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Chief Justice calls for ‘unity in diversity’ |12 January 2017

 

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Mathilda Twomey, has called for unity within the court itself but most importantly between the Seychellois nation.

Mrs Twomey made the appeal in her speech to mark the formal re-opening of the Supreme Court of Seychelles on Tuesday.

This year’s reopening of the Supreme Court, which started with a religious service at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, took place under the theme ‘Unity in Diversity’.

“And now as we look towards 2017, we are driven by the concept of creating unity within our diversity. It is a truism that we are stronger if we work together. Moreover, we need to work closer with other stakeholders and I hope to see more cooperation of the sort that we have seen in 2016.

“The theme for this year calls on us to reaffirm our commitment to valuing the dignity of individual persons within the structure of the whole – we seek unity, not uniformity. We seek reconciliation, not retaliation. In 2017, by focusing on Unity in Diversity, we will consider how we measure up against this value in the cold light of reality. And I say to you today that we have some work to do.

“For too long we have permitted an atmosphere of kankan and harmful gossip to disintegrate our internal coherency. Everyone is different, but each are equally deserving of having their dignity respected. As a legal profession, even as a country, we need to stop this habit of devouring our own. We are so quick to criticise, so quick to mistrust and to put down other people. As we have watched America and Europe bickering over race and immigrants, over liberal versus conservative, we need to ensure that we are able to put our differences aside, play to our strengths and work together because we have hard work to do,” she said.

But CJ Twomey started off with a few words about the late Sir James Mancham whom she described as a dear friend. She said Sir James was a member of the legal profession and a devotee to national reconciliation. He was an asset to Seychelles and an example to us all in his ability to make forgiveness look gracious and easy.

She remarked he was also an ardent fighter for human rights. He stood up to the Constitutional Commission insisting on the inclusion of a functional Bill of Rights complete with fully justiciable rights and of transitional provisions which would allow people to reclaim property acquired during the Second Republic. His fingerprint on the legal system of Seychelles will not fade and for his contribution we are truly grateful.

Sir James had the following wisdom for us in 1997 which is no less relevant 20 years later:

“Paradise cannot be divided against itself. God did not give us this most beautiful of all countries for us to behave like cats and dogs conditioned by a ‘blue and red’ politics which has lost relevance in the world of today. Today, we must live on our own resources, not on polemics or slogans. Today, we must face the truth and not be manipulators of divisive propaganda. (Democratic Party Convention. November 1996. Seychelles Review – Dec 1996/Jan 1997)”. And as the theme is being discussed, she urged all to remember these words and invited all to stand and join her in a moment of silence in memory of Sir James Mancham.

She also touched on some very pertinent points the Supreme Court is aiming to achieve.

Referring to the Seychelles Constitution, CJ Twomey said it explicitly reminds us of the fact that we are descendants of different races who have learnt to live together. Furthermore, it acknowledges that the foundation for justice in our country is the recognition of the inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family. The diversity of our heritage, backgrounds, and opinions and our need to respect each other’s dignity go hand in hand.

On this year’s theme CJ Twomey had this to say: “This year’s theme for the Judiciary, ‘Unity in Diversity’, acknowledges these principles adopted by ‘we the people’ in our Constitution. This phrase has been discussed several times in the past months, and featured several times in the discourse of the new President, Mr Faure and in the discussions about our National Assembly. While I assure you we chose this theme months earlier, I am happy to share it without pretending to have ownership, in the hope that its message will permeate our minds and our actions.”

CJ Twomey went further by unpacking the content of the theme.

“It means to see a person as inherently valuable in and of themselves, regardless of what they do or who they are. It means to value the diversity that they bring to the table while respecting their uniqueness. Immanuel Kant refers to this as seeing people as an end in themselves and not a means to an end. The corollary of recognising the individual value in each and every person is that we are morally compelled to treat them as our equal – therefore, in the same way that we would want to be treated,” she remarked.

Before focussing on 2017, CJ Twomey considered 2016 a year during which she said the Judiciary focused on improving Access to Justice for all where they wanted to focus on challenging conventions and practices and taking a fresh look at how we work and how we could ensure that each person in Seychelles could get into court and when at court, get justice, real justice within the rules of the law.

“2016 was a tumultuous year for the Judiciary as a whole, for many individuals and even some major countries. It was also a year of extreme industry and I appreciate the work of each and every person within or related to the judiciary who have made it a success,” she said.

To do this the judiciary needed to bulk up their capacity to dispense justice and therefore recruited a new magistrate; were joined by two new judges; recruited a new legal researcher to join the team at the Court of Appeal; welcomed the Judiciary’s first dedicated Public Relations and Communications Officer late in the year; increased the number of physical locations for Magistrates courts in order to ease the burden on the prison system and their litigants by re-opening the courtroom on La Digue and in Anse Royale; began using their video link facilities to increase their ability to hear certain preliminary hearings directly between the prisons and the courts without needing physically to move remandees and prisoners; successfully trialled this during the Sentencing Review Tribunal which heard and decided on over 200 cases of persons sentenced under the provisions of the Misuse of Drugs Act which had subsequently been amended. She described it as a highly successful example of multi-stakeholder cooperation in order to promote access to justice.

