors. Le ...

s ( ar, العيادة القانونية), it was established by

UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

/PAPP – Gaza in ِApril-2011. It’s comprised primarily from organizations that are non-public, non-state

civil society Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere. The members of Awn Network are; the ,

human right Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

organizations, community-based organizations and academic institutions, the permanent secretariat of the Awn Network is within the Palestinian Bar Association. In 2012 network members provided legal aid services (awareness, consultation and representation) to more than 23,000 people, of whom 72% were women. Awn Net has invested heavily in coordination and cooperation within the 20 members of the network by supporting dialogue meetings (including the Legal Task Force), referral mechanisms, the case management system and the legal aid database, while continuing to provide capacity development support to individual network members and working to ensure sustainability of the network. Awn Network has provided legal services to mainly poor and vulnerable people, to strengthen their access to

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

and solve their legal problems at the lowest and simplest level possible.

Legal services provided

Legal services start with legal

information Information is an abstract concept that refers to that which has the power to inform. At the most fundamental level information pertains to the interpretation of that which may be sensed. Any natural process that is not completely random ...

and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

, giving people knowledge that they have rights under the law and how to exercise them. Such knowledge and confidence can help in solving legal problems without recourse to the courts, a cost-effective and empowering strategy. Where legal remedies are available, this can be the cheapest and simplest form of legal aid, and the one where the greatest resources should be applied. Legal advice (explaining what the law means and how to exercise it in relation to a concrete problem) is often less costly than providing assistance – understood as helping a person to take legal steps to protect their rights. Free judicial representation by Awn Network’s legal aid lawyers is only limited to poor individuals who can’t afford paying courts fees or lawyers’ costs. Statistics for people Benefited from Awn Access to Justice Network in Gaza Strip, From April 2011 to May 2013.

Legal Aid Clinics

Fredrik Westerholm visiting Legal Clinic in PBA

The Awn Network oversees 14 legal aid clinics. There are two types of legal clinics, university/in-campus legal clinics and community legal aid clinics. The community legal aid clinics are based at civil society organizations and aims at providing free of charge legal services to needy people and enhancing access to justice. The purpose of in-campus legal clinics is to encourage students’ engagement with the issues and concerns of the community. In addition, students are exposed to hands-on legal experience and they receive high-quality training on legal skills

Gaza Legal Aid Network Members

The Secretary-General for Awn net is Mr Salama Bseiso 2011-2013, the following

NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

are the main members of the net: * The Palestinian Bar Association *

Al-Azhar University – Gaza Al-Azhar University – Gaza ( ar, جامعة الأزهر بغزة), often abbreviated AUG, is a Palestinian, public, non-profit and independent higher education institution. During the first intifada, the Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat is ...

Islamic University of Gaza The Islamic University of Gaza ( ar, الجامعة الإسلامية بغزة), also known as IUG and IU Gaza, is an independent Palestinian university established in 1978 in Gaza City. It was the first higher education institution to be establ ...

University of Palestine The University of Palestine (UP; ar, جامعة فلسطين) is a Palestinian private institution of higher education located in Al-Zahra' (south of Gaza City). The university was established in 2005. Each specialization has a supervisory com ...

– Gaza *

University College of Applied Sciences University College of Applied Sciences (UCAS) is a technical college in Gaza founded in 1998. It offers 40 majors in engineering, health, technology, administration, education and the humanities. The school has a student population of 6,000. ...

* The National Society for Democracy and Law * The Culture and Free Thoughts Association * Union of Women Programs Centers (7 branches) * Women Affairs Center * Al Atta’ Benevolent Association * Palestinian Commission for Refugees * Palestinian Institute for Communication and Development * Hadaf Center for Human Rights * Aisha Association for the Protection of Women and Children * Community Media Center * Coalition for Justice * South Women Media Forum * Center for Women’s Legal Research and Consulting * El Wedad Rehabilitation Society * Palestinian Center for Democracy and Conflict Resolution

References

External links

*
The Official Awn Network Video Channel

UNDP Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People

Al-Azhar University Legal Clinic Website

The Islamic University Legal Clinic Website
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Palestinian Bar Association
Legal aid Gaza Strip