Georgetown: The United States on Thursday reaffirmed its commitment to assisting Guyana in the reform of its judicial sector
This was communicated by new US Ambassador to Guyana Perry Holloway who paid a courtesy call on Minister of Legal Affairs and Attorney General Basil Williams at the AG’s office.
“I have reaffirmed our commitment to working with the Government and the People of Guyana on Judicial Sector Reform and providing technical assistance, and our doors are opened whenever he needs assistance”, the Ambassador told journalists moments after having met the AG.
In response, the Attorney General said his Government remains committed and welcomes the support of the US in this critical area.
“I thank the Ambassador for his support which was similarly extended by his predecessors, particularly in the area of Local Government Reform and other areas”, Williams said.
Only a few months ago, Charge d’Affairs of the US Embassy Bryan Hunt in meeting with the AG, said the US was seeking to ensure independence of the judiciary and due process within the country.
He said Government has a number of forward-thinking ideas and the perimeters under which the United States may be able to assist in order to achieve those objectives – these were under discussion.
The Attorney General then underscored the importance of meaningful reforms, noting that it requires a certain majority in Parliament soit can be passed.
And just a few days ago, Government also received commitment from the European Union which said it would be forging a partnership with the Government of Guyana to initiate a reform of the Laws of Guyana and the Judicial System
During the meeting it was posited that the partnership will see reform of the Laws of Guyana, address the backlog of cases in the court system and also address the issue of access to justice.
He went on to say that in order to enhance judicial independence in Guyana, his Government intends to reform the Constitution.
The Legal Affairs Minister outlined that the Constitution Amendment Bill seeks to restore independence of several Constitutional Bodies that were eroded by legislations that made them Budget Agencies.
The proposed entities to receive financial independence include Director of Public Prosecutions Chambers; Judicial, Public, Teaching and Police Service Commissions; Public Service Appellate Tribunal; Public Procurement Commission; Office of the Ombudsman, and Guyana Elections Commission.
In addition, the Legal Affairs Minister outlined that there is an imminent bill on the independence of Parliament. This will not be tabled on Thursday, but will be done sometime in the near future. The bill will be titled “Clerk of Parliament”.
The AG also spoke of the new Civil Procedure Rules, which has been in the implementation stage for some time now but is yet to be fully operational. The new rules will simplify the litigation process and are a major step towards reducing the number of cases which go to court, as well as curbing long delays in the hearing of civil litigation cases.
Another strategy the Attorney General said that is being used to address the backlog of cases is that of paper committals. “They started well, but a number of Magistrates have not been implementing paper committals, as they will speed up Preliminary Inquiries” he said.
A much needed reform of the Laws of Guyana is set to take place, the Minister disclosed, and added that a permanent Law Reform Commission will be established to update laws.
You must be logged in to post a comment.