The formation of the Jamaica Association of Women Judges (JAWJ) is rooted in a history of Women Judges from Jamaica attending international conferences put on by the International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ) from as far back as 2012 when our Chief Justice, the Honourable Mrs. Justice Zaila McCalla, OJ attended and participated in the IAWJ’s Biennial Conference held in London. In March 2014, the Honourable Chief Justice and Her Honour Mrs. Paula Blake-Powell attended the launch of the Caribbean Association of Women Judges (CAWJ) where Her Honour Mrs. Blake-Powell was elected Vice-President, a position she still holds today. This is where the seed was planted for the formation of our very own Association.
The IAWJ which can been seen as the parent organization, is a non-profit, non-governmental organization which was founded in 1991. The organization has brought together judges from all over the world in pursuit of its mission to "advance human rights and equal justice for all". The IAWJ seeks to achieve this by "promoting education, contributing to the understanding and resolution of legal issues facing women, and issues concerning women judges." The organization's mandate is to among other things:
- "promote women’s access to the courts and advance women’s rights to equal justice.
- eliminate gender bias from judicial systems.
- engage in, fund, sponsor and/or promote research and study that contributes to the
understanding and resolution of legal issues facing women, and to encourage cooperation and collaboration among women judges of all nations. - assist, conduct, fund and/or sponsor regional, national or international educational
conferences, judicial exchanges, fora, seminars and training programs, for the benefit of
judges and other interested persons, to increase their understanding of the broad range of social, economic, psychological and cultural factors that influence women affected by the court system."
In May 2016 the roots of our association took hold at the Biennial IAWJ Conference in Washington DC where a pledge was made to implement a project related to "Women and Girls in Detention" which was an issue raised at the conference and also to establish a chapter of the IAWJ in Jamaica.
The JAWJ was launched on Saturday, January 7, 2017. Jamaica took its place on the world stage by becoming part of a twenty-five year movement which promotes solidarity for women and justice. The Association is organized for the purpose of promoting a greater understanding and better resolution of legal issues facing women and issues concerning women judges. The JAWJ among other things, seeks to:
- encourage co-operation and collaboration among women judges;
- contribute to the understanding and resolution of legal issues facing women;
- increase understanding of the broad range of social, economic, psychological and cultural factors that influence women who interface with the justice system;
- increase understanding of human rights law and the role of the judiciary in implementing that law to promote and protect the rights of women on an equal basis;
- support programmes and activities which discourage violence in our society;
We look forward to continuing to carry out our mandate and to increasing collaboration with our local, regional and international partners.
Executive Committee
- Judge Paula Blake-Powell - President
- Judge Opal Smith - First Vice-President
- Justice Hilary Phillips - Second Vice-President
- Justice Desiree Alleyne - Secretary
- Justice Carol Edwards - Assistant Secretary
- Justice Vivene Harris - Treasurer
- Justice Sonia Bertram-Linton - Assistant Treasurer
First Patron, The Honourable Miss Justice Gloria Smith, Retired Senior Puisne Judge.