LEWISTON — The 2017-18 season of the Great Falls Forum kicks off Thursday, Sept. 21, with Ian Catlett, attorney-adviser with the U.S. Department of State.

His talk is titled “East Africa Security and Justice and the U.S. Role Overseas.”

The program will take place from noon to 1 p.m. in Callahan Hall at the Lewiston Public Library, and is co-sponsored by Maine Community Integration.

Catlett joined the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs/Overseas Citizen Services as an attorney-adviser in February.  He first joined the U.S. Department of State in 2010, and worked as a program officer, Iraq Justice Team lead, and Africa Division chief for the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).

Prior to his service in the department, he was an immigration attorney and legal counsel in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, an INL rule of law adviser in Iraq, and a supervising criminal prosecutor for Middlesex County, Massachusetts.

Catlett will discuss recent developments in East Africa through the lens of security and justice, focusing on Kenya and Somalia, and the Department of State’s continuing role in targeted assistance to the region.  He will also discuss assistance to private American citizens overseas and the framework for international civil and commercial agreements.

Admission is free to all forum events and no reservations are required. Bring a bag lunch; coffee, tea and bottled water will be available at the library.

The forum speaker series is co-sponsored by Bates College, Lewiston Public Library and the Sun Journal.

The Lewiston Public Library is at 200 Lisbon St. at the corner of Pine Street. FMI: 513-3135 or LPLreference@gmail.com.  

Ian Catlett

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