From Haiti Sentinel

MANAGUA, Nicaragua (sentinel.ht) – Among the resolutions adopted by the Judicial Council of Central America and the Caribbean at its meeting in Managua this week was to send an official invitation to the chief justices of the supreme courts of the Republic of Haiti and Cuba to be part of this regional organization.

Haiti is currently without a Chief Justice since the resignation of Anel Alexis Joseph in January. The judiciary in the country is perceived as not independent of the executive administration which rules without a Parliament.

The Judicial Council of Central America and the Caribbean also includes, among other nations, the Dominican Republic, whose laws and a tribunal ruling in 2013 have been decried by many for violating human rights.

None the less, the president of the Supreme Court of Nicaragua and President Pro Tempore of the Judicial Council of Central America and the Caribbean, Dr. Alba Luz Ramos, during the closing message, communicated that that will make the official invitation to the judicial authorities of Cuba and Haiti, so that they can add their experiences to the body.

The proposal to integrate Cuba and Haiti as members of the Central American and Caribbean Judicial Council, stands out as one of the most important decisions of the regional body, which met in Managua on 15 and 16 April.

“This is an issue that the Council (Judicial) we had already discussed in another meeting in Dominican Republic and Cuba agreed urge to join, because if you already participate in the Ibero-American Judicial Summit, then why will not participate in this advice that is in Central America and the Caribbean? “said Ramos.

The meeting of the Judicial Council of Central America and the Caribbean delegations gathered in Managua the highest level of the Supreme Courts of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.

Also attending was a representation of Mexico, Vice President of the Supreme Court of Spain, the Secretariat of the Central, SICA Integration, the Permanent Secretary of the Latin American Judicial Summit and the Judicial Facilitators Program of the OAS.

In his message Dr. Ramos, stressed the importance of orality and Management Model Judicial Offices, which is promoted successfully in Nicaragua.

“They are instruments that have served to reduce the delay of justice, Nicaragua is the country with less delay of justice in the region, especially in criminal matters,” said Ramos.

Another issue discussed was that of the Judicial Facilitators, as it is one of the most important access to justice links, it is the participation of citizens, the community and the people in the administration of justice.

The Judicial Facilitators is a project in Nicaragua, now emerges as a model in other Latin American nations. The country was institutionalized in the Criminal Procedure Code and elevated to constitutional reforms approved in 2014.

“All countries are interested in this service, which has spread beyond the subregion and is already present in Argentina, Paraguay and Panama,” said the president pro tempore of the Central American and Caribbean Judicial Council.

IMAGE: Official photo from the meeting of the Judicial Council of Central America and the Caribbean, Managua, Nicaragua

For more on this story go to: http://www.sentinel.ht/politics/articles/international/6006-haiti-invited-to-join-central-american-and-caribbean-judicial-council