GUYANA is this week hosting the Commonwealth Magistrates’ and Judges’ Association Conference, being held under the theme “The Judiciary as Guarantors of the Rule of Law.” Members of the Commonwealth judiciary have come to their profession with a common history of repression and common principles of law (i.e. the common law system), the latter of which functions on the basis of equality, justice and fair play; while the former has no regard for said principles.

As one of the three distinct branches of Government, the Judiciary plays an important role in ensuring the checks and balances built into the system of governance are functioning well.

Efforts at ensuring the independence of the Judiciary in Guyana have been a process in continuity, advancing as the nation evolves. To the APNU+AFC Administration’s credit, this process has been taken a few steps forward with financial autonomy. Such autonomy advances the process of needed independence. In the absence of feeling beholden to the Executive and/or Legislature, the Judiciary is better positioned to discharge its duties within the framework of laws, established and acceptable universal declarations, conventions, charters and precedents.

The United Nations sees the Rule of Law as that which requires equitable and full protection of human rights, where everybody is equal before the law; and advances and examines same through contexts such as Rule of Law and Human Rights, Rule of Law and Peace and Security, Rule of Law and Development.

And while the Rule of Law may mean different things to different people it is not expected to operate in abstract of the environment and efforts to bring about, ensure, and maintain equity in the society. For instance, where laws in societies may criminalise certain practices, and where international bodies such as the United Nations see such as transgression of human rights, it can create a conundrum in adjudicating on matters.

The Judiciary, as an influential branch of society, is not only expected to adjudicate within local and common statues, but also be mindful of the global environment within which Commonwealth countries and international bodies to which they belong operate. In this environment, it may require that the Judiciary not only discharge ruling consistent with internationally acceptable principles, but also to be advocates in ensuring indigenous laws reflect international requirements.

For while we can all claim the right to, and celebrate, indigenous cultures; where we are members of regional and international organisations, indigenous laws have to reflect the resolutions and agreements these organisations espouse. To Guyana’s credit, the National Constitution has vested in the Judicature not only the authority to be independent and the power to determine based on this supreme instrument, but also to be cognisance of the global reality in making determinations.

The ability to discharge the Rule of Law also requires a judicial structure that is influenced by data gathering and analysis, i.e. scientific approach to management. As society evolves, so, too, are its needs and patterns of criminal behaviours. While timeliness in dispensing justice is of vital importance to an efficient justice system, it is also dependent on requisite manpower, skills, and other requisite resources that would ensure programmes for rehabilitation and re-integration into society. The recent Commission of Inquiry into the Camp Street Prison Break speaks to one such demand on maintaining the credibility of the judicial system. An area of contestation in Commonwealth societies — given historical realities acquired through knowledge or lived experiences — is the perception that the small man cannot rely on the court system to dispense justice. Thus assurance to the contrary given by Chief Judge and President of the Caribbean Magistrates’ and Judges’ Association, John Lowndes, in his address to the conference — that the Rule of Law doesn’t discriminate between government and governance — is most welcomed. The desire to serve in the Judiciary, irrespective of what would have influenced such choice, comes with great expectation to be the balancing force in society. The least learned among us are familiar with the symbol that epitomises Lady Justice balancing a scale in her hands with her eyes blindfolded. And it is this that everyone — from the least among us to the most educated — relies on in times of conflict. Over the next days, the conference will deliberate on issues such as environmental law and sustainable development, domestic violence, alternative dispute resolutions, and the rights of Indigenous people, which are expected to highlight common experiences, goals and best practices.