As to backlogs, CJ Twomey said at the beginning of 2016, there were unacceptable accumulations that had developed in the producing of court transcripts and the Registrar worked tirelessly with the court reporters to address this backlog and reform the way that the judiciary utilise their court reporters’ skills. This has resulted in us being able to produce court transcripts in a speedy and efficient way.

In collaboration with the University of Seychelles, the judiciary reinstituted compulsory continued legal training for judges, magistrates, and some specialised training for the staff, something which will be expanded in 2017. In 2016, the Judiciary heard the highest number of cases to date, reducing the backlog. Some of these cases included several logistically difficult and politically charged cases that put the judges and magistrates in tough ethical positions.

“I am proud of the way that the judicial officers held up under the pressure. The Magistrates Criminal Division completed 3300 cases in the year in comparison with 1800 the year before. They also disposed of 394 civil cases as compared to 314 the previous year. The Supreme Court Criminal Division completed 204 cases compared to 168 the year before. As already mentioned the Sentence Review Tribunal in addition completed 210 cases. The Supreme Court Civil and Constitutional Divisions completed 1152 cases compared to 1153 the year before. However, cases from these divisions faced delay due to the hearing of long and complicated cases such as the Charitas drug trafficking case and the Elections petitions. We also acknowledge delays due to the capacity of the Bar. In this respect we need to look at growing the Bar to increase the number of available Counsel,” she said.

“We still have a long way to go to eradicate the backlog we have inherited but are confident that with the new measures and processes in place we are better equipped to tackle this problem,” said CJ Twomey.

Last year the judiciary left the dilapidated Magistrate premises in Victoria, shifted five magistrate’s courts and two tribunals in a very short period of time. The Unity House premises, she said, are not ideally suitable for Magistrate’s Courts but she said the staff of the Magistrates’ Courts and the Family Tribunal have taken these difficulties in their stride.

CJ Twomey also said the Judiciary undertook a strategic review that engaged with all branches and departments of the Judiciary, using it to develop a strategic plan that will be rolled out from now until 2020 and will put emphasis on driving the Judiciary towards its goal to be a centre for academic excellence.

“An important part of the theme for last year, and which will continue into this year, is to take a fresh look at what aspects of the past we want to continue to adhere to, and which practices are no longer suitable or useful in our pursuits,” she said. She gave reasons as Seychelles has a mixed legal system, which means we have borrowed traditions and practices from other legal systems, mainly the British colonial common law system, and the French civil code. Therefore have inherited practices which we have consistently held on.

Referring to some unacceptable behaviour and practices which go right to the very heart of the issue of access to justice, CJ Twomey said the judiciary had to take some hard and controversial decisions, which the judiciary stand by them.

 

Plans for 2017

CJ Twomey said in 2017, the judiciary is going to release a strategic plan up to 2020; to take a fresh look at the rules and procedure in the Judiciary and at the Seychelles Code of Civil Procedure, the Courts Act and all of the various Court and Tribunal rules  in order to better consolidate and align these, making them better fit for purpose; a committee has already begun to consider the Court fees and costs and will finalise the reform this year including amendments to the Legal Aid services; will bulk up the judicial continued education programme and employ legal researchers to assist with producing quality research for the judges and as the concerns of the staff in the judiciary about training and morale had been heard, the judiciary is looking to improve incentives and job satisfaction. Also the audio recording facilities in the Magistrate’s court is being introduced and beefing up the case management systems which will help to save courtroom time. It is looking to improve its IT capabilities to bring the Judiciary up to speed with reforms happening in other countries.

To the attorneys, she called on them to set the standard: “You are part of a proud heritage of honour. You are the trusted advisers for your clients and on the whole, you are deserving of the respect that is placed in you. However, I have heard of worrying extortionate behaviour by certain persons - which needs to cease – not because I say it is wrong, not because the laws do, but because it is fundamentally abhorrent to abuse the trust placed in you by your clients. You are there to vindicate their rights, if their rights have been unlawfully infringed. You must advise your clients against filing frivolous cases, and where your client has a proper claim, focus on producing the highest standard of work that you can. I call on you to not pander to your egos in the media and to graciously allow the Courts to do their jobs without intimidation or spreading half-truths to the media. There is a process of appeals, a practice which is internationally accepted as a mechanism for ensuring that rights are vindicated.  I look forward to engaging with you in developing continued legal education to keep your skills sharp and accurate. Thank you for the respect and restraint that you exhibit and for keeping the legal profession in such high regards both nationally and internationally. I look forward to another year of working together,” she urged them.

She ended her report with another quote from Sir James which she said summarises our hopes for 2017:

“I want to call for a partnership which comes more from the heart and less from political manoeuvering. I call for a Seychelles of greater fraternal harmony, more dialogue and social contacts among the players on the national stage. Let us sincerely and honestly collaborate to ensure that our common resources, our experience and goodwill work in harmony with the national interest. (Budget reply. December 1996. Seychelles Review – Dec 1996/Jan 1997)”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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