Aggressively pursue reforms to meet the evolving needs of the Criminal Justice System – Pres. Ali tells legal fraternity

Jul 11, 2024 News

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Kaieteur News – President Irfaan Ali on Wednesday urged members of the legal fraternity to aggressively pursue reforms to meet the evolving needs of the regulatory frameworks of the criminal justice system.

The Head of State was at the time addressing judges, magistrates and other judicial officers from Guyana and the Caribbean at the inaugural legal Conference on Criminal Justice Reform–Advancing the Needham’s Point Declaration.

The conference hosted at the Marriott Hotel, Kingston, Georgetown was organised by the Government of Guyana, through the Attorney General’s Chambers and the Ministry of Legal Affairs, in partnership with the Caribbean Court of Justice’s (CCJ) Academy of Law and funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).  The initiative aims to accelerate justice reform in Guyana to meet the evolving needs of the country’s legal and regulatory framework.

Stakeholders in attendance  included  legislators, government officials, judges from the CCJ , national and regional judicial officers, academics, law students, civil society representatives and experts from international organisations.

In his address, President Ali underscored the need for the continuous legal education for lawyers, magistrates and judges to be up-to-date with global trends.

The President noted that in this era of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Regional Judiciary appears to be lagging behind, and must, therefore, put the requisite systems in place to catch-up with global technological advances.

It was against this backdrop that he The Caribbean Court of Justice’s (CCJ’s) Academy for Law, President Ali said, can play an even greater role in this regard.

“But that academy, in my humble opinion, must focus on the emerging issues, and maybe through an accreditation process design short executive programmes that give our lawyers and judges specialized training, and specialized certification, maybe international certification too on key issues and challenges that we are facing now, and we will face in the future,” President Ali said.

The Head of State also called for the collaboration of the various institutions to build resilient legal systems that will tackle the root causes of crime and foster a modern and efficient justice landscape.

He underscored that a strong legal system upholds these principles, which in turn, weaken criminal activity

“The criminal network and enterprise feed off certain things. If there is political instability, if the rule of law does not exist, if society operates in an undemocratic environment, criminality feeds off of that,” he explained.

Meanwhile, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall focused on the importance of combining legal minds and resource to achieve a collective goal.

He said, “The importance of fora such as these cannot be over-emphasised. They bring together the maker of the law, the interpreter of the law, the enforcer of the law, the practitioner of the law and of course the subject of the law, in a singular engagement to critically analyse and scientifically examine the law and its application.”

The Attorney General posited that the engagement of the “different and disparate functionaries will ineluctably lend to a cross-fertilisation of ideas and a synthesis of experience that must impel to the formulation of a criminal justice reform strategy, adept and adroit enough, to tackle the monster of crime facing the Region”.

As a result, he said that “Remedial measures must be implemented with alacrity” and that “Legislators must swiftly dispense with anachronistic legislation and replace them with modern ones that will bring into force new legal processes, some, already tried and tested in many parts of the world.”

According to the Attorney General, legislation must be crafted to contextually and resiliently confront the identified conduct that is offensive to the law and which results in social disorder.

Meanwhile, Commonwealth Secretary-General, Baroness Patricia Scotland expressed strong support for Guyana’s justice system reform.  Baroness Scotland, who was appointed a Queens Council in 1991 and has served as the Attorney General of England and Wales, said she was pleased to support the country’s reform agenda.

“Justice is at the very heart of ensuring that we have a society that is not only enabling but equitable. We are charged to deliver justice, particularly for the poor, the marginalised, the silenced and the vulnerable. We can use the law as a weapon against injustice and wield it with skill whilst empowering the next generation,” she said in a statement.

Baroness Scotland continued: “By gathering regional stakeholders and approaching the planning process in a consultative and collaborative manner, shows a commitment to accessible and equitable justice. I salute the Government of Guyana for taking this bold step with this conference and look forward to sharing in the discussions. Additionally, my team and I will be assessing how we can support these efforts going forward.”

The Commonwealth Secretariat supports its member countries by providing technical assistance and developing model laws, templates and toolkits that can be customised to suit their specific needs. By doing so, the organisation harnesses the expertise and experience of some of its 2.5 billion Commonwealth citizens to strengthen access to justice and promote sustainable development.

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• Attorney General, continuous education, criminal justice conference, issues, President

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