The Defense Institute of International Legal Studies sends a mobile education team to Sierra Leone

DISAM Journal,  Spring, 2003  by Felipe Captain Paez

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In post-training meetings with Sierra Leonean participants, senior officers, and government officials, the DIILS team was informed that these training evolutions could not have come at a more appropriate time for the country. In their view, the seminar and discussion between high-level representatives of civilian and military sectors formed vital building blocks for future democratic stability. Furthermore, civilian officials were particularly pleased to see the projection of their national principles of respect for human rights, civilian control of the military, and disciplined operations under the rule of law taken beyond the seminar hall and into the hands of future military instructors. These leaders are convinced that the ability of these DIILS trained officers to pass such principles to the individual soldier is the most effective way of preventing future transgressions of democratic rule. The U.S. Embassy expressed thanks for the role DIILS played in its overall engagement plan as it continues to help Sierra Leone face the challenge of rebuilding the function and reputation of its professional military. These two successful weeks of training demonstrated DILLS' value to the security assistance community, and its ability to carry out relevant, focused training anywhere in the world.

About the Author

Captain Felipe Paez, USMC, reported to the Defense Institute of International Legal Studies in January 2Q02 as a Country Program Manager responsible for 27 countries. Captain Paez has been awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal and the Meritorious Unit Commendation Ribbon. Captain Paez, a native of Bogota, Colombia, is a 1992 graduate of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. After graduation he worked as at the United Nations Development Programme until he began his legal studies toward the latter part of 1993. In 1996 he received his Juris Doctorate from Pace University School in White Plains, New York. Prior to graduating from law school, Captain Paez worked at the New York State Bureau of Environmental Enforcement where he helped prosecute violators of the State's environmental regulations. Captain Paez authored Environmental Framework Laws in Latin America, 13 Pace Envtl. L. Rev. 625 (1996). He is a member of the Bar of the State of Maryland. Captain Paez completed Officer Candidate School and was commissioned in December of 1997.

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