The Council of Lawyers is planned to be reduced to nine members.
At a recent meeting of the Jogorku Kenesh committee dealing with constitutional legislation, state structure, local self-government, and regulations, Meil Begilerova, the chairperson of the Bar Association of the Kyrgyz Republic, presented information on the reduction in the number of lawyers in the country. In 2024, their number was 3,600, while currently, only 2,223 remain.
According to Begilerova, in 2024, an inventory was conducted among 996 lawyers who had licenses but were not members of the Bar Association, of which 756 were stripped of their licenses. Additionally, about 500 lawyers who are members of the Bar Association had not paid their membership fees and had their licenses suspended. These measures, according to Begilerova, are aimed at maintaining the institution of the Bar. She also mentioned the increase in membership fees from 200 soms to 500 soms, explaining that 200 soms per month is insufficient to ensure the functioning of the organization.
Deputy Kubanychbek Samakov expressed dissatisfaction with the increase in fees and the mass revocation of lawyers' licenses. He also questioned the amount of Begilerova's salary and the work of the Bar Association.
In response, Begilerova clarified that the main tasks of the Bar Association are to protect the interests of lawyers, oversee their training, and manage the ethics commission, and her own salary is 100,000 soms.
Samakov remarked: “Do you know how much a lawyer earns in Naryn or the Ak-Tal district? They receive 15,000–20,000 soms for participating in court sessions and have to pay you, while here you receive 100,000 and it’s unclear what you are doing.”
To which Begilerova countered: “If a lawyer cannot pay 500 soms a month, how can they even be considered a lawyer and perform their job?”
Samakov emphasized that he believes the functions of the Ministry of Justice should include issuing and revoking licenses, and that an organization responsible for collecting fees and revoking licenses for non-payment should not exist, as it creates barriers to citizens' access to legal assistance.
Photo www
