Like many, Forget entered law school with strong ideals of justice, a desire to defend human rights and “participate in something bigger.” After graduating from the University of Montreal, she says she had a positive experience practising at Monette Barakett Avocats, where she learned the rudiments of legal practice, the necessary rigour, and how to build relationships. She litigated and represented public sector organizations in negotiations and collective agreements. She dealt with workplace injury and harassment cases. The latter allowed her to build knowledge that would assist her in her work for LWBC.
She joined the firm a few months after COVID began, and time flew by. Eventually, she began to question whether private practice was the right fit and, if not, what her next step could be.
“I wanted to come back to the roots of why I wanted to go into law.”
When she learned of LWBC’s El Salvador mandate, it felt like a calling. She says she has always been in love with the culture and language, and she had a deep interest in women’s rights and countering gender-based violence.
Forget arrived in El Salvador in a turbulent time. President Nayib Bukele was first elected in 2019 and began his second term this June. Bukele’s “brutal crackdown” on street gangs has drawn criticism from human rights groups but made him Latin America’s most popular leader, according to Al Jazeera. Bukele has swept up thousands of alleged gang members under a state of emergency and amendments to the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure. Amnesty International has accused Salvadoran authorities of committing “massive human rights violations,” including arbitrary detentions, torture, and violations of due process, such as the right to a legal defence, the presumption of innocence, and access to an independent judge.
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Publish date : 2024-08-05 12:59:00
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