ht also function as a check
upon the powers of the legislature and upon the other ministries in the
executive branch. So far as is known, however, during the framing of
legislation its professional expertise is used only to provide technical
advice on the phrasing or structure of the text, to make sure that it
says in legal terms what the framers intend (see ch. 8).

The Ministry of Justice is responsive to the policies of the BKP,
although the minister appears to be chosen for his professional
qualifications. In the early 1970s the incumbent was one of the very few
important officials in the government who did not also have a
high-ranking party position, and only one of his immediate staff was a
member of the Central Committee of the BKP. None of the others is
believed to have had an equivalent party status.

Each people's council has a legal department or a group that provides it
with legal counsel. The chiefs of such departments at _obshtina_ level
are appointed and relieved by the _okrug_ people's council.

The size and legal qualifications of the legal staff vary with the
population of the _okrug_ or _obshtina_. The departments at _okrug_
level and those of the larger _obshtini_ have staffs that are relied
upon for competence in a wide range of criminal and administrative
procedures; the legal problems that are encountered by a remote rural
_obshtina_ are usually minor.

Legal departments are charged with monitoring the activities of the
people's councils and their committees to keep them consistent with the
law; with interpreting laws for the people's councils and for
inhabitants in the area of their jurisdiction; with strengthening the
contractual and financial disciplines of the people's councils and of
enterprises within their areas; and, as a by-product, with tightening
the safeguards on public property. Most of the daily work of the
departments consists of giving legal counsel to the people's councils
and of reviewing the councils' resolutions to ensure that they conform
to national laws and party policies.

Penal Institutions

The Ministry of Justice is responsible for the overall administration,
activities, and security of prisons. Outside guards are provided by the
Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to the regulations, the primary
responsibilities of prison administrators are to rehabilitate and to
reeducate inmates.

Reeducation includes political reorientation, general education, and
voca