Written by Khor Jia Wei

The NUS Pro Bono Group (PBG) recently organized its annual flagship event—the NUS Pro Bono Week (PBW). PBW aims to increase recognition about the legal needs of various segments in society to NUS Law students and to inspire the student body to be more involved in volunteering with the various pro-bono groups in the community.

This year, the PBW comprised 3 initiatives: an experiential learning journey to Geylang, a Human Library, and a fundraising night market.

Conducted by Citizen Adventures, the Geylang tour allowed students to learn more about various social issues in Singapore and their legal ramifications. These included overcrowding of migrant workers in residential spaces in Geylang and the legalization of sex workers.

For the Human Library, our students were privileged to have had the opportunity to speak with esteemed representatives across a wide variety of charitable organizations to learn more about their work in the community and to better understand their individual journeys in the field of pro bono. Some of the library “books” included Mr Gregory Vijayendran SC from Rajah and Tann LLP, Ms Lin Huiyu from the Ministry of Manpower, and Mr Chooi Jing Yen and Mr Chen Yongxin from Eugene Thuraisingam LLP.

To end the week on a high note, students also joined in the PBG Night Market. The Night Market was planned with the aim to raise pro bono awareness as well as raise funds for Singapore NGO and PBG partner, Pro Bono SG.

NUS PBG would like to express our utmost gratitude to the following organizations and individuals:

• Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE), Community Justice Centre (CJC), Eugene Thuraisingam LLP, Foreign Domestic Worker Association for Social Support and Training (FAST), Financial Industry Disputes Resolution Centre (FIDReC), Jamiyah Singapore, Justice Without Borders (JWB), Ministry of Manpower (MOM), Pro Bono SG, Providence Law Asia, Singapore Association Of Women Lawyers (SAWL), Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations (SCWO), Thye Hua Kwan Moral Charities (THKMC) for their time and kindness in engaging our students; and
• Associate Professor Helena Whalen-Bridge (Faculty Advisor, NUS Pro Bono Group) and Mr Clement Cheong (Manager, Student Affairs, NUS Faculty of Law) for their kind assistance throughout the organisation and preparation process